Paper Cat Litter

[Hammock_man]

Popped into wilkco to get some more wood cat litter and they where out of stock. The sainsbury's nearby has a pet section so had a look there. The wooden litter was much more dearer so I left it. Then I saw they had paper pellet cat litter. Would guess it would burn but how well? Does anyone have experience of this.

 

[Robson Valley]

Will British cats actually use that stuff?
Here, you're more likely to find a load in your shoe as retaliation.

 

[Macaroon]

Will British cats actually use that stuff?
Here, you're more likely to find a load in your shoe as retaliation.

I think most cats would use it, but if you were unfortunate enough to try to introduce it to one who didn't it'd likely be your headphones where you'd find the sign of disapproval rather than your shoe, if I know cats!

 

[Hammock_man]

No No NO you big bananas.... paper cat pellets to use in a stove. fuel .. burny... make tea .. heat beans

This is a FIRECRAFT thread !

 

[Robson Valley]

So we are supposed to stew the paper beans and burn the tea to do it?
Wood pellets are for home heating as I burn my way through 10,000 lbs average per winter.
I'm going to start the ton-a-month club.

 

[Nice65]

I think most cats would use it, but if you were unfortunate enough to try to introduce it to one who didn't it'd likely be your headphones where you'd find the sign of disapproval rather than your shoe, if I know cats!

My cats love it so much they haven't peed in my headphones, houseplants, or shoes since we got it. It's super absorbent, much better than wood pellets.

I wouldn't know how it burns, they've usually sipping their Lapsang by the time I'm up. By my logic, which I gauge by pinches of salt, I'd say wood is going to provide far more gas than paper. Scrunched up paper just glows in my woodburner, it doesn't really take a carbon yellow flame.

 

[Robson Valley]

The salvage paper is probably compressed just as the wood sawdust is.
Thus, mass for mass, it should (wood pulp > paper) burn as well.
What will be different is that glossy magazine papers for quality image printing
as often coated with starch (OK) or kaolin clay (much cheaper) which will not burn at all.

One gigantic pellet mill (which shall remain nameless) was doping their wood pellets with 5% sand.
and we were buying by weight, of course. The added weight of ash in a bucket (12-15 x 40 lb bags)
was the real give-away.

As camping stove fuel, I'd like to try them.

 

[gonzo_the_great]

But do cats use it their woodburners?

 

[Robson Valley]

My cat sure as Hello would be burning it. She always plugs a furnace heater vent in the mornings.
Do believe she's after 25C while I'm after 22C to be cozy. -25C is common, was -30C this morning.

 

[Hammock_man]

So, in short, it would seem that no one has actually used this other then as a butt for jokes.... ( see what I did there?)

 

[Robson Valley]

Well, let's not get to butting heads over this.

Fuel pellets in North America are made from wood dust, grass fiber or corn cobs.
The paper should be every bit as good as any of those.

I tried wood pellets for cat litter as I have a good supply.
She began to use the largest flower pots instead.

 

[steven.corston]

When we started using paper cat litter I thought we could chuck it on the wood burning stove to get rid of it. Didn't work, it just sat on top and slowly smoldered suffocating the fire.

 

[Hammock_man]

Thanks for that, seems it is a no go for wood burners then. Wonder what price the wooden litter will be when its back in stock?

 

[Robson Valley]

As cat litter, the local price per bag was about 2X the fuel cost price.

I run a pellet stove, it functions much like a blacksmith's forge with 3 electric motors.
The fire is about 6" wide and 3" from front to back. That's it to heat 2 x 1200 sq ft.

Delivered to my front yard as 50 x 40lb bags, triple wrapped in plastic on a pallet,
I pay $235/ton. Average 5 tons per winter. At -20C, that's close to 3 bags per day.

What I can tell you as an industrial fact is that the pellets are not air dry, they are oven dry.
Just sitting, bone dry in my lower kitchen from April to the next October, they do not burn efficiently at all.
They can suck up ambient humidity and that's unstoppable.

Of course, I have a complete, oil-fired central heating system in the house for when I'm away.
The pellet stove runs out shuts off, cools down and the oil furnace takes over.
This winter, from December 27th, I was away for 63 days.