Picked propane over coal for my forge and I'm still second guessing it

After 8 years running a solid fuel forge I finally switched to a propane setup last month. I live in a pretty residential area near Austin so the neighbors were always complaining about the smoke. But man, I miss the heat control you get with real coal. Propane is cleaner and faster to heat up for sure, but there's something about adjusting the air flow on a coal fire that feels more natural to me. I went with a 2 burner Venturi style because I didn't want to mess with blown systems. Now I'm wondering if I made the wrong call since the gas bill is higher than I expected. Has anyone else gone back to coal after trying propane, or did you just stick with gas?

3 comments

3 Comments

bettymurphy1mo ago

Did you ever try mixing a little bit of coke or charcoal in with your coal to cut down on the smoke? I knew a guy in the Hill Country who used to do that and his neighbors never bothered him as much. But then he got a new dog that barked at everything and they started complaining again anyway.

gavinperez1mo agoMost Upvoted

Did that cut down the smell too or just the smoke?

oliver5231mo ago

I had a buddy who switched to propane from coal about 5 years ago and he swore by it for a while, but last summer I saw him at a hammer-in and he was back on coal. He said the gas just didn't give him the same feel for the heat zones in his forge, plus his gas supplier kept messing up his delivery schedule. Me, I've never actually used coal myself, I started with a little single burner Venturi setup from Devil's Forge and it's been fine for what I do, mostly knives and small tools. But I can see how you might miss that hands-on control with solid fuel, it's a whole different rhythm. Propane is definitely cleaner though, especially in a neighborhood, so maybe it's just a trade off you have to sit with for a while.