I have sat watching the oven a while, beer in one hand, pestle grinding charcoal in the other, & I noticed it is driiping water out now. I packed the receiver (black tube) firmly & nearly full with yard trimmings including Rhodedendron stems & leaves, flowering Plum stems & leaves, Maple dead stems, & some unidentified miscelaneous trimmings. I left room for the thermometer in the end I have capped with folded foil. This keeps blowing off in the wind and/or from the pressure inside the receiver. I just crimped it tighter & knifed in a small vent hole. The dripping end has a 'factory' cap that is tight fit but not air tight (or water tight obviously).
In just reading a new post in the terra preta thread I saw a first mention of 'brown' charcoal, which is apparently less heated & contains more plant resins. Perhaps this oven suffices after all.
I find I actually need the reflector inclined higher, but I have not added the safety chains to the receiver & struts so I have to rely on gravity to hold it in place.
This concludes this irregularly scheduled report.
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semantics is not always just pedantic quibbling. ~ douglas r. hofstadter
