PRACTICAL AND MONEY-SAVING USE OF THE SAWDUST STOVE IN GHANA

Abstract

The sawdust stove (SOS) has been introduced in Ghana as a cook stove using a- renewable energy resource (RER) - sawdust, for almost thirty years now. Over these years however, the sawdust stove is not as widely in domestic use as the wood stove and charcoal "pot" even where sawdust abounds. This study therefore sought to find the reasons behind the non-adoption of the sawdust stove, and based on the findings, recommend practical and money-saving ways of using the stove. Literature review on sawdust stoves and field studies revealed a stove model without a separate ash compartment. The absence of the ash compartment lowered the sawdust combustion efficiency of the stove. The stoves were also not constructed from any design, but made from scrap metal, empty cans and drums. A model, with a separate ash compartment, was proposed and constructed from mild steel and compared practically with the existing model. From practical use of the proposed model it was found that the sawdust stove could provide a relatively long period of steady heat output. For instance, a three kilogram (3 kg) capacity sawdust stove provided a steady heat output for up to 10 hours without tending or stoking. It was also found that the rate of combustion of the sawdust could be considerably increased by adding a piece of charcoal to the base of the lit sawdust. Among the drawbacks to the use of the sawdust stove, the problem of accessibility to sawdust stands out. Where however, sawdust can be obtained inexpensively and easily, considerable savings on fuel can be made from hybrid use of the sawdust stove with the charcoal or gas stove.