Subject: Re: Sawdust ideas

From: [email-masked] (Robert Galloway)
Date: 27 Mar 1997 08:09:11 -0700

Most folks generate a bunch of grass clippings they don't know what to do 
with.  Grass clippings have more than enough nitrogen to go with their 
carbon (the reverse of the sawdust) so mixing a little sawdust with grass 
clippings comes out about right.  Sawdust also helps keep the grass 
clippings from matting together and setting up anaerobic conditions which 
tends to make for a foul smelling mess.  The previous post was absolutely 
correct that sawdust by itself isn't much of a fertilizer and will suck 
up all the available nitrogen in the process of decomposing.  Eventually, 
most of this nitrogen will be returned to the soil.

rhg

In article <[email-masked]>,
Jerry Morrison  <[email-masked]> wrote:
>Clyde E Bowman III wrote:
>> 
>> Anyone come up with some other ideas for sawdust use?
>> 
>> - With watered down glue added makes great puppet parts.
>> 
>> - in a metal trash can with pottery a great primitive kiln.
>> 
>> - great in composting
>> 
>> --
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>
>  I don't know about the first two ideas but I will comment on using
>sawdust in compost. The amount of energy consumed in decomposing
>sawdust, especially hardwood sawdust leaves the compost deficient in
>nitrogen, as a matter of fact it uses so much that it won't compost well
>at all on it's own. It will, if you add high nitrogen fertilizer along
>with your sawdust. I don't know what proportions you would use, maybe
>someone knows and can enlighten us.
>  I found this out when I added oak sawdust to a garden area for my wife
>one year. Her garden wouldn't even produce weeds. Won't go into the
>trouble I was in for that mistake.
>
>Still Learning after all these years,
>Jerry Morrison

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 1997 10:58:07 -0800

Need to beDMarlen wrote:
> 
> Or throw it in the garden to help clay soils break up.
> 
> David. 
Need to be careful about using saw dust in garden!!  First you have 
termite problem if your in wrong part of country! Two,  and more 
importantly unrotten saw dust will rob large quanities of nitrogen from 
the soil as it decays!!

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From: [email-masked] (FP1)
Date: 27 Mar 1997 16:22:00 GMT

Sawdust is great for removing stripper liquids from furniture that you are
refinishing.
Frankie

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From: [email-masked] (Jonathan Sachs)
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 1997 01:41:03 GMT

>ideas for sawdust use... great in composting

Not exactly. While sawdust will compost eventually, its ratio of
carbon to nitrogen is extremely high. Unless you take extraordinary
measures to get the ratio back into balance, sawdust pile will
actually slow down the composing process.

The best thing you can do with sawdust is spread it where you *don't*
want things to grow... like the paths in the garden. It will break
down eventually, and then you can shovel the stuff into the planted
areas. Meanwhile it will act as an effective growth inhibitor.
- -
Jonathan Sachs
Sand River Software, Inc.

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From: Clyde Young <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 1997 22:54:51 -0800

Mix the sawdust and melted wax until it becomes a thick moldable paste 
then form into small balls, squares, or cubes. Use it to start campfires, 
logs in the fireplace, or charcoal in a grill.

-- 
C.Young

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From: Mark Nappi <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 19:05:17 GMT

When mixed with sanding sealer to "goopyness". Not watery not to stiff. It
makes an excellent and cheap wood putty. If you use saw or sanding dust from
same piece of wood to putty it you don't have to worry about color. The best
part is you don't stand in paint aisle at store looking dazed and despondent.

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From: Mark Frazier <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 1997 16:13:00 -0700

I keep a small bag of it in the garage to throw under
the area where I'm changing the oil on the car/truck. 
If any spills, it gets absorbed before reaching the 
cement. Then I sweep up afterwards.