Talk:Woodchips

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article is or was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Kyliebennett. Peer reviewers: Contributingknowledge, Carleton2712.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 05:03, 18 January 2022 (UTC)

Anticipated Article Additions
This article is lacking in a number of ways. I would first like to address the definition of Woodchips and build on it in the first paragraph of the article. In addition, there are no citations provided in the majority of this article, therefore I would like to add citations to back-up the information already present.

Many paragraphs in this article have poor grammar. The paragraph under Production, for instance, is confusing and could be edited.

The entire article uses "Wood chips" and "Woodchips" interchangeably and I would like to edit this so that the paper consistently uses the correct terminology.

What I plan to contribute:
 * Add citations to existing content
 * Add to "Raw Materials" section (sources and types of raw materials)
 * Add a detailed "Canada" section to Market products, supply and demand
 * Further discuss the environmental aspects of woodchip harvesting and use
 * Add more relevant pictures to the article

Relevant Bibliography (listed at the bottom of this page)

--Kyliebennett (talk) 20:58, 11 February 2018 (UTC)


 * Hi. Please, "woodchips" to "wood chips": what is the difference ? Thanks. (I am creating "No till garden", despite it is redirected now and just in the Sandbox; renaming in process.) --Visionhelp (talk) 07:53, 9 June 2020 (UTC)


 * OK. ´Wood chips´ search in wikipedia redirects to Woodchips, whether it is the correct word or not.
 * Translation to german from ´wood chips´ gives more fitting (german) words than woodchips at all, but this may be just a translation problem.
 * Visionhelp (talk) 16:03, 26 April 2021 (UTC)

Wood Fuel energy efficiency claim
I rewrote the comparison with wood pellets because it was completely inaccurate and unsourced. Original:

"Woodchips are less expensive than wood pellets and are theoretically more energy efficient than pellets, because less energy is required for manufacturing, processing, and transportation; however, this assumes that they are consumed in an appropriately designed burner, and, these are mostly only available in large systems designed for commercial or institutional use, which have been very successful in terms of performance, cost, reliability, and efficiency."

Not even close. This is basically common-sense stuff, and I'm too lazy to find and source hard numbers, but the data underpinning the general statements in my rewrite is all in the article. Essentially: more water = less heat value = less burn efficiency / ton = need to burn, ship and store more tons + lower density = more volumes required to cover those tons = even higher logistics costs. The net impact of lower manufacturing costs and higher shipping costs is subject to debate, as is the energy impact from those components, so I specifically avoided making any conclusions. (Economics is on my side here: demand for both feedstocks is growing)


 * Hi. (Sorry, if displaced.)
 * Wood chips as covering a soil with about 8 inch (also: more or less) keeps more and longer the water in the soil. Even in hot areas. Back to Eden Gardening. This does make watering much less necessary, and saves water to use (to take away) from for other needs. And risks of losses of harvests are very much reduced.
 * Long term, years, from composting there (on the soil), it is making, keeping it healthy and does multiply the soil.
 * Short term, about after 2 months already, with a layer Animal manure and wood chips (on top), it makes a clay, loam, to healthy soil.
 * (Alternatives to animal´s manure are: Whey probably, EMs (Effective microorganisms surely, I think.
 * Compost with its some nitrogen does help to break down the wood chips, too, but just a bit slower.
 * Adding Charcoal (for water and nutrients storage) does additionly a Terra Preta effect (at least).)
 * (There is more to say.
 * Against climate change. For saving energy (for watering already) and ressources, water, work and effort (time).
 * (Re)generates just clay, loam, to healthy soil, makes soil multiplying and keeps healthy soil stay healthy (nutrients providing).)
 * (Thanks the interesst.) Visionhelp (talk) 11:04, 23 April 2021 (UTC)

Cost of coal
According to my experience (i work in an utility in Italy) the cost of biomass is significantly higher than coal for the same heat content (2.5 x higher) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 146.133.226.3 (talk) 07:59, 7 October 2011 (UTC)

To in ´Waste processing´
Quote "Woodchip biomass does not have the waste disposal issues of coal and nuclear power":

When mulch woodchips is able to create a sustainable, no dig method AND water houshold bettering soil environment, then this statement, viewed in connection to those benefits, is not to compare DIRECTLY to just ENERGY, I think. Indirectly absolutely yes, but it is not just about "waste disposal". And therefrom just always still possible to say such at all this way ? (Just saying, please. Sorry.)

Quote "wood ash can be used directly as a mineral-rich plant fertilizer":

Ashes makes soil alkaline. Some plants prefer this. When a good soil has ph 7, ash is not necessary. A soil ph 7 provides both needs, acidic AND alkaline. (The current only source to this is from a talk group about the method Back To Eden Gardening, where it is noted as shared experience.) To help the soil from acidic to ph 7 ash does help this, but not as only possibility to this; ph7 (in soil), does make ash, not useless to it, but unnecessary. (A note to ph 7: usually is labeled ´neutral´. Whether for body houshold or in water quality providing or soil. This label ´neutral´ is absolutely not only ´just´ confusing, but very much misleading !)
 * --Visionhelp (talk) 08:25, 9 June 2020 (UTC)

The nitrogen use (need) for composting wood chips is connected to f. e. (Animal´s) Manure and Nitrification
(No matter (currently; sorry) what and how it is already mentioned:) Composting of wood chips uses (needs) nitrogen, for example animal´s manure. Other materials also, as already healthy soil and compost (with some less nitrogen). Means: wood chips do not compost, or as good as not at all, without any nitrogen. This is topicly connected (at least) to Nitrification and nitrogen sources (as animal´s manure, and others), preferably natural, my opinion. (In the method Back to Eden Gardening it is used, in parts, depending on the need. In the main for creating, establishing a healthy soil (with animal´s manure and wood chips), for water keeping (with the wood chips). Also at Ruth Stout´s (since 1944) method; but until now I could only find a little statement of her to animal´s manure and mulch: (quote) "But I no longer need it; the ever-rotting mulch takes its place." Source) --Visionhelp (talk) 10:46, 23 April 2021 (UTC)