Make and use maize cob charcoal

Four very good reasons why to make your own charcoal from dry maize cobs.

1. They are FREE!! (minimal processing required and are widely available as a farm waste product)

 2. Maize cob charcoal is very easy to make and leaves few charcoal fines. (no need for expensive briquetting)

 3. They are easy to light and burn very hot with little ash and are perfect for cooking a quick meal. 

4. Using maize cob charcoal means ZERO reliance on tree's and forests, fossil fuels like LPG gas or unreliable and expensive electricity supplies for your cooking fuel needs. And with a Cookswell Jiko you can bake, boil, roast and toast all of your favorite foods

All you need is a Cookswell kiln, a few spare hours and some free maize cobs. 
Which almost all maize farmers in Kenya are very happy to get off their hands. Maize cobs are used in a few areas for silage for zero grazing cows, some people use them to cook with but they are so smoky most people burn them in the fields as waste.
Loading the dry maize cobs in the kiln
After 5-6 hours you are done, just seal the kiln, let it cool for a few hours and voila!

Your lump maize cob charcoal is ready to use!

Blending maize cob and tree branch charcoal at a 1:3 ratio is a great combination for fast lighting and long cooking!

Maize cob charcoal burns HOT and cleanly! 




You can also add on a wood oil trap to collect the pyroligneous acid (Wood Vinegar) to use for anti-termite on farm use. (Read more about that here http://kenyacharcoal.blogspot.com/2016/05/how-to-make-your-own-wood-vinegar-with.html







Some of the the first things the Cookswell R&D lab cooked up when we discovered how simple and cheap it is to make ''amaizing'', maize cob charcoal.....or.....mkalamagunzi choma!!  

The 18,000ksh 4 burner Cookswell BBQ jiko.

A kilo robo choma of some nice mbavu chaps cooked in 35mins! 


Never pay for charcoal again!


Maize cob charcoal blended with branch charcoal. Fast lighting and long burning..easy to make and easy to use with the same great taste! 



All of this was cooked on 3 re-charges of charcoal (about 4 handfuls)....and was essentially free charcoal (waste maize cobs) (the 25,000ksh small 3 level charcoal oven.)  



Karibu to the Lower Kabete Woodfuel Resource Center in Nairobi
cookswelljikos@gmail.com  

 Cookswell energy saving jikos held a day long woodfuel security demonstration at the Soysambu Conservancy on the 29th of September 2012 with the Chair-ladies from some women's groups of the 13 Communities that live next to the Conservancy. The Ceremony was led by Mr.Kinyanjui from the Cookswell Jikos and Graced by Lord and Lady Delamere. Among the hosts was the Managing Director of Delamere Estate, the CEO of Soysambu Conservancy and the Community Education and Awareness Officer.

observing the flaring off process of charcoal making.

a 4,500ksh double jiko, a 4,000ksh space heater and a 15,000ksh charcoal oven

The mini-biashara Double jiko with an in-built food warmer and ash-trays.

The turn up was great, forty women were present, the objective of the day was to demonstrate high quality energy saving jikos and the use of improved barrel kilns to carbonize selectively pruned and harvested Acacia  twigs and branches for sustainable woodfuel security.

a variety of tree seeds were on sale for only 100ksh a packet
A consignment of jiko's is now at the Research Center at the Soysambu Conservancy retailing at our same low factory price!



Mama Leah, the first customer! she also got a free african olive and pencil ceder tree seedling as a bonus!