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[KrunkSplein]

Sorry if someone has suggested this before, nothing similar came up on Search, and the huge Bloat list scares me.

Basically, the relative scarcity of wood is the limiting factor in many fortresses.  Virtually all wood is reserved for beds and barrels.  However, I am a huge fan of clear glass, which requires pearlash, which requires potash, which requires ash, which requires wood.

My question is this - can't we burn other things for the ash?  Charcoal I understand as wood-only, but ash?  I'm thinking, I sure do have a lot of goblin corpses piled up in my refuse pile...

A morbid thought, to be sure, but ash is ash.

Before I submitted this I thought to myself, "If the process of making Steel is so accurate, let me make sure my Ash-thoughts aren't completely off base."

Sure enough, from the Wikipedia entry for Potash: "(when creating potash)...Then fill the barrel with wood-ashes and pour water over it."

Wood-ashes.  Dang it.  So much for my crematorium!

[Chaos]

Wow. Clear glass made with the ashes of dead enemies. That has to be one of the most deliciously morbid ideas I have heard in months!
Shame that it seems to be wood exclusive though, so to speak...

[Grek]

I don't see why it would have to be wood ash. Most of the uses for ashes are based on the fact that ash is rich in carbon, so any carbon rich ash should work.

[Ioric Kittencuddler]

Hey, that gives me another idea!  Why not make an indoor refuse stockpile with a lava flooding system?  Woot!  Burn it!

[Captain Mayday]

quote:Originally posted by Chaos:
<STRONG>Wow. Clear glass made with the ashes of dead enemies. That has to be one of the most deliciously morbid ideas I have heard in months!
Shame that it seems to be wood exclusive though, so to speak...</STRONG>

This idea is amazing. I look forward to the day when I can make clear glass from the burnt remains of dead goblins. Then use that clear glass to rewall areas. Then to detail that glass with images of dead goblins.

[irmo]

quote:Originally posted by Grek:
<STRONG>I don't see why it would have to be wood ash. Most of the uses for ashes are based on the fact that ash is rich in carbon, so any carbon rich ash should work.</STRONG>

The lye/potash/pearlash process uses the potassium salts, not the carbon.  It really needs wood ashes.

[Tallim]

Actually with the new ocean thing and such a new potential is available as potassium Carbonate is (in our world) usually manufactured or mined from the sea bed or lake beds if I remember correctly. But that is a modern era thing.

In older times then broadleafed trees were used to create potash, so DF has it pretty much spot on. Be thankful that *any* type of wood can be used for potash and not just a select few.

[Bien]

quote:Originally posted by Ioric Kittencuddler:
<STRONG>Hey, that gives me another idea!  Why not make an indoor refuse stockpile with a lava flooding system?  Woot!  Burn it!</STRONG>

Woud'nt the ash get mixed with the magma?

[Deathworks]

Hi!

There would also be the problem of animals being usually not highly combustible. As far as I know, you need some pretty high temperature just to get your goblins reduced to ashes.

Deathworks

[Ilmuri]

Just install huge water wheel-powered bellows next to the forge. >

[KrunkSplein]

quote:Originally posted by Tallim:
<STRONG>Actually with the new ocean thing and such a new potential is available as potassium Carbonate is (in our world) usually manufactured or mined from the sea bed or lake beds if I remember correctly. But that is a modern era thing.</STRONG>

From Wikipedia (the most dangerous site on the net): "It should be noted that unlike other producers, Israel and Jordan use solar evaporation pans in the Dead Sea to produce carnallite from which potassium chloride is produced."

[edit] But I still think using gobbie ash would be awesome, if woefully inadequate.  Maybe we can just say that the goblins eat a LOT of bananas, so their ashes would have a ton of potassium! [/edit]

[ July 31, 2007: Message edited by: KrunkSplein ]

[Abyssal Squid]

06/27/2007: Changed how berserk dwarves are disassociated from their former entities, made some of the good/evil creature selection more uniform, made merchants verify animal temperature limits before bringing them to a location, changed how certain trees are displayed on the world map, added wood to initial startup items, added wood as a trade item, handled an item placement issue with depots, handled startup wagon placement problem, fixed a minimap display issue

This ought to make barrel and ash production a lot easier.

[Devastator]

In the new mineral listings realeased by Toady, there are several that are commonly mined for potash.  I'm pretty certain this has been implemented..

[Darkchampion]

regardless, you can trade for wood in the next version so even on a glacier wood wont be such an extremely rare commodity.

[Grek]

Being able to burn refuse without magma is still a good idea.