watermelonman
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2014
- Messages
- 2,597
- Reaction score
- 10
What is dog barf? I thought it meant recovery wadding but given somewhere else I read it, I think not.
Oh, the confusion must have come from someone talking about the fact that it is not branded as recovery wadding.
Thanks!
What is dog barf? I thought it meant recovery wadding but given somewhere else I read it, I think not.
My nephew forgot what we called Dog Barf, so he asked me, "What is this stuff called again? Horse Crap?"
It's trickle down from high power rocketry. As the size of rockets increased the Estes paper squares just couldn't do the job anymore. Some tried fiberglass insulation but that was bad, it never goes away. Then in the same row at Home Depot someone noticed cellulose insulation has to be fire resistant to be used as insulation. Another choice is Crepe' paper. By law it has to be fireproof because of where it's used, like kid's parties, and paper streamers can too easily become paper fuses.
And the 'dog barf' is from what a pile of it looks like....especially wet.....
Be careful with cheap dollar store Chinese crepe paper... although "by law" it's supposed to be flameproof, some folks have reported that it will sometimes burn far better than "flameproof" would suggest...
Test first to avoid nasty surprises...
Later! OL JR
Dig barf specifically refers to cellulose insulation, which is used in place of expensive recovery wadding. Like the wadding, it is a paper product treated with a flame retardant, and it works very well. It is also dirt cheap. The minimum amount you can buy will last approximately 3 lifetimes and costs $11.
https://m.homedepot.com/p/GreenFiber-Blow-in-Fiber-Insulation-INS541LD/100318635/
Sent from my iPhone using Rocketry Forum
Look for bales that were torn open and taped shut. I found a few like this at Lowe's for half price!!
Be careful with cheap dollar store Chinese crepe paper... although "by law" it's supposed to be flameproof, some folks have reported that it will sometimes burn far better than "flameproof" would suggest...
Test first to avoid nasty surprises...
Later! OL JR
I happened into a Party Supply Store one day with my Son to look around, and saw that they had Crepe Paper Streamer Rolls. It was not the Dollar Store, but the stuff was still all just a Dollar. When I got home I tried to burn some and it is fire retardent. Used it a few times now with good results, and think that I will stick with it. I recovered a section of it once after a launch, and it only had some slight brown charring on a little bit of it. It seems to float away instead of raining down in chunks like the Recovery Wadding does.
You can use anything for recovery wadding provided that it is flameproof. I've heard of people using lettuce. All it needs to do is absorb burning bits of BP and be movable. As it stands, I have tons of dog barf in my basement that I probably will never work through. But it is so much easier to pinch and dump a little in than having to count and rip off those sheets.
No, you can't... use pillow ticking (which is also flameproof by law) or fiberglass insulation, and you'll probably be looking for a new launch field... (sure would around here anyway!)
Just because it's 'flameproof' doesn't mean it CAN be used for wadding... though you are correct about lettuce, cabbage leaves, etc. being used, so long as they're BIODEGRADABLE... Need to be responsible and keep your landowner happy if you like having a place to fly...
Later! OL JR
VERY good point! Must be biodegradable. That was a poor oversight on my part.
One little trick I've found over the last Decade or so.
Using dog Barf only in LPR and MPR models I've had several Plastic and Nylon chutes damaged by "Blow-By" embers. To remedy this I started using a single sheet of Estes FP wadding below the 2 to 3 diameters of Dog Barf then a single sheet or two on top and around the Chute or streamer. Vastly extends a pack of Estes expensive wadding while giving positive protection for my chutes. Since starting this practice I have not had another burned hole or melted chute or streamer. With models over 4" diameter I use 3 overlapping sheets on the bottom to get complete coverage.
The two clubs I launch at in MN ban anything except dog barf (obviously, fire resistant blankets like Nomex, are allowed). But they provide it for the membership and even allow you to fill a zip-lock bag of it to use when you're not flying at a club launch. It is also a lot less messy than the Estes paper wadding. Imagine 100 rockets with 2-4 sheets each being launched at a field in one day. The dog barf breaks into a lot of small, bio-degradable particles. It doesn't make for the eye-sore that the tissue does.
Cz brat:
Our club is one of the larger one's in the nation. we have Hundreds of Models launched the 3rd Saterday of nearly EVERY month. Some months we don't quite break the 100 flight mark but they are RARE Months. Many of our Club members and Public fliers use Estes Wadding only. Many of us use dog Barf and I and a few others use the combination discribed in my earlier post.
Estes Wadding IS biodegradable, breaking down very quickly. If retrieved the same day can be reused which some of us also do.
The Club flys from a State Park, do you really think the state would allow us to use this wadding (Estes and Dog Barf) if it were an Eye-Sore.
Your observation is simply and totally incorrect.
Enter your email address to join: