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Lichen on smoking wood?

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kbutler84
kbutler84 Posts: 140
in EggHead Forum
I have several large oak tree limbs that I'm cutting into chunks for smoking. The bark is in overall good shape, but it does have lichens on it. Is it necessary to scrape it off? With as much as I have to cut, it would take forever and I'd hate not to make use of the wood. Or will it burn off if given enough time before I put my food on?
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  • ColtsFan
    ColtsFan Posts: 6,345
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    I wouldn't use it as is. I'd wire brush it or de-bark. I can't imagine algae smoke tasting good

    ~ John - https://www.instagram.com/hoosier_egger
    XL BGE, LG BGE, KJ Jr, PK Original, Ardore Pizza Oven, King Disc 
    Bloomington, IN - Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoosiers!

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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
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    It'll be fine. 

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
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    Totally fine
    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
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    One guy posted in 2009 he's smoked with lichen covered persimmon around 1000 times with no problems in smoke taste.  Try it before you commit to the laborious process of making smoke chunks.  If it tastes bad, you can use a pressure washer to remove it but I think you'll not notice any difference from oak without it.

    Lichens are a symbiosis of at least two very different organisms, a fungus and something that does photosynthesis like an algae.  People eat it, deer eat it in the winter, and while some is poisonous to eat (cyanobacteria), it shouldn't result in poisonous smoke, as it burns, plus smoke is poisonous anyway.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
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  • Jeremiah
    Jeremiah Posts: 6,412
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    Pure opinion here, but in an egg, all you need are a few chunks, so why not go the extra step and knock it off? Now in an offset, I wouldn't worry about it. 
    Slumming it in Aiken, SC. 
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  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
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    It doesn't affect taste at all. 

    We are told no bark, no lichen. But the bark of the shagbark hickory is nothing BUT bark and often has lichen all over it. 

    It's not a deadly mold or some powerful tasting contaminant. And it doesn't really 'knock' off   You'd have to brush it or scrub, and to me that just is laughably paranoid

    try it first
    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    edited June 2016
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    Darby_Crenshaw said:
    ... laughably paranoid
    Indeed!

    Geez. You guys ever go camping? Ever cook over a campfire using deadfall you collected?  Did you scrub THAT first? Bring a pressure washer from home? Hardwood, softwood, bark, lichen, whatever. No food is better than that cooked over such a campfire.

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • kbutler84
    kbutler84 Posts: 140
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    Ended up cutting up a buckets worth of chunks and will try it out. Saving the rest of the limbs for another day.  If it comes off easily I'll pull it off, but otherwise it's going to stay on for this time. 
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  • NorthPilot06
    NorthPilot06 Posts: 1,179
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    Carolina Q said:
    Darby_Crenshaw said:
    ... laughably paranoid
    Indeed!

    Geez. You guys ever go camping? Ever cook over a campfire using deadfall you collected?  Did you scrub THAT first? Bring a pressure washer from home?Hardwood, softwood, bark, lichen, whatever. No food is better than that cooked over such a campfire.

    Haha very fair point
    DFW - 1 LGBE & Happy to Adopt More...
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  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
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    I honestly do not know what to make of lichen. Some is reported as food, others as poison, or at least nasty in taste. See here for pluses and negatives. To go out on a limb, search on "Stoned on Stones."

    However, having done campfire cooking many times, I've rarely, possibly never, been in a situation when I couldn't pick and choose what woods I'd burn. I guess bug filled might add a bit of spice, but I'd rather not bother. I want dry wood, nothin else. Cripes, if you have the tools and energy to cut it up, ain't nothin to knock of stuff that is dubious.

    I also don't care to use cowpies, despite the long history of use.
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  • dougcrann
    dougcrann Posts: 1,129
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    Jeremiah said:
    Pure opinion here, but in an egg, all you need are a few chunks, so why not go the extra step and knock it off? Now in an offset, I wouldn't worry about it. 
    Some of the splits I have put in my Reverse Flow have "stuff" on them...never given them a second thought...but offsets have active fires...
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  • McStew
    McStew Posts: 965
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    send it all to my house I will test it for you 
    Hermosa Beach CA 
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