Steps on How to Make Activated Coconut Charcoal at Home

Activated coconut charcoal has many benefits that people can use. Not only are they the source of all-natural coconut shells but they can also be used as a purification of air and water to remove things affected by mold. Now, rather than buying activated coconut charcoal, why not make one instead? So, for those who need them, let’s learn the steps on how to make activated coconut charcoal.

To make activated coconut charcoal, the coconut shells must be subjected to a temperature around 300-500 degrees Celsius for several hours. The purpose here is so that it breaks down and becomes charcoal. However, the process here can happen in many ways. For more details, here are the steps on how to make activated coconut charcoal:

1. Building a Medium-Sized Fire

The first thing that you will need to make activated charcoal is a medium-sized fire. To get the best result and for safety, it is best to make the area an outdoor area. However, if you don’t have enough space outside the house, the fireplace is enough. Before starting to burn anything, make sure that the fire is already hot enough.

2. Making the Charcoal

Next, put some of the coconut shells inside a metal pot. If you don’t coconut shells, you can also use hardwood or other kinds of fibrous plants as the raw material. Make sure that the material is dry so it can burn faster. Then, cover the pot with a lid. Let it cook for around 3-5 hours to make the charcoal. Normally, when no more smoke or gas is coming out from the pot, this means that the cooking has finished.

3. Clean the Charcoal & Grind It

Let the charcoal cool down for a while before moving into a new pot. When it is cool enough, clean the charcoal by rinsing it once with water. This will remove the ash and other remaining debris inside. Don’t forget to drain the water so that charcoal becomes dry again.

Then transfer the charcoal into a new place and start grinding it up. If you don’t want to get dirty, then put the charcoal into a plastic bag and crush it up using a hammer or a hard object. Grind it all until the charcoal becomes powder. If all the charcoal is crushed, then let it dry.

4. Making the Substances

Next, make the substance that will be needed to make the charcoal active. First, mix calcium chloride and water with a ratio of 1:3. For the substance, you can adjust it with the amount of charcoal you have. Normally a normal size batch of charcoal will need 100 grams of chloride. If you don’t have chloride, then you can use bleach or lemon juice as a substitute.

5. Mix It All Together

Last, mix the substances and the powder of charcoal. Add as much chloride as you need or until the texture of the powder becomes paste consistency. Then cover the bowl and let it untouched for 24 hours. Last, cook the charcoal for around 3 hours to activate it.

The steps on how to make activated coconut charcoal are simple and easy to do. However, make sure to pay attention to the ratio because it will determine how effective it will work. If you put in too much water, then the charcoal will not work effectively. So make sure, to measure the materials correctly.