Weed Burner

[jakep]

I am interested to know if anyone has a weed burner. Do they do the job?
Our back patio needs sorting and I don't want to put chemicals down as we have a dog and a cat.
Thank you for comments.

[albaqwerty]

I don't have one, but have heard they are effective.

Have been thinking about getting one, but having read what happened to a man's neighbour has kind of put me off.
The elderly gentleman had bought one but unfortunately burnt his neighbours fence, garden hut and destroyed most of their back garden!

[murraymints]

yes and yes... but take care..do NOT do it on a windy day and only on paved/gravelled areas...

[dannyk13]

Inn have one if you mean the one that is shaped like a walking stick and runs on Butane gas.Pretty efficient.

[murraymints]

my friend managed to burn down his 40 feet workshop and veranda in all over £60 K he had countless tools as well as professional turners/lathes stitchers , cutters welders etc... only a month ago now there is some doubt that the insurers will pay out...

[dannyk13]

Blimey Minty what sort of burner did he have?

[albaqwerty]

ouch, Minty.
not good. (on both counts)

[murraymints]

a simple weed burner but he was trying to clear weeds that were growing around the base at the back.. flame/sparks got underneath and the whole lot was up in 10 mins , his hose would not reach ! silly man ! I have been up helping to deal with the debris, many skips later and visits from scrappies it is nearly done...

[murraymints]

the fact that the floor space was covered in wood shavings and sawdust did not help.. I kept telling him he needed a good clear oot !

[albaqwerty]

cor, I hope we haven't put jakep off !!

Some things need to be done the old-fashioned way, hands, knees and thon wee doodah gadget thingy for scraping away between the slabs.

[gingejbee]

Yes and yes from me, too. Use on a still day and good idea to keep a watering-can (or hose) nearby, just in case you get carried away.
One important point...you're not trying to "burn" the weeds into oblivion - just heating them, so the plant cells burst - they will die off later. Many people attempt to incinerate them- which is wrong.

[murraymints]

the problem was the weeds were growing from an adjoining field, they were en masse and not on paved/gravelled area right up to his workshop base, he was burning right along the edge and towards said workshop, even if he had burned outwards it would not have happened ! the wind was behind him also and he was very lucky not to also lose a £30 k conservatory as the flames were leaping with the wind...

[albaqwerty]

i don't want one now

[woofgang]

I have got one. Its very good for tidy ups but if the weed roots are well established it doesn’t kill them. For safety I always hose over the area I am going to use it on. The aim is to “cook” the weeds, not burn them so the water actually helps.
Where I need to eradicate tough weeds, I use high strength glyphosate in a spray. I choose a dry still day and shut the dogs in for an hour or we go out for a drive. I then WAIT, maybe for the whole season. I think that the reason most people find that glyphosate doesn’t work is that they either clear the tops of the weeds away once they look wilted, or they don’t see anything happening so they re treat the weeds and this burns off the top growth, Either way the roots are protected and re shoot. If you just wait, then the weedkiller travels to the root and kills that too. I have managed to kill ivy and entrenched stinging nettles by using the apply and wait strategy.

[Tilly2]

Will that strategy work on a pesky lilac tree, Woof?

[murraymints]

use a systemic weed killer Tilly..spray the leaves and the poison travels down to roots

[jakep]

Thank you, I think! The shed is on the patio and does back onto the garage!
I think I will give it a try and bear in mind the safety tips re windy days and a hose/watering can.
Woof, is the glyphosate safe for pets once it has dried?

[murraymints]

https://www.roundup.com.au/faqs/what-does-systemic-mean

[murraymints]

http://mydog-parlance.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/is-roundup-glyphosate-safe-to-use.html

[jakep]

Interesting, thank you Minty. Not harmful to pets but to the rest of the garden if they walk it about.

[Hazi-Hammenuhoth]

Google "flamethrower" videos, and if you think one of those would be safe to use in a residential back patio go ahead and purchase. Seriously, the risk isnt worth it if you are going anywhere near sheds, fence panels or suchlike. Read horror stories as above, and hopefully we won't read about you in the news next week!