General > General Discussion

Coffee Grounds/Walnut Shells for Ballast

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carpediem4570:
Greetings All:

I drink a lot of coffee.  Grind my beans.  Consequently, I have a lot of coffee grounds.

One day, I dried out the grounds and put them in a glass jar with the idea of using it for track ballast.  Has anyone ever tried this?

Oh man; I just had another idea.  Coal load for the tender.  What say you?

I look forward to your responses.

 Kind regards,
Max

carpediem4570:
Wow, so many views and no comments…

I did some research and it says make sure your coffee grounds are dry, otherwise they will go moldy.

Something else that was suggested was ground walnut shells.  I have several five gallon pails full of ground walnut shells.  And of course, if you need a finer grind, throw them in a coffee grinder.  Anyone use walnut shells?

Kind regards,
Max

gregeusa:
Well, this is a forum for the RailPro products, not a general discussion on scenery...

usually close to neutral in PH, so no corrosive effect.

being organic, I'd worry about it eventually decomposing.

Here's a discussion on them:;

https://forum.trains.com/t/coffee-grounds-as-a-scenery-material/274065

LVRR1856:
I would advise not using coffee grinds based on the probability of them getting soggy from humidity and then turning moldy - yuk, then you have a mess on your hands. Walnut shells - probably a better option. But beware anything organic will eventually breakdown and decompose. Saw dust for ground cover would probably last a long time, especially if dyed/painted and glued.

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