Whose else is using Ecobrick fire blocks?

[super55]

Bought a pallet of those Ecobrick fire blocks from tractor supply and absolutely love them.

Don't get me wrong I still burn conventional firewood probably 60-70 percent of the time but I have to say I am impressed with those compressed sawdust bricks they sell. I only use them when I want a really slow burning fire that I won't be able to attend for at least a few hours. Just about every night I throw 3 of the large bricks or a 6-pack if your using the smaller ones and damper the fire all the way down. When I used to do this with firewood I would literally smother the fire right out or have a really sooty fire and blacken all the glass on the doors. I don't have either of these issues using the sawdust bricks and it burns slow enough that after 7 hours I still have enough coals left that I can usually just throw a log on and getting it going again.

They are pricey but they do give off good heat and fill a niche in my wood burning so I think I keep with them not as my main source of fuel but a welcomed supplement.

Just curious if anyone has been using them and there thoughts.

 

[westcliffe01]

My TSC will not sell a pallet load, just the small packages. The package is like buying firewood at a gas station, far too expensive to be viable for heating. I have spoken to the store manager, they prefer to keep things the way they are. Yet they will sell pellets by the pallet load. Weird.

 

[super55]

Thats really odd why they won't sell a pallet load. Menards also sells them and I think they do go at a cheaper price than even TSC.

 

[dave1949]

On the Ecobrick web site they say one ton of Ecobricks have the btu's of a cord of hardwood.
1 ton of Eco-Bricks = 1 42”x48”x34” skid. Less than half the space of a cord of wood 4x4x8.

Good firewood here is selling for around $250 a cord split & delivered, u-stack.

The area TSC is selling a 6-pack of 3.5 lb bricks (21 lbs) for $3.49. A ton would be 95 6-packs. 95 x $3.49 = $331.55 + tax.

That really isn't too bad if you want to eliminate maintaining a chain saw, the labor time to cut, split and stack wood, whatever else equipment is involved, tractor, pickup, etc. If you buy firewood, the bricks take half the storage space, and if you could get them by the pallet, a lot less handling, worry about insects, and such. They probably require inside, dry storage to not deteriorate.

 

[MacLawn]

I'll have to try a few of those things. Are they okay for a fireplace with that catalytic thingamajig?

 

[QueBota]

Not sure if this is the same thing, I have been using EnviBlocks (made of pressed sawdust), probably about 6"x6"x14", come 6 to a package, 100 packages per pallet. I burn them in Woodstock Soapstone Fireview woodstove, it has a stainless cat converter.

https://www.google.com/search?q=Env...v.com%2Four-products%2Fwood-blocks%2F;214;133

Bought one pallet in October at 275, picked up another one recently at 350, wish I had bought both in October. Recovering from rotator cuff surgery so I can't handle firewood they way I normally can.

They are decent, can't beat the convienience and lack of mess. Keep them stacked in the utility room in the basement. Cut open a pack, knock the dust/mess off, carry them over to the wood stove and load them in. uniform shape makes for easy loading, just takes a little technique to maintain airspace. I feel they don't burn as hot or as long as quality hardwood of the same size. Also, they burn down to nothing, leaving very few coals for a relight in the morning.

All things considered I would buy them again. When my shoulder was healthy I would mix them with cord wood or just use them when going out for wood wasn't convienient. I have five acres of trees behind my house and acess to lots more, have never bought firewood, fell a little behind this year due to my shoulder. I have seen what my neighbors have bought and what they paid, I'm not impressed.

Q

 

[LD1]

I have thought about buying some of them too. But there are alot of different ones to choose from.

Trouble is, around here a cord of hardwood sells for $140-$160. Makes it hard to justify unless the price point was ~$200/ton

I dont have any issues with holding coals overnight or for extended periods though.

Also in my research, was that several stove MFG's wont warrant or recommend using the blocks. You can easily overfire the stove. I have a dual fuel wood/coal stove built very well. I dont think I would have an issue, but something others should be aware of.

 

[HillStreet]

I bought a ton of them last year and really liked them. I used them on top of firewood during the day. This year I passed because I bought a truck load of log lengths and have plenty of wood at a good price.

Firewood is expensive here in southern Maine.

 

[LD1]

These are just a few of the different ones I ran across when searching. All of them are different sizes, different weights per pallet, different prices, and vastly differing reviews. Makes it very difficult to compare apples to apples.

EZbrick
EcoBrick
EcoBlock
CoalBrick
BioBlock
Biomass Bricks
WoodBrickFuel
BioBricks
EnviBlock

 

[FTG-05]

I'll have to try a few of those things. Are they okay for a fireplace with that catalytic thingamajig?

When this came up on Hearth.com here recently, the consensus was that they were OK. If I had a catalytic converter, however, I would check the labeling on the fuel bricks and see what they say. I *think* that excess moisture is the problem with cats, since the eco-bricks don't have moisture, they should be GTG.

Found the thread: Catalytic converters and any Bio Brick or Envi Block type product | Hearth.com Forums Home