Bio bricks and Envi blocks...

[edge-of-the-woods]

My experience has been the opposite. I've tried all different ways and found I get longer burn times and quicker starts placing them on top with about 1" of space between them.

When I pack them tightly, especially underneath the wood, they never burn completely.

This has been my esperience with BioBricks. If I pack them tight, they don't burn well at all. They just smolder after a while.

 

[mass_burner]

If you start a nice hot kindling fire they burn.

 

[drz1050]

Found envi blocks for 290/ pallet here, think I might pick up a ton later this week. Bio bricks are 310/ pallet.

 

[mass_burner]

BTW, for anyone that's interested bgreen did a great synopsis here of the compressed products out there. Just search it out.

 

[MaintenanceMan]

I've not burned any of these products yet, but they have me curious. I was at Tractor Supply the other day and picked up one six pack to try at some point in my new Super 27. The only thing I am interested in is to see if they would extend the burn times any. I have more than enough wood and would not pay money for them for any other reason than to see if I could get an extra hour of so overnight. I've got all the hardwood I can store right now so I don't see the need to spend money for an other reason. But there seems to be mixed reviews on them as far as extending burn times goes.

 

[mwhitnee]

So I finally get to getting the 2nd pallet of Envi 8's inside the cellar. Took around 2 weeks, got the first in right away. It was sitting in the driveway.

Around 25-30 of them were "blown out" from rain getting in. I'm sure many of you know that if these hit water they expand, make a big mess, and are bordering useless.

Tried to call the company but no luck yet. I specifically asked them if they would be ok outside for a while.

Do you think they should replace them?

 

[jatoxico]

I specifically asked them if they would be ok outside for a while.
Do you think they should replace them?

Were they good when they dropped them?

 

[edge-of-the-woods]

View attachment 163788 So I finally get to getting the 2nd pallet of Envi 8's inside the cellar. Took around 2 weeks, got the first in right away. It was sitting in the driveway.

Around 25-30 of them were "blown out" from rain getting in. I'm sure many of you know that if these hit water they expand, make a big mess, and are bordering useless.

Tried to call the company but no luck yet. I specifically asked them if they would be ok outside for a while.

Do you think they should replace them?

I feel your pain, b/c I had this happen to a pack of mine when rain blew in under our leaky garage door seal. That said, there is a big difference between "ok outside for a while" and "outside for weeks and getting rained on". Did you have a tarp over them?

 

[mwhitnee]

Were they good when they dropped them?

I don't know as I left them covered in the driveway.

 

[mwhitnee]

I feel your pain, b/c I had this happen to a pack of mine when rain blew in under our leaky garage door seal. That said, there is a big difference between "ok outside for a while" and "outside for weeks and getting rained on". Did you have a tarp over them?

Nope. It rained a couple times but it didn't pour on them. Why can't they just make the cover without holes in it though? Ventilation? Is the cover supposed to have holes in it? I couldn't see any.

 

[jatoxico]

I don't know as I left them covered in the driveway.

I'd complain then as some of those seem like they were crushed with damaged packaging.

 

[spirilis]

Packing them tightly means the outsides expand, but the insides don't .... until they burn down far enough that the insides are exposed. A long burn with wood briquettes involves setting up isolated zones of packed bricks with appropriate amounts of space between them. That provides a balanced burn rate (enough air space and fuel facing each other across a short gap to foster a burn rate high enough to sustain efficient hot secondary combustion, but not so much loose air space that every brick is generating smoke out of most of its sides to overwhelm the secondary combustion with excessive smoke and/or burn through them too fast).

 

[edge-of-the-woods]

Packing them tightly means the outsides expand, but the insides don't .... until they burn down far enough that the insides are exposed. A long burn with wood briquettes involves setting up isolated zones of packed bricks with appropriate amounts of space between them. That provides a balanced burn rate (enough air space and fuel facing each other across a short gap to foster a burn rate high enough to sustain efficient hot secondary combustion, but not so much loose air space that every brick is generating smoke out of most of its sides to overwhelm the secondary combustion with excessive smoke and/or burn through them too fast).

Wait, whoa! So you mean instead of a single packed block, have multiple packed blocks?

Not this.....

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But this...?

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[spirilis]

Wait, whoa! So you mean instead of a single packed block, have multiple packed blocks?

Not this.....

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But this...?

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Pretty much. In my old Jotul it was more like-

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with a nice "upside down waterfall" of fire in the middle there. Quite a spectacle.
Be mindful of the airflow architecture of the stove... my Jotul had a primary air inlet right at the dead center, so that made sense. My new Madison has its doghouse air in the center too so that'll probably continue to make sense for me.

 

[Shane Collins]

BTW, for anyone that's interested bgreen did a great synopsis here of the compressed products out there. Just search it out.

I tried to find his thread but had no luck, do you have any idea where it is or how to find it? Thanks.

 

[hamsey]

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/biobrick-review.6270/

 

[Shane Collins]

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/biobrick-review.6270/

Thanks, I was searching using bio bricks instead of biobricks. Guess that's why it didn't show up? thanks again.