Compressed Wood Blocks/Logs

[Wicchunter]

Hi everyone. I am new to this site but I have been doing a lot of investigation and reading over the past month. This site is absolutely amazing. Thanks to the active members here I have been able to narrow down my selections on inserts.
A little history: I have been using a Better n Bens 501 in front of my fireplace since the early 80's. I stopped using it about 6-7 yrs ago when we started to have grand children.
This year we decided to upgrade with an insert. Problem is my wife wants a gas Mendota FV44i and I want a wood burning VC Merrimack. I turn 70 in a couple of weeks and my wife thinks I'm too old for all the work required for a wood stove. She also doesn't like the mess and occasional
back draft of smoke.
I've told her things are different now. And some people supplement their cord wood with compressed blocks of hard wood or use them as fire starters. Am I right on that and if so what brands of compressed blocks have you found to be the best? Also what are your thoughts on her points? By the way we live in a raised ranch and in the living room upstairs we have a Mendota DV 45. Flames are great and after 6yrs not one problem. So she knows the convienence of a remote control. The newer Mendota's do not seem to have as nice(as big) a flame... but that could be a showroom problem. We are not doing this to heat the whole house. This will be to heat downstairs with some heat moving upstairs. One of my biggest concerns is the cost of running two propane stoves.

Thanks,
Joe

 

[Wicchunter]

I just found a good thread that talked about Envi 8's and other compressed wood bricks. So I think my questions were answered on that.
I live in the Mid-Hudson valley in NY not far from Poughkeepsie. Does anyone know if their are any dealers around that area that can deliver without costing a fortune? And does anybody sell 1/2 or 1/4 pallet quantities?

 

[Jason845845]

Excelsior Wood Products in Kingston produces and sells them. They are $3ish dollars per pack of 9 or around $200/ton. As far as delivery to Dutchess I'm not sure. I've bought a few packs and they burned well.

I just found a good thread that talked about Envi 8's and other compressed wood bricks. So I think my questions were answered on that.
I live in the Mid-Hudson valley in NY not far from Poughkeepsie. Does anyone know if their are any dealers around that area that can deliver without costing a fortune? And does anybody sell 1/2 or 1/4 pallet quantities?

 

[Niko]

I just found a good thread that talked about Envi 8's and other compressed wood bricks. So I think my questions were answered on that.
I live in the Mid-Hudson valley in NY not far from Poughkeepsie. Does anyone know if their are any dealers around that area that can deliver without costing a fortune? And does anybody sell 1/2 or 1/4 pallet quantities?

Well fellow neigbor we are pretty close to each other. I would do some reconsidering on what type lf stove or insert your gonna use. If your looking for ease of fuel and get a real good pellet stove with a huge hopper.

If you reall want a light show then the stove i have will not be what u like. But if u wamt something that heats your house for 24hrs+ I can point you in the right direction.

Now as far as wood every guy that i called in our area shorts me on wood when i buy it split. if you look on craigslist you can find all types of people but be careful.

 

[Niko]

Excelsior Wood Products in Kingston produces and sells them. They are $3ish dollars per pack of 9 or around $200/ton. As far as delivery to Dutchess I'm not sure. I've bought a few packs and they burned well.

That is a pretty good price but the problem is bringing them to Poughkeepsie, they probbaly want 75 dollars a ton to deliver.

 

[DrewMal]

I have bought compressed wood blocks locally before and they burn good and hot. They warn you to to only burn 1 or 2 at a time to see how your stove reacts to them. Delivered here they are $300 CAD for a ton (pallet) the last time I bought them which isn't bad. It seems expensive but not really any more than getting a load of wood delivered cut and split and then dealing with the mess. The compressed blocks burn good and they store even better!

Good luck!

 

[samfatboy]

I have been burning Bio Bricks and Envi Bricks for about 6 years now. I have not bought a cord of split wood during the same time period. Since I do not have a forest in my back yard, nor the time to cut and split my own wood, the bricks are perfect me. I have an old school Appalachian Catalytic stove, and the bricks burn great in it. I have been able to load up 10 Envi bricks on a warm bed of coals for a 14 hour burn on -15 degree nights. As far as a show, the bricks will never equal the view of perfectly cured hardwood splits. The bricks do make the fireplace like a thermo-hypnotic sleep machine on a cold winter night.

A pallet is equivalent to a cord of firewood in my experience. The bricks must be stored inside though and cannot be exposed to moisture. The good news is that they are bug and pest free - no winter surprises at the woodshed from nature. Hopefully this gives you some good insight.

 

[Niko]

Do you burn 24/7? How long does a pallet last you? At 300 dollars a pallet(deliverd)where i am these are not worth it all. I burn anywhere between 1/2cord to 1 1/2 cords a month 24/7 burn. Depending on the cold i burn less or more.

 

[seabert]

Do you burn 24/7? How long does a pallet last you? At 300 dollars a pallet(deliverd)where i am these are not worth it all. I burn anywhere between 1/2cord to 1 1/2 cords a month 24/7 burn. Depending on the cold i burn less or more.

Try mixing Envi's and cordwood. It will bring up your BTUs and burn the cordwood more efficiently.

 

[seabert]

Hi everyone. I am new to this site but I have been doing a lot of investigation and reading over the past month. This site is absolutely amazing. Thanks to the active members here I have been able to narrow down my selections on inserts.
A little history: I have been using a Better n Bens 501 in front of my fireplace since the early 80's. I stopped using it about 6-7 yrs ago when we started to have grand children.
This year we decided to upgrade with an insert. Problem is my wife wants a gas Mendota FV44i and I want a wood burning VC Merrimack. I turn 70 in a couple of weeks and my wife thinks I'm too old for all the work required for a wood stove. She also doesn't like the mess and occasional
back draft of smoke.
I've told her things are different now. And some people supplement their cord wood with compressed blocks of hard wood or use them as fire starters. Am I right on that and if so what brands of compressed blocks have you found to be the best? Also what are your thoughts on her points? By the way we live in a raised ranch and in the living room upstairs we have a Mendota DV 45. Flames are great and after 6yrs not one problem. So she knows the convienence of a remote control. The newer Mendota's do not seem to have as nice(as big) a flame... but that could be a showroom problem. We are not doing this to heat the whole house. This will be to heat downstairs with some heat moving upstairs. One of my biggest concerns is the cost of running two propane stoves.
Thanks,
Joe

The Envi blocks are not fire starters. Treat them like regular logs. They are easy to handle and you can store them indoors. As for the VC stove the Merrimack is a great unit, I have the Montpelier(smaller) and I am very happy with it. I don't know how big your place is but maybe you don't need such a big insert. As for work, I find it to be pretty easy. At 70 it helps to be active as well to preserve your mobility. The Envi-8 blocks come in 6 packs so each brick is only a couple of pounds. The packs weigh about 20 pounds. The issue I have with gas is it is going up rapidly in price. Of course with gas all you do is push a button.

 

[Wicchunter]

Thanks for all the replies. I don't plan to run the stove 24/7 except for real fridged conditions. Also plan to use the bricks as a supplement mixed with wood. It's great to hear there is a place in Kingston... I googled for a long time last night and didn't find any local dealers. Thanks again for you help. If I go with wood instead of gas it will be the VC Merrimack or Quadrafire Voyageur Grand.
Thanks again.

 

[Wicchunter]

For those of you local in the Mid-Hudson Valley the Bio Brick site claims AF Warehouse in New Paltz and the local Blue Seal carries them. I haven't verified that yet.

 

[Jason845845]

For those of you local in the Mid-Hudson Valley the Bio Brick site claims AF Warehouse in New Paltz and the local Blue Seal carries them. I haven't verified that yet.

I have bought them at Af warehouse in the past. That big hardware store in Milton also carries Bio Bricks, not sure of the price.

 

[Niko]

For those of you local in the Mid-Hudson Valley the Bio Brick site claims AF Warehouse in New Paltz and the local Blue Seal carries them. I haven't verified that yet.

I have in the past, 275 deliverd but you buy like 5 plus tons.

 

[Niko]

I have bought them at Af warehouse in the past. That big hardware store in Milton also carries Bio Bricks, not sure of the price.

Whats the name of the place in milton?

 

[Wicchunter]

Jason and Niko... thanks for the local dealer info.

 

[samfatboy]

Do you burn 24/7? How long does a pallet last you? At 300 dollars a pallet(deliverd)where i am these are not worth it all. I burn anywhere between 1/2cord to 1 1/2 cords a month 24/7 burn. Depending on the cold i burn less or more.

Sometimes I burn 24/7, especially when the lows drop below 20 degrees, and times when I don't burn wood at all. I am always using a combination of compressed blocks in the wood stove, pellets in the pellet stove, and oil in the furnace. Generally speaking, whatever is the lowest cost per thermal unit is what I burn the most of. Having a wood stove on one end of the house with the Kitchen and Dining Room, and the pellet stove on the other end, directly under the bedrooms, and a forced air oil furnace allows me to heat in an efficient fashion for an older 1970s colonial without zones. I equate a 120 gallons of oil to a pallet of bricks or pellets. At anything over $2.25 per gallon for oil a pallet of bricks or pellets is usually less expensive. Anything under $2.25 per gallon of oil and oil is the lowest cost. Just because oil is currently the lowest cost does not mean that is not more efficient for me to burn some pellet fuel under the bedrooms during the working week when nobody is in the family room. On weekends it is always nice to burn blocks in the wood burner when we have company. With the three heat sources I have options and better control of the heating in my home.