Wood stoves still remain the main source of heat in many homes. And, by the way, many owners do not even plan to change them for something else, even if such an opportunity arises. Moreover, now other effective and easy-to-use types are widely available as an alternative to conventional firewood. solid fuel. We are talking about fuel briquettes.

But such diversity can even complicate the problem of choice for inexperienced owners, since a logical question arises - fuel briquettes or firewood, which is better? Let us immediately note that, in principle, there is no ideal fuel material, since each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, the option that is economically beneficial and more convenient for owners is usually chosen.

And the easiest way to determine which fuel will help you save on its purchase is to compare its cost, and through an experiment, find out the burning time and thermal output of its different types. True, without discounting others that seem secondary, but in fact are very important questions: accessibility, ease of transportation, storage, preparation for use, etc.

Basic criteria for choosing fuel for a stove

The first thing you need to decide on before comparing different types of fuel is their basic properties that they must have to efficient heating housing.

If the characteristics of briquetted fuel are indicated on the packaging by the manufacturer, then the parameters of natural firewood have to be determined independently.

So, of the main characteristics that high-quality fuel must meet, three can be distinguished - heat transfer, humidity and ash content, that is, the amount of waste after its combustion.

• Heat dissipation - this is the amount of thermal energy released during fuel combustion (kW), the calculation is based on one kilogram of fuel. Parameter. In addition, it is divided into theoretical and real:

— theoretical heat transfer is the main characteristic of fuel - the higher its value, the more generated heat will be used to heat the house;

— real heat transfer is determined by multiplying the theoretical value by the efficiency of the heating device. Here there is more emphasis on the quality of the stove or boiler itself.

• Humidity - This is the water content of the fuel, which is indicated as a percentage. The fuel must be dry, so the lower the moisture content, the better. If the fuel is too wet, then during combustion the moisture will begin to evaporate, taking away some of the thermal energy, which will reduce the overall calorie content. That is, wet firewood produces much less heat than dry firewood.

In addition, the high moisture content in the fuel contributes to rapid clogging chimney, since the vapors fall out as abundant condensation on the walls, and together with soot they create build-ups.

• Ash content - this parameter determines the amount of solid waste remaining after complete combustion of the fuel, as a percentage of the filling made. It is clear that the less waste, the better the quality of fuel.

The optimal indicators for solid fuel used in home swords or boilers are humidity no higher than 15% and ash content no more than 10÷12%.

If the briquettes meet the specified humidity parameter, then in firewood it can be significantly higher, especially if they were prepared in the summer or stored in the open air.

The ash content of briquettes depends on the raw materials from which they are made, and firewood - on the type of wood, their moisture content, as well as on some other properties of the tree.

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Let's get acquainted with the main characteristics of briquettes and firewood

In order to compare the two types of fuel, you need to know what they are. Both groups are quite heterogeneous - different types of briquettes, as well as wood species, have different characteristics.

Firewood for heating

To make a comparison, let's start our consideration with traditional fuel - firewood. Many stove owners are in no hurry to abandon them, especially since in some regions of the country firewood is abundantly available on the market and has a very affordable price.

Knowing which type of wood has higher heat transfer, experienced homeowners rationally use its characteristics to heat the house.

Below is a table showing the calorific value different breeds wood used as fuel:

Wood species	Specific calorific value (for naturally dried firewood), kW/kg	Calorific value, Kcal/kg	Wood density, kg/m³
			Fresh	Dry
Hornbeam	4.2	3650	1050	720
Beech	4,0	3450	970	710
Ash	4.2	3670	1020	750
Oak	4.2	3600	1025	750
Birch	4.2	3750	880	550
Larch	4.3	3850	830	590
Pine	4.4	3800	800	520
Spruce	4.5	3900	790	450
Alder	4.3	3770	830	540

It is immediately necessary to clarify which types of wood are well suited for heating, and which ones are undesirable to use, and why.

Coniferous wood burns well and gives a fairly high heat transfer. However, they are not recommended for heating stoves, boilers or fireplaces. This is due to the fact that their structure contains a large number of ethereal resins, which, when burned, settle on the walls of the fuel chamber and chimney in the form of greasy soot, clogging heating appliances.

That's why the best option Deciduous wood is used for heating. Moreover, some of them even help clean the stove from carbon deposits.

The following table shows the characteristics of several types of hardwood wood that are most often used as fuel:

Appearance of firewood	Brief description of the characteristics of fuels of different types
	Alder firewood does not require special drying - as a rule, it acquires the required condition under natural conditions. For firewood, alder is usually harvested far from bodies of water, that is, at elevations where the soil has low moisture, due to which the firewood dries out very quickly. When burning, alder firewood produces little smoke and excellent heat transfer, which is why they were previously used in black-fired saunas. When burning, alder emits special fumes that can clear the chimney of soot deposits.
	Oak firewood is excellent for heating, but is quite expensive. Oak wood has a high density, so it burns for a long time, giving good heat transfer. Therefore, to heat the room, not so much firewood is required, since when they burn out, they turn into dense coals, which, while smoldering, also provide heat, keeping the stove hot. Oak wood has a specific tart aroma that manifests itself during combustion. Therefore, oak is often used to fire open fireplaces.
	Birch firewood can be called a traditional fuel for residential buildings and baths. Therefore, today many people prefer this particular type of wood. Birch fuel is especially good for heating baths, since its wood contains disinfectants. Birch quickly flares up - this process is facilitated by the tar contained in its fibers and bark. This fuel burns quickly, producing great heat and heat transfer, without leaving a large amount of ash and coals. Taking advantage of this property of birch firewood, it is often used to ignite other, denser fuels. The heat transfer from fuel exceeds that of pine and aspen by 25÷30%. Birch firewood is stored without losing its original qualities for 2 years. Further, they lose density, and therefore the heat transfer from them will significantly decrease.
	Ash firewood dries quickly after sawing due to the unique structure of the fibers. Firewood made from this type of wood burns from the core, which quickly heats up and flares up. Ash burns intensely and evenly for quite a long time, giving high heat transfer. Wood does not clog the chimney, but it also does not help clean it from other deposits.

Types of briquetted fuel

This group of solid fuels can be divided according to the form of production into briquettes and euro-firewood. Both types are a product of processing raw material waste from wood processing, agricultural and mining industries. With the help of special technologies, they obtain fuel whose properties are even superior to conventional firewood.

Therefore, many owners of houses with autonomous wood heating in Lately convert their boilers and furnaces to briquetted fuel.

As mentioned above, in specialized stores you can find briquetted fuel made from the following raw materials:

• Coal industry waste - hard and brown coal (dust and charge)
• Peat.
• Sunflower, rice, buckwheat husks, as well as straw.
• Wood processing waste - shavings, sawdust, pine needles.

The table below shows the main parameters of briquettes and firewood made from various raw materials, as well as their average cost (expressed in conventional monetary units):

Type of briquetted fuel by material of manufacture	Thermal output, kW/kg	Normal humidity, %	Ash content, %	Fuel cost, standard units per ton.
Brown coal briquettes	3÷5	10÷15	30	70
Coal briquettes	7.55	10÷15	12	150
Peat briquettes	up to 4.5	before 18	20	90
Eurofirewood from sunflower husks	4.5÷5	8÷10	5	79
Straw briquettes	4.8÷5.2	8÷10	4	65
Wood briquettes	5.2÷5.8	up to 12	1	102

It should be noted that the data for compiling the table was taken from the websites of some well-known manufacturers of briquettes and European firewood. However, products from other companies may differ in cost, down or up.

Coal briquettes

Coal briquettes have a high calorific value - according to this indicator they are the leaders among all other types of briquetted fuel, and at the same time they keep the stove hot for a long time. However, they are not suitable for all furnaces and boilers.

Most often, this type of fuel is used in brick and cast iron heating devices or in stoves that have a reliable lining. The walls of a steel stove can easily burn out from the heat provided by coal.

In addition, this fuel has a number of other disadvantages, of which there are quite a few:

• Briquetted coal good quality has a fairly high cost.
• When burning, coal emits harmful fumes, accompanied by an unpleasant odor.
• Coal actively clogs the chimney with soot.
• The loading process of briquettes into the firebox is quite dirty, just like when loading regular coal.

Briquettes made from coal leave an average amount of solid combustion products - slag. While products made from brown coal leave a lot of ash, which makes up almost a third of the original mass of briquettes, and their heat transfer is much lower. Therefore, the cost of the latter is almost two times less than coal fuel.

Obviously, having saved on purchasing brown coal briquettes, you will have to spend more time on frequent loading, as well as on cleaning the chamber, chimney and floor in the boiler room.

Peat briquettes

Briquettes made from peat are usually inexpensive and quite affordable for any family. They also have a number of other advantages, but this type of fuel also has its own very significant disadvantages.

This fuel is produced by pressing pre-treated peat. By preparing the raw material, its energy qualities are improved by adding various additives.

Peat briquettes produced using new technologies differ significantly in their characteristics from products that were produced previously. But their cost is also slightly higher.

Product characteristics are improved through more powerful pressing or extrusion under high pressure, as well as the addition of crushed wood or coal raw materials to peat. Compaction processes increase the density of the material structure and reduce its moisture content, which helps to increase the thermal output of the fuel during its combustion.

The advantages of high-quality peat products include their following qualities:

• Environmentally friendly material. When burned, peat does not emit acrid smoke or harmful air pollutants.
• Briquettes ignite quite easily and, due to their density, burn for a long time.
• When using peat, a small amount of solid products remains as it burns almost completely.
• The waste remaining from peat can be used as potassium fertilizer for the soil.
• The convenience of placing briquettes into the heating unit is also important.
• The possibility of using peat for any heating devices, including fireplaces.
• The relatively light weight of the material simplifies its transportation and unloading.

TO negative aspects This material may include:

• There are difficulties with organizing storage. Briquettes must be stored in dry rooms, otherwise they can become saturated with atmospheric moisture, as a result of which rotting processes can develop in their structure. Damp peat will not provide high heat transfer; combustion will be sluggish and accompanied by an unpleasant odor.
• Peat briquettes produced in artisanal conditions, in violation technological rules, burn poorly, leaving a large amount of non-combustible waste and soot.

Unfortunately, a large number of low-quality products have appeared on the market, which significantly spoils the consumer impression of briquetted peat. Such fuel is very inexpensive, but it will also be a lot of hassle - the briquettes do not hold their shape, crumble and produce a large amount of dust.

This is due to the fact that unscrupulous manufacturers make fuel from low-quality raw materials and poorly shape and dry the finished products. Therefore, when purchasing peat briquettes, it is worth choosing material from large manufacturers who are responsible for the manufacturing process of their products. The quality of such fuel is confirmed by the appropriate certificate. As an example, we can cite the products of the companies Prometheus, Smiga and Nestro.

Briquettes from sunflower husks

Fuel briquettes, made from sunflower husks, have good heat transfer, although they are inferior in this parameter, as well as in terms of ash content, to products made from natural wood. True, they also have a lower cost.

However, their distribution is not very widespread due to the small amount of raw material waste. They are mainly produced and used in regions where this industrial crop is grown and where there are oil extraction plants.

Considering the positive and negative qualities briquettes or “euro firewood” from sunflower waste will only be taken into account quality products, manufactured in compliance with all technological rules.

This type of fuel is also produced by pressing at high temperatures and pressure. The binder for the raw material particles is natural lignin, which is included in its composition. As a result of thermal pressing and extrusion, excellent briquetted fuel with high density parameters is obtained. Products are hermetically packaged in plastic bags, which helps keep them dry for a long time in any humidity conditions.

The advantages of this type of fuel include its following qualities:

• High heat transfer and combustion duration. Experts have calculated that one kilogram of husk briquettes is enough to heat a room of 40÷50 m² for one hour.
• The fuel produces virtually no smoke.
• Convenient storage of packages with briquettes.
• Environmentally friendly fuel.
• The humidity of high-quality briquettes is 8÷10%, which has a beneficial effect on heat transfer.
• Products made from sunflower waste can burn intensely or smolder for 6–8 hours, releasing a large amount of heat.
• After burning briquettes, there is practically no waste left. Thus, their number is within only 1÷5% of the original volume.
• The ash remaining after combustion can be used to fertilize the soil.

The disadvantages of this fuel material include the following:

• Smoke from burning low-quality fuel, as well as remaining waste, may have unpleasant odors, which spread throughout the room.
• Fragility and low moisture resistance of briquettes. Humidified fuel becomes practically unusable. Therefore, the supply of briquettes must be stored in sealed packaging, and if the packaging is opened, only in a dry room.
• Low-quality fuel emits a large amount of smoke due to the abundance of moisture and low density of the material.

Wood briquettes

Wood briquettes do not provide the most outstanding heat transfer (if compared, for example, with coal briquettes), but given the low ash content and minimal amount of soot during their combustion, this type of fuel is considered one of the most efficient and convenient to use. The disadvantage of fuel made from wood raw materials is its high cost, which exceeds the price of ordinary firewood, as well as most other fuel briquettes, excluding the coal option.

Wood briquettes are most often called “Euro firewood”, since in most cases they are produced in the form of logs. However, there are also products that have other shapes. However, the difference in their performance characteristics is small.

The most popular among owners of stoves or boilers are “euro firewood”, called PINI&KAY, and “euro briquettes” - “RUF”.

• “Eurofirewood” PINI&KAY is a relatively new product that has a number of advantages over coal, firewood and other types of briquetted fuel. Products are produced by molding and pressing under high pressure pre-dried wood raw materials. The outside of the shaped logs has a dark, burnt shell. No chemical components or ingredients are used in the production process adhesive compositions, since the binder for sawdust is natural lignin, which is part of the wood. When heated, lignin acquires excellent astringent qualities, bonding wood particles together, which are compacted with a press. Therefore, “Eurowood” is environmentally friendly clean fuel, having a high density of 1250 kg/m³, and their ash content is only 1% of the original volume. The burning time of the material in stoves and boilers is 2 hours, and in fireplaces 1 hour 20 minutes.

• RUF “Eurobriquettes” are pressed from sawdust and wood chips, and lignin is also used as an adhesive. They differ from “euro firewood” in their shape - they are produced in the form of bars measuring 155x90x65 mm. This type of fuel has the same characteristics as “eurowood”, but its cost is slightly lower. The combustion time of briquettes ranges from 2 to 4 hours, depending on the set combustion intensity. Products are sold in packs of 12 pieces, and total weight This package is 10 kg. Briquettes also differ from “Euro firewood” in the absence of an internal hole.

The advantages of these briquetted fuel options are the following:

• Environmentally friendly products - they do not contain or emit toxic fumes.
• When burning, briquettes and “Eurowood” do not create sparks and do not scatter coals.
• Low ash content, about 1%.
• Heating appliances operating on this type of fuel require cleaning no more than once a year.
• Briquettes are compact and do not leave behind dirt and dust.

Comparison of firewood and briquettes

To determine which fuel is better, you need to consider some important nuances related to performance and ease of use.

So, if we compare the various aspects associated with the transportation, storage and use of firewood and briquettes, we get the following picture:

Comparative evaluation criteria	Briquetted fuel	Dried firewood
Transportation	Easy transportation of products, since all briquettes have packaging that is convenient for carrying. A small amount of fuel can be transferred even in your own car.	Difficulty in transportation. To deliver whole logs, sawn logs or already chopped firewood, it is necessary to order freight transport, which leads to additional costs.
Preparation for use	No preparation required. Simply open the package and the fuel is ready for use.	Firewood must be dried, sawed and chopped before use. Then the fuel is stacked in such a way that the wood is constantly ventilated, otherwise it will begin to rot.
Storage	Briquettes are not resistant to moisture, so they must be stored in dry rooms or without opening the manufacturer’s standard packaging.	Firewood can be stored under any shed.
Drying	Not required	Required for freshly cut wood.
Pollution	Almost all briquettes do not leave any contamination when used. The exceptions are coal and peat fuels.	Firewood leaves behind a lot of sawdust, chips, and bark particles, so after each placement of it in the firebox, the room will have to sweep up the remaining debris.
Heat dissipation	Briquettes provide higher heat transfer than wood.
Duration of combustion.	Briquetted fuel burns 1.5÷2 times longer than conventional firewood.
Fuel consumption	Less	Big
Smoke	High	Low
Ash content	Depending on the material used to make the briquettes, the ash content can be high, medium or low.	Medium-low.
Price	High	Average

From all the above arguments, we can conclude that using briquettes is still more profitable than regular firewood. The main thing is to choose the right type of briquetted fuel, the data of which is given above.

To decide on the choice of briquettes for heating, it is necessary to take into account not only the above data, that is, the parameters of heat transfer, humidity and ash content, which are indicated by manufacturers, but also the recommendations of specialists and experienced users.

• Experts consider the most optimal option for briquetted fuel to be products made from wood waste. They are the golden mean between firewood and briquettes, that is, they have improved qualities of natural wood. These products have a relatively high cost, but the price is compensated by the duration of combustion, high heat transfer, lower consumption, low ash content and the amount of smoke emitted. Briquettes can have different shape, but in fact all high-quality products in this line have very similar characteristics.

Prices for wood briquettes

fuel briquettes wood

• Coal briquettes are also a good option, as they are superior to wood options in terms of combustion duration and heat transfer. However, as noted above, not all heating units are designed to use this fuel. Therefore, when considering its use and choosing a boiler, it is necessary to carefully study the passport of the heating device and the manufacturer’s recommendations.

• If preference is given to brown coal briquettes, in order to save as much as possible, then you need to prepare for high consumption fuel, since this material gives very little heat transfer. In addition, this brown coal creates high smoke and ash content. Therefore, when using this fuel option, you will have to clean not only the ash pan, but also the chimney quite often.

Prices for briquettes from corners

fuel briquettes brown coal

• Peat briquettes are also a good choice for heating - the main thing is that the products are of high quality. Peat burns for a long time and gives very good heat transfer, but, like brown coal, it leaves quite a lot of ash and smokes when burned, clogging the chimney.

• Sometimes in the region it is possible to inexpensively purchase briquetted vegetable waste made from processed products of sunflower, buckwheat, straw, etc. This means that to conduct an experiment, it is recommended to buy a small batch of fuel and try it in practice. To ensure the quality of the product, it is necessary to detect its burning time, check the amount of smoke emitted, as well as the volume of remaining ash. If these indicators suit the consumer, then you can stock up on this fuel for the entire heating period.

Long burning with water circuit

How to choose a quality product?

By purchasing fuel briquettes from well-known manufacturers, you can rest assured of their quality and declared characteristics.

However, quite a lot of handicraft products have appeared on the modern market, made from whatever came to hand. These products are much cheaper than factory-produced and experimentally tested fuel. It is their cost that attracts buyers, but then, in practical application, you may encounter big problems and not get the promised heat transfer.

• For example, well-dried husks are used to produce high-quality briquettes from sunflower waste. In fuel produced by an unknown manufacturer in artisanal conditions, not only dry waste, but also impurities with pomace can go into the compaction. Such briquettes will burn reluctantly, emitting a large amount of smoke, leaving a lot of ash and soot.

• If briquettes or “euro firewood” are easily destroyed - they crumble, turning into dust, then you should not succumb to the persuasion of sellers and purchase them, even if they attract you at a low cost. Such signs indicate low quality of raw materials or proper storage fuel, which made it unsuitable for use. Breaking briquettes will not provide much heat, and they can easily clog the chimney.
• Handicraft products quite often have excessive moisture even to the touch, and a pronounced porous structure and unclear shapes are visually noticeable. The first two qualities will significantly reduce heat transfer, and the last factor can shorten the shelf life of products.
• If you decide to purchase coal briquettes, then you should know that they are black, not brown or gray.

In any case, if doubts arise about the quality of the product, then you should only purchase a trial batch of briquettes, put them into practice, and only then stock up on them for the whole winter or refuse in favor of a more reliable option. Burning an experimental amount of fuel will show its real quality and main characteristics.

By the way, the results of one of these experiments will be discussed in the next section of the publication.

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An interesting experiment - a comparison of the combustion of wood and some types of briquettes

Conditions for comparative testing

To get a more clear idea of ​​the qualities of some types of solid fuels, the reader will probably be interested in familiarizing himself with the results of one experiment.

So, to compare the duration and quality of combustion of wooden logs and fuel briquettes, an experiment was carried out in which three types of solid fuel were involved:

• Firewood dried in a barn is birch, with a density of 550 kg/m³.
• Peat briquettes - pressing density 2200 kg/m³.
• Briquettes made from sunflower husks with a density of 1800 kg/m³.

A heating system was used for the experiment one-story house, having an area of ​​150 m². The walls of the building were built from sand-lime brick and have a thickness of 300 mm, inside they are provided air gap. The walls are not insulated; standard metal-plastic windows are installed in the window openings.

The experiment was carried out under the following conditions:

• Heating device - steel boiler with system long burning on solid fuel “DIZ-24” with a power of 24 kW. The boiler is equipped with an automatic unit that maintains the set temperature, as well as turbocharging.
• Heating two-pipe system closed type, divided into two branches - a conventional heating circuit with installed radiators and a “water heated floor” system.
• In addition, the heating system circuit has a built-in buffer capacity volume 150 liters.
• The experiment was carried out at average daily temperature environment 4÷6 degrees below zero.
• The building was cold and warmed up for the first time during the heating season.
• Before the experiment began, the coolant was heated to a temperature of 45 degrees using firewood.

The course of the experiment consisted in alternately placing the above types of fuel into the firebox, followed by checking the duration of their combustion in established mode. The automation is set to a coolant temperature of 50 degrees. The weight of the fuel pack is the same - 10 kilograms.

The purpose of the experiment was to establish the difference in the combustion time of fuel and in their ash content.

The experiment began with burning a pile of wood.

Wood burning

10 kilograms of logs were loaded into a heated boiler on the coals remaining from heating. After the fan controller started, the firewood ignited within one minute. The wood burned for an hour and a half, maintaining the set temperature, after which it began to decline.

There are several points to note from the process:

• The wood burned evenly without producing much smoke.
• After the fuel burned out, a small amount of ash remained in the boiler.

If you fill the entire firebox volume of a heating device, which is 112 liters, with firewood, then one load is enough to maintain the set temperature for at least 8 hours of operation. If you use undried (freshly cut) firewood for heating, then it will give off less heat, since part of the generated thermal energy will go to evaporation of water, that is, it will be wasted.

Briquetted sunflower husks

The next fuel used during the experiment was briquettes made from sunflower waste.

Sunflower has an oily fiber structure, so even after squeezing, processing and pressing the husks, some of the oil is retained in the heating briquettes. In this regard, their combustion has some features:

• Immediately after 10 kg of briquettes having cylindrical shape, there was a sharp temperature jump.
• When this fuel actively burns, a large amount of smoke is released, so it is not recommended to open the combustion door during this period, since a powerful flame appears when oxygen enters.
• The coolant temperature immediately rose by 5-7 units, to 57 degrees, after the boost automatically turned off. Then, when the fuel combustion leveled out, it dropped to the set temperature of 50 degrees.
• The fan turns on periodically, with an interval of 5 minutes for purging, which lasts 10 seconds. The incoming air maintains the specified temperature of the coolant until the bulk of the briquettes burns out.
• After the bulk of the oil vapors burned out, the amount of smoke decreased significantly.
• When the fuel is completely burned, a small amount of ash remains.

The burning of 10 kg of sunflower briquettes lasted 2 hours 10 minutes, which is 40 minutes longer than the burning of firewood. Thus, immediately after combustion, briquettes made from sunflower husks release a greater amount of thermal energy. However, in heating units equipped with a mechanical draft regulator, that is, without turbocharging, the effect of initial heating will be significantly lower.

Combustion of pressed peat briquettes

By appearance Briquettes made from peat resemble products made from coal dust; they also get your hands dirty. Therefore, it is recommended to load this fuel into the boiler while wearing gloves.

The combustion of this fuel also has its own characteristics, which include the following points:

• Under the influence of air from the supercharging, the peat flares up quickly and produces a powerful, stable flame.
• The fan stops working as soon as the coolant temperature rises to the set temperature, that is, 50 degrees. After turning off the fan, the temperature rises to 54÷55 degrees.
• Peat when burned produces more smoke than from burning dry wood.
• The ash content at the end of combustion was approximately 10% of the initial volume of fuel. Peat contains a small percentage of loam, which does not burn completely, and its content in products depends on the characteristics of the deposit and the fuel manufacturer. How better product, the fewer impurities it contains.

Using 10 kg of peat briquettes, the boiler operated, maintaining the desired temperature, for 3 hours, which is twice as long as its operation using the same amount of dry firewood.

Based on the results of the experiment, we can come to the conclusion that peat briquettes are the leader among the types of fuel used in terms of combustion duration. Now, it’s worth figuring out which fuel option is more cost-effective.

Which fuel is more cost-effective?

An important factor is the amount of fuel required for a certain period of the heating season and its cost. Therefore, for complete clarity of the results of the experiment, it makes sense to make approximate calculations of these parameters.

However, considering the cost without taking into account the heat transfer of a specific fuel is pointless. Therefore, it is worth calculating both parameters.

For the calculations, we took the average cost of the types of fuel used in the experiment in conventional units per ton, since the price in ruble equivalent is constantly changing:

• Freshly cut wood has approximate cost 33 USD
• Briquettes made from sunflower husks - 57 USD
• Peat pressed into high-quality briquettes - 84 USD

• Since 10 kg of wood burned for an hour and a half, 33:1.5 = 22 cents is needed. This is how much it will cost to heat a boiler for one hour with wood.
• Briquettes made from sunflower husks gave off heat for 2 hours 10 minutes. - 57:2.1=27 cents.
• Peat briquettes burned for 3 hours - this means 84:3 = 28 cents.

As you can see, the results were almost equal.

• Heating with wood will cost 5.28 USD.
• Sunflower briquettes - 6.24 USD
• Peat briquettes - 6.72 USD

Here it is necessary to clarify that the cost does not vary depending on the region of the country. In addition, everyone a private house has its own area heating system And boiler equipment. To make calculations for a specific building yourself, you can simply take the proposed calculation method as a basis and determine how much heating will cost certain type fuel. After this, it will be clear what is more profitable to use for heating the house.

It is worth considering that the above example shows the cost raw wood, which has lower heat transfer than the dried version. Dry firewood will cost slightly more. Therefore the difference in cost different types fuel will be reduced to a minimum.

But, again, such a calculation immediately implies a clear understanding - the calorific value of the fuel is taken into account very indirectly. And it would be too bold to talk about the accuracy of the result - the calculation is based on the assumption that the heating device works constantly.

A more accurate approach still involves taking as a basis the required thermal power required for the full operation of the heating system at home, and the calorie content of the fuel used. This will be discussed below.

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How to calculate the required amount of solid fuel based on its calorific qualities?

The starting value for calculations here will be the value of thermal power that is required for high-quality heating of the house.

Important - we're talking about Not about the rated capacity of the heating boiler or furnace. This refers to the amount of heat that can create a comfortable living atmosphere in the premises of the house and compensate for current heat loss.

How to find this parameter? The easiest way is to multiply the total area of ​​the heated premises of the house by 100 (based on the simplified proportion that for each square meter 100 W of thermal energy is required). But it is better to carry out a more detailed calculation that takes into account the mass important nuances– climatic conditions of the region, the degree of thermal insulation of building structures, the specifics of both the building itself and each of its premises separately, etc.

We will not dwell on this algorithm in detail now - a very detailed separate article is devoted to it. Follow the link to it - although the calculation seems cumbersome, it is actually not difficult to carry out.

How to calculate the required power of the heating system?

The answer with all the explanations and detailed justifications will be found in a special article on our portal. The entire calculation algorithm is included in an online calculator, with which the calculation turns into a very simple matter. By the way, in the same publication there is another calculator that allows you to assess the degree of thermal insulation of your home.

So, if you know how much heat is required per hour to heat a home, it is easy to calculate, knowing the calorific value of the selected fuel, how many kilograms of it need to be burned to get the expected return.

Not everything, of course, is so simple - in any case, part of the generated heat is simply lost. Such losses are characterized by the coefficient of performance (efficiency) of the device, which is indicated in its passport either as a percentage (for example, 75%), or as a fraction of a unit (for example, efficiency = 0.75).

As a rule, heating devices operating on solid fuel are not famous for their high efficiency. And if the passport data is unknown, then the following values ​​can be taken without much error:

• metal furnace - 60%;
• brick bell furnace - 65%;
• solid fuel boiler - 75%;
• a boiler in which the principle of afterburning pyrolysis gases is implemented - 80%.

The specified calculation algorithm required quantity solid fuel is included in the proposed online calculator. Below we will give some explanations on how to use the program.

Firewood and fuel briquettes are fundamentally different types of fuel. Using firewood is the most ancient and proven method of heating a home.

While briquettes appeared relatively recently, they became a worthy alternative to firewood, for which they received the second name “eurofirewood”. Which material is the best and more profitable? We will try to give a detailed answer to this question in our article.

Eurodrova

Briquettes are made from waste from the food and wood processing industries: sawdust, seeds, buckwheat and rice husks, straw, peat and herbal plants.

The briquette composition is subjected to strong pressing and drying. Burning fuel briquettes does not harm human health, since they do not contain chemicals. There are three main forms of fuel briquettes: , pini-kay and nestro.

They differ from each other only in maximum density, which directly depends on the shape, but there are no fundamental differences in the composition and calorific value of the material. Advantages of fuel briquettes:

1. Low humidity and high density of the material, which ensures high heat transfer and long burning time (up to 4 hours).
2. Compared to firewood, they are more compact to store due to their regular geometric shape.
3. They do not spark or shoot when burned, emitting a minimal amount of smoke.

Flaws:

1. Briquettes take a long time to warm up due to high density material and leave a fairly large amount of ash.
2. In the room where the stove is heated with briquettes, there is a pungent, specific burning smell.
3. Fuel briquettes have very low moisture resistance, with wrong conditions storage is crumbling.
4. They are very unstable to mechanical damage, which makes them impossible to use further.
5. Lack of aesthetic component when lighting a fireplace. Fuel briquettes can burn with a barely smoldering flame.

Heating with wood

Firewood has an undeniable advantage over other types of fuel - it is the most environmentally friendly material, without any odor. Our ancestors have been heating stoves with them for a long time.

• firewood quickly flares up and gives off heat, which makes the process of heating the room quite fast;
• low cost, especially when the preparation of firewood for the winter is carried out independently;
• not subject to mechanical damage;
• well-dried firewood has very high heat transfer;
• when wood burns, beautiful flames appear, which is very important when operating a fireplace;
• in the process of burning firewood of different tree species, they release essential oils, which have a beneficial effect on the human nervous system and respiratory tract.

It is important to know: the best product burning firewood is two-year-old wood that has been stored under the correct conditions.

• firewood, as well as fuel briquettes, require special storage conditions. They should be protected from the slightest moisture and ensure good ventilation of the room.

This material will help you figure out what you need to make fuel braces from sawdust:

Which is more profitable?

Let's compare the price for cubic meter briquettes and firewood.

Thus, a cubic meter of fuel briquettes costs approximately 6 thousand rubles, while the price for the same volume of wood is approximately 3,000 rubles. The price of firewood is approximate and directly depends on the number of wood species in each specific region.

Take note: V total mass firewood 20 - 30% - firewood that has been well dried for several years, up to 50% wet firewood, 20-30% - stale firewood. While in fuel briquettes the mass of water is no more than 9%.

The difference in price between firewood and briquettes can vary between 2-4 thousand rubles. Thus, the cost of briquettes is approximately 2-3 times more expensive than firewood.

Through numerous experiments and comparisons, the following facts were established:

1. Fuel briquettes burn for 2 hours, while firewood burns for 1 hour.
2. The heat transfer of firewood is significantly higher than that of fuel briquettes, which is especially noticeable when approaching the stove (fireplace).
3. There is ¼ less ash after briquettes than after firewood.

Thus, fuel briquettes are more suitable for long-burning stoves. For fireplaces, time-tested firewood is still the ideal fuel. Comparing by price and taking into account the moisture content of the firewood, we can say that there is no fundamental difference between firewood and briquettes.

Fuel briquettes- a type of solid fuel, an alternative to conventional firewood or coal. Due to their correct shape and uniform size, they are also called Euro firewood. They can be used in fireplaces, stoves, solid fuel boilers and other heating devices that burn solid fuel.

Next, let's look at what briquettes are made of and what types they come in? What are their advantages and disadvantages over firewood? Do briquettes really provide more heat and burn better? Is it profitable to use them? And also how to choose high-quality briquettes.

What are briquettes made from?

Briquettes are made from waste from the woodworking and food industries - sawdust, rice husks, buckwheat or seeds. They also use accessible and inexpensive materials that represent energy value: straw, peat or tyrsa (herbaceous plant).

The briquettes do not contain glue or other binding elements. The briquette gains strength and shape through strong pressing and maximum drying. Therefore, burning them does not harm human health.

Advantages of fuel briquettes

The main advantage of briquettes is that the combustion temperature is 1.5-2 times higher than that of firewood. At a humidity of 20%, the calorific value of wood is 2500-2700 kcal/kg, briquette - 4500-4900 kcal/kg.

And there are simple and logical explanations for this:

1. Briquettes have low humidity. The lower the humidity of the firewood, the higher its heat transfer. Normal wood moisture content when properly stored is 15-20%. For briquettes, the humidity is 4-8% and is achieved through forced drying - a mandatory stage in their production.
2. Briquettes have high density. Why does oak firewood burn hotter than poplar wood? Because of the density. The density of oak is 0.81 g/cm3, poplar is 0.4 g/cm3. That is, each cm3 of oak contains more useful and combustible woody matter than poplar. Briquette density is 0.95-1g/cm3. Their combustible content per unit volume is even higher than that of oak. Accordingly, the calorific value is higher.

Low humidity and high density are the key to the success of briquettes. If you dry firewood to a moisture content of 4-8%, then its calorific value will be comparable to briquettes.

Other advantages of briquettes:

1. Occupy less space.
2. Burn more evenly and longer.
3. Made from waste. If you care about the environment and the environment.
4. Due to low humidity, briquettes emit less soot and pollute the chimney less.

Flaws

1. Price. At first glance, fuel briquettes are more expensive than firewood. In fact, this should be taken into account the cost of a unit of heat obtained from firewood and briquettes. Next we will examine this issue in more detail.
2. Fear of moisture. Wet briquettes crumble. Storage conditions are critical for them: in a closed, ventilated area.
3. There are bad briquettes. When purchasing briquettes, it is not always possible to be sure of the material from which they are made. Anything can be added to wood briquettes: soft wood, rotten, old, low-quality or chemically treated wood, and so on. This creates volume, but reduces the quality of the briquette.

What types of fuel briquettes are there?

Briquettes differ in shape and material of manufacture.

Differences in shape

There are three main forms of fuel briquettes: pini-kei, roof and nestro. Their difference is only in the maximum density that can be achieved in each form. There are no differences in chemical composition or mass calorific value between eurowood No.

Fuel briquettes pini-kay

The highest density is from 1.08 to 1.40 g/cm3. Section shape - square or hexagon. There is a through hole in the center, which provides better air movement and combustion of the briquette.

Fuel briquettes RUF

Fuel briquettes made from roof sawdust, in the form of a brick. They have a small size and the lowest density - 0.75-0.8 g/cm3.

Briquettes Nestro

Fuel briquettes have a non-stro cylinder shape and an average density of 1 - 1.15 g/cm3.

Peat briquettes

For fuel peat briquettes a special form, not similar to the others. And due to the high ash content and the presence of other harmful impurities in the composition, they are not recommended for use at home. These briquettes are suitable for industrial furnaces or boilers capable of operating on low-quality fuel.

Peat fuel briquette

Differences in material

Eurodrova made from sawdust, seed husks, rice and buckwheat, straw, tyrsa, peat and other materials. The material affects the calorie content of the fuel briquette, ash content, amount of soot emitted, quality and completeness of combustion.

Below in the table is a comparison of the characteristics of briquettes made from different materials - seed husks, rice, straw, tyrsa and sawdust. Such an analysis shows not only that briquettes made from different materials differ from each other. But also the fact that even briquettes from the same material differ in quality and properties.

All data is taken from real test reports of fuel briquettes.

Calorie content, humidity, ash content and density of fuel briquettes made from different materials.

Comments on the table

Seed. The highest calorific value of briquettes made from sunflower seeds husks is 5151 kcal/kg. This is due to their low ash content (2.9-3.6%) and the presence of oil in the briquette, which burns and has energy value. On the other hand, due to the oil, such briquettes pollute the chimney more intensively with soot, and it has to be cleaned more often.

Tree. In second place in calorie content sawdust wood briquettes– 5043 kcal/kg at 4% humidity and 4341 kcal/kg at 10.3% humidity. The ash content of wood briquettes is the same as that of a whole tree - 0.5-2.5%.

Straw. Straw briquettes are not much inferior to sunflower seeds or sawdust and have good potential for use. They have a slightly lower calorie content - 4740 kcal/kg and 4097 kcal/kg, and a relatively high ash content - 4.8-7.3%.

Tyrsa. Tyrsa is a perennial herbaceous plant. Such briquettes have a fairly low ash content of 0.7% and good heat transfer of 4400 kcal/kg.

Rice. Briquettes made from rice husk have the highest ash content - 20% and low calorific value - 3458 kcal/kg. This is even less than wood at 20% humidity.

Two important conclusions

1. Different ash content

Two samples of straw briquettes have different ash contents - 4.86 and 7.3%.

Ash is mineral substances in wood that either have little energy value or simply do not burn. Therefore, the more ash in the wood, the less its heat transfer.

Different ash contents of fuel briquettes indicate different quality of production and source materials. One manufacturer does not clean the straw well enough to remove dirt and external ash. Another is adding foliage and other materials for volume. At the output, this greatly affects the quality, calorific value and burning time of the fuel briquette. And this situation can happen with any briquettes, not just straw.

2. Different humidity

The moisture content of the briquettes and their seed husks is 2.7% in one case, and 8.51% in the other. Some wood briquettes from sawdust the moisture content is 4.1%, for others it is 10.3%.

This means that the humidity of fuel briquettes is also different. Their strength and calorific value depend on this: at a humidity of 4.1%, the heat transfer of a briquette is 5043 kcal/kg, and at 10% — 4341 kcal/kg.

So in the end it’s cheaper – firewood or briquettes

The main thing about firewood is not the weight and cost, but the cost per unit of heat. You can burn 5kg and 10kg of different wood, but still get the same amount of heat. Let's do a simple calculation (figures as of winter 2013):

• 1 m 3 of firewood weighs 500-600 kg and costs 550 UAH;
• 1 m 3 of briquettes weighs 1000 kg and costs 1800 UAH;

1m 3 of wood contains 40-50% real fuel less than the same volume of briquettes. Let's determine the cost of 1 ton of firewood.

1 ton of wood = 1.66 m 3. Its cost will be 550 * 1.66 = 913 hryvnia.

Now let’s calculate the cost of 1W of heat generated by firewood and briquettes

As a result, it is clear that the difference is insignificant - 4 kopecks per 1 watt of thermal energy. It turns out that the effect of firewood and briquettes is almost the same, despite the seemingly significant difference in price.

It is important to consider:

• Inadequate quality of firewood. Often, when buying firewood, you can come across freshly cut wood with a moisture content of 40-50%. The calorific value of such firewood is even less
• Firewood takes up more space, which means transporting it will cost even more.

Questions and answers

How much do fuel briquettes weigh?

The weight of a briquette depends on its density. At density briquette pini-kay from 1.08 – 1.36 g/cm3, one cubic meter weighs 1080–1360 kg. For comparison: 1 cubic meter of oak firewood at a humidity of 20% weighs about 800 kg, birch 750 kg, and pine 520 kg.

Burning time

The burning time of fuel briquettes depends on the same factors as the burning of firewood: traction force and ignition method. If you do not close the damper in time and supply a lot of air to the briquettes, they will burn very quickly.

On the other hand, if you carefully stack the briquettes, set them on fire correctly and provide the minimum amount of air required for combustion, then due to their high density and low humidity they will burn longer than firewood.

The photo shows pini-kei fuel briquettes. They are neatly stacked and burn evenly from left to right.

To choose the best fuel briquettes for home use that will burn well and efficiently, adhere to the following principles:

1. Give preference - sawdust wood briquettes. In terms of combustion quality, they are as close as possible to firewood, burn well, have low ash content and high heat transfer. Briquettes made from sunflower seeds husks also provide a lot of heat, but due to the oil, they more intensively pollute the chimney and heating appliance with soot.
2. Calorific value of fuel briquettes from solid and coniferous species wood is the same, because they are based on the same wood substance. But coniferous wood briquettes contain resin, which more pollutes the chimney with soot.
3. Do not believe in words about the calorific value, humidity and ash content of briquettes. Ask the seller for test reports that indicate the main characteristics of the briquettes. But be prepared for the fact that they may not be there.
4. Choose briquettes with maximum density. The higher the density, the more evenly and longer the briquettes burn, and also do not crumble and leave a lot of hot, long-smoldering coals. Pini-key briquettes have the highest density, Nestro briquettes have an average density, and Roof briquettes have the minimum density.
5. Before buying a large number of briquettes, take 10-20 kg samples from different places. Check them for strength: if the briquette breaks and crumbles easily, then it is poorly compressed or contains a lot of moisture. Burn each sample in heating device. Pay attention to the heat, how long and at what level do the briquettes burn? The lower the draft at which briquettes are capable of burning, the better. Look at the coals they leave behind. Do they hold their shape or do they fall apart into little coals? This is the only sure way to choose quality briquettes for heating.

conclusions

• Fuel briquettes – alternative firewood or coal is a type of solid fuel. They are suitable for fireplaces, solid fuel boilers, stoves and other heating appliances.
• Briquettes are made from production waste: sawdust, rice husks, seeds or buckwheat. Inexpensive and accessible materials are also used - straw, peat or tyrsa. The quality of combustion of the briquette and its calorific value depend on the material.
• Briquettes come in three forms: roof, pini-kei and nestro. Shape does not affect chemical composition, but only to the maximum permissible briquette density. The highest density is in pikin-kay, low in ruf.
• The two main advantages of briquettes over firewood are higher heat transfer and ease of use. Due to the minimum humidity and ash content, the calorie content of briquettes is higher. And thanks correct form and high density briquettes fit tightly to each other and take up less space in volume.
• Not all briquettes are of equal quality. Even briquettes of the same shape and from the same material can differ in ash content, humidity and combustion temperature. Everything greatly depends on the quality of preparation of the starting materials, the degree of drying and pressing, as well as storage of the finished briquettes.

Everything about fuel briquettes: types, the better the firewood, advantages and disadvantages, recommendations for choosing

Fuel briquettes or firewood, which is better? Briquettes or firewood, which is more profitable? Many owners of private houses are interested in these questions. Advertising of fuel briquettes made from birch shavings and pine needles says that they supposedly have twice the heat transfer, they burn four times longer than ordinary birch firewood, they leave less soot, and they take up less space. Is it really? Then, perhaps, it is worth conducting an experiment and finally verifying the veracity or bias of these promises?

In general, it is worth saying that there is no ideal solid fuel. The use of wood, coal and various compressed wastes has its advantages and disadvantages, including financial ones. The task of every homeowner is to choose the most profitable option. What is better to heat: wood or briquettes?

Firewood is an old proven fuel. Wood is the oldest, environmentally friendly type of fuel. Of course, there are many types of logs, but birch firewood is the most popular.

Advantages of heating a room with birch wood

1. Their most famous and indisputable quality is that such firewood ignites very quickly and burns for a long time, they have high heat transfer.
2. They also do not “shoot” when burning, like, for example, coniferous wood.
3. These logs have a very pleasant aroma due to the presence of essential resins in the tree. They are characterized by a positive effect on the human upper respiratory tract, as they are distinguished by bactericidal and disinfecting properties. When these essential oils, together with inhaled oxygen, enter the human body, they thus have a beneficial effect on the nervous, circulatory and cardiovascular systems. Therefore, if you are close to a fireplace in which birch logs are burning, you will feel relaxation, calmness, harmony and comfort.
4. Firewood is compact and relatively light in weight.
5. The cost of birch firewood from the North-West Firewood Company is low.

Cons of firewood

Perhaps the only disadvantage is the formation of soot by such firewood, because during combustion a resinous substance is released - tar, which pollutes the chimney and reduces draft. But if you clean it in time, this problem can be eliminated.

Advantages of heating briquettes

It is also worth mentioning this type of fuel as briquettes.

• They are sold in compact packages.
• They have a relatively light weight (about ten kilograms per package).
• The price of briquettes is not high at all.

Disadvantages of this type of fuel

• Compared to firewood, briquettes have little heat transfer. Quite low Maximum temperature heating.
• A ten-kilogram package is only enough to heat a small room for four hours.

Of course, it’s up to you to decide, but from a comparison of firewood and briquettes, it is obvious that birch firewood has more advantages than fuel briquettes. You have probably already decided for yourself what is better to heat the stove: with wood or briquettes. So make the right choice!

There is no ideal solid fuel. The use of wood, coal and various pressed wastes has its pros and cons, including financial ones. The homeowner's task is to choose the most profitable option. To clarify this issue, Vitaly Dashko carried out experimental combustion of different types of fuel under real conditions. The goal is to compare which is better for heating a private home - fuel briquettes or firewood. We invite you to familiarize yourself with the results and video of the process.

Why compare cheap firewood with expensive briquettes?

For residents of regions rich in forests, where wood processing enterprises are located, such a comparison is irrelevant. Firewood and sawdust in those parts are inexpensive or available for free. But we decided to compare them with briquettes for the following reasons:

1. There are practically no forests in the southern and desert regions. Hence the higher price of firewood purchased by owners of country houses and dachas.
2. In these areas, it is advantageous to press any type of combustible mass - coal dust, agricultural waste and peat. Thanks to the development of such production, the cost of briquettes is reduced and they become an alternative to firewood.
3. It is more comfortable to heat with pressed products than with wood raw materials, as our experiment will show.

The last reason is conflicting reviews from homeowners about various fuels for thematic forums. A user who does not understand this issue is unlikely to be able to figure out which types of briquettes are best to use for a stove, fireplace or boiler. We will present conclusions and expert opinion on this matter.

Conditions and course of the experiment

The object of inspection is a one-story private house with an area of ​​150 m² with individual system heating from a solid fuel boiler. The walls are 300 mm thick and made of white silicate brick, with an air layer inside. There is no insulation of external fences; the windows are standard metal-plastic.

The remaining experimental conditions look like this:

1. The heating system is closed, two-pipe. It is divided into 2 branches - radiators and heated floors. The initial water temperature is 43 °C.
2. The average daily ambient temperature is 4–5 °C. The building is cold, warming up for the first time during the heating season.
3. The heat source is solid fuel DIZ-24 (24 kW), equipped with turbocharging and an automatic unit for maintaining the set temperature.
4. The scheme uses a small capacity buffer tank (150 liters).

Note. Before the experiment, the boiler and coolant were heated to 43 °C by burning small logs.

Task: alternately load 3 types of fuel into the firebox and check the burning duration of each fill at a constant heating mode. The loading size is the same - 10 kg, the automation is set to maintain the water temperature at 50 °C.

Target: determine what will burn faster - firewood or briquettes, how significant the difference will be. The secondary goal is to compare the combustion process of three types of fuel:

• dry firewood from barn storage;
• round briquettes from sunflower husks;
• briquetted peat.

For reference. The type of wood used is small elm (otherwise known as birch bark), the stacking density of freshly cut logs with a moisture content of 50% is 600 kg/m³.

We deliberately did not burn “wood” briquettes made from sawdust. The reasons are obvious: the products are noticeably more expensive than peat and agricultural briquettes, and their combustion properties have been repeatedly tested. If you are interested this type solid fuel, we recommend watching the video:

The approximate density of pressed husks is 1800 kg/m³, peat briquettes are 2200 kg/m³. These data are for reference and do not play a big role in the experiment, since the fuel was supplied in the same amount - 10 kg. Let's start with burning wood.

The result of burning wood

During the inspection, the logs were cut into 4 logs and loaded into the firebox, where several hot coals remained. The controller started the fan and the firewood ignited within 1 minute. A total of 10 kg of wood was enough for 1.5 hours of boiler operation, after which the coolant temperature began to decrease.

The weight of each portion of fuel is 10 kg (with a bucket - 10.5 kg)

Points worth noting:

• dry firewood produces little smoke and burns very evenly;
• the temperature jump after turning off the fan does not exceed 3 degrees (up to 53 °C);
• small ash residue.

The process of burning dry wood is quite predictable. If you fill the entire chamber of a heat generator of this model (112 liters) with such fuel, 1 fill will be enough for at least 8 hours. Wet (freshly cut) firewood decays faster: it gives off less heat and is therefore more exposed to fan blowing.

A typical picture when burning dry wood is a slight smoke

Briquettes from sunflower husks

Since the pressed husk contains a proportion of vegetable oil, combustion differs in some ways:

On initial stage(left) there is a lot of smoke, then it is practically invisible (right)

For reference. The purge mode lasts 10 seconds and turns on at intervals of 5 minutes. The goal is to free the boiler chamber from smoke.

The burning time of a portion of agricultural briquettes was 2 hours 10 minutes, which is 40 minutes longer than firewood. A nuance: you need to learn how to use fuel correctly - at the initial stage, the “sausages” emit a large amount of heat. By the way, in boilers with (without turbocharging) the effect of primary heating is less pronounced.

This is what the remains of a briquette look like at the after-burning stage, the boiler water temperature is 50 degrees

Combustion of pressed peat

In appearance, peat briquettes resemble, but differ in their square shape. The products also get dirty on your hands, so it is better to load them with gloves. Typical combustion moments look like this:

• under the influence of supercharging, peat ignites well and produces a stable, powerful flame;
• when the set coolant temperature reaches 50 °C, the fan stops, heating “jumps” to 53-54 °C;
• peat briquettes smoke more strongly than dry firewood;
• the amount of remaining ash is approximately 5-10%.

We couldn’t capture the smoke from the peat bricks in the photo because it was dark outside

Note. Peat contains a certain amount of loam, which turns into ash. The size of this share depends on the fuel manufacturer.

The operating time of a solid fuel boiler using peat briquettes is phenomenal - at least 3 hours, which is twice as long as burning the same amount of firewood. An unpleasant nuance is ash content and black dust that sticks to your hands.

The cheaper way to heat your home

The price of fuel for heating a private home is of great importance, but it is pointless to consider it in isolation from heat transfer. We will calculate the cost of heating taking into account both parameters.

Combustion of peat fuel 3 hours after laying

In the area where our expert lives, the following prices are asked for proven types of fuel:

1. Freshly cut firewood – 20 USD. e. for 1 m³. Let's tie the price to the weight: 20 dollars for 600 kg or 33 cu. e. for 1 ton.
2. Briquettes made from pressed sunflower husks – $57 per ton.
3. Peat briquette – 84 USD. e./1 t.

It is easy to calculate that 10 kg of wood will cost 33 cents, the rest of the fuel - 57 and 84 cents, respectively. Then 1 hour of heating on wooden logs costs 33 / 1.5 = 22 cents (remember, the wood burned out in an hour and a half).

In a similar way, we determine the hourly rate for burning briquettes:

• pressed husk: 57 / 2.17 (2 hours 10 minutes) = 26 cents;
• briquetted peat: 84 / 3 = 28 cents.

Burning briquetted sunflower seed husks

Interesting result, right? In our case, heating up an absolutely cold building costs 5.28 USD. e. per day for wood, 6.24 dollars for pressed husks and 6.72 cu. e. - on peat “bricks”.

An important nuance. The prices of solid fuel in your region are probably different, and the boiler room is set differently heating equipment. But the ratio and principle of calculation remain unchanged. Apply this technique and consider what is more profitable - firewood or briquettes in your particular case.

Please note that we took the cost of raw wood (and it will decay sooner) and divided it by the time of full combustion of dry wood. That is, the difference between traditional fuel and briquettes is minimized. We suggest watching the progress of the experiment on video and listening to an expert’s opinion on this matter:

We do not persuade anyone to give up wood heating in favor of briquettes. The purpose of the publication is to convey useful information, help homeowners save money and gain comfort. What conclusions emerge from the comparison:

1. The attractiveness of firewood - low price. The main thing is that they are not too raw.
2. The previous section indicates the cost of firewood delivered in the form of logs. The latter need to be sawn into logs and split into logs. If the household does not have a chain saw, you will have to pay extra for sawing.
3. Due to their low density, logs take up more space than briquettes.
4. Pressed waste burns much longer than wood and gives off more heat. The number of visits to the boiler room will decrease.

Homemade stoves It’s better to burn with wood or put a small amount of briquettes

An important nuance. High-calorie fuel briquettes pose a danger to. When the firebox is fully loaded and the chimney is open, the steel body of the stove is often deformed from the impact high temperature combustion.

Pressed products are not flawless. Fuel from agro-industrial waste contains vegetable oil, settling on the walls of the chimney in the form of soot, and peat leaves ash. To find optimal solution and clearly select briquettes for the stove, boiler or fireplace, set aside part of the weekend and conduct a similar experiment with a variety of fuels. Combine “bricks” with firewood, watch the results and count the money - this is the sure way to economical heating.