The log burned itself out in just under two and a half hours.Ī surprise success was the budget Everyday Essentials log (Redner Supermarket’s house brand, not available online). The whole log was engulfed, making it nicer to look at.įor about the same price, the standard Duraflame 5-pound log burned for three hours and produced mostly 4- to 6-inch flames for the first hour, but those flames settled down to a tamer 3 inches after that.ĭuraflame’s Crackleflame log is designed to produce the pops and crackles of natural wood, and in my test it did, but only for the first 30 to 40 minutes. One thing I especially liked about the Java is that the flames stayed consistently large, 6 to 8 inches, throughout the entire burn, and the flames didn’t just ride on top. The package calls it a three-hour log, but I got almost four hours. As they burned, however, I didn’t notice any coffee smell in the house, and outside there was the same papery-waxy smell of all the other logs. As the name suggests, Java-Logs are partially made of recycled coffee grounds, and they do smell like coffee before they’re burned. Of the six models we tried, the Java-Log by Pine Mountain produced the best flame for the most amount of time, and also burned about 20 degrees warmer than most of the other logs we tried. I tried out a variety of popular firelogs, noted their burn characteristics, measured their burn time and kept track of their temperature (by placing an oven thermometer in the fireplace). (Tip: A chimney sweep told me that to get a good draft going up your chimney, after you open the damper, crack open a door or window in the same room as the fireplace for a minute, and then light the fire.) Firelogs don’t produce the wood fire smell that many like, and some even smell a little “chemical” when burned, but most won’t produce any scent at all if your fireplace is properly vented. Firelogs won’t spark, and though they may split when burning, mostly they just sit in one place, slowly deteriorating. As wood burns it can pop and send out sparks that may even pass through your screen. Wood fires need constant attention, and even when the flame is out, hot coals may smolder for hours. They light without fuss, burn steadily for two to three hours, and when they’re done you have only a small pile of ash to sweep up. The main attraction of firelogs is that they’re easy. Don’t expect to dry your wet mittens by an artificial-log fire.Īrtificial firelogs look cozy and warm, but they produce very little useful heat compared with wood. During the same three-hour burn with cordwood, you could use up to 25 pounds of split logs, generating a whole lot more heat per fire. The catch, however, is that per manufacturer instructions, you should burn only one firelog at a time. The site Science 2.0 explains that the heat content of standard white oak cordwood is about 6,983 BTU per pound, and a 5-pound firelog’s heat content runs from 12,000 to about 14,000 BTU per pound. However, firelogs don’t produce as much of one of the most beneficial byproducts of burning wood: heat. The manufacturers claim that burning firelogs produces 80 percent fewer fine particles and 75 percent less carbon monoxide, and independent studies (PDF) verify these claims. Because they’re made from recycled materials, firelogs have been promoted as being more environmentally friendly than regular wood logs, and as producing less emissions, including carbon monoxide. Most are made from postindustrial sawdust, cellulose, and waxes. Photo: Grant ClauserĪrtificial firelogs are basically big candles. Just don’t roast your chestnuts over them. Artificial firelogs, made mostly from sawdust and wax, create much of the ambiance of a real wood fire, with less of the work.
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