# Quick Review : Bear Mountain "Bear Bricks".



## Oregon Fire (Sep 15, 2008)

*Bear Bricks* are very similar to the "bio bricks" that have been sold on the east coast for some time;   Made by Bear Mountain Forest Products in Hood River Oregon,   they are a small 2 pound brick that comes in a "flat" of 12 bricks.   At a total of weight of 24 pounds - same size as a "case of coke" - it's a perfect size and weight for movement.    

  Because the bricks are square in shape - they can be stored in a very compact space.   I was able to put 2 pallets, nearly 2 tons, in an 8 foot length along the side of my garage (4+ feet high and 2 feet deep). 

   I did a test burn earlier in the year in my jotul stove and decided to pick up two pallets of bricks @ 972 bricks per pallet.   I live in a development and have room for a cord or 2  outside my home - the ability to additionally have the equivalent of 2 cords of wood along 8 foot of garage wall is a god send.  My wife's desire to strangle me in my sleep is greatly reduced!   

   I had previously tried the canadian made energy logs that were previously reviewed here - very hard to control and I had a scary run away fire with them.    The Bear Bricks, on the other hand, were easy to control the burn.  You pack the bricks in tight and have less of the fuel load involved in the combustion compared to energy logs (aka presto logs).   With the small, rectangular Bear Bricks, you can also get more fuel in the stove.    This yielded an extremely long burn time with a moderate stove temperature of 500 degrees.   I have the jotul c450,  which is a relatively small insert, and I expect to get easy overnight burns with Bear Bricks.

   There is a bit of a learning curve to overcome to get this fuel working well in your stove.    Two things come into play.  The density of the product and it's low moisture content is a double edged sword.     It is very very efficient when the stove is up to temperature, but getting the fire started and up to temperature with solely Bear Bricks is difficult for the novice.    It is easier to start with a softwood like Fir and get a base fire going - rake these coals to the front and then load the bricks in the back with space at the sides to allow heat to radiate to the sides of the stove.

   Starting the fire solely with Bear Bricks is more difficult, but once you master a good technique things go quite smoothly.    I would recommend breaking two bricks in half and using the method shown on the eco-bricks website (teepee) for starting.   Bear Mountain provided an instruction sheet at the store - using a small square of bricks with kindling at the base of it - but I tried it by that method and it worked very poorly compared to the teepee method.

   I had to provide more primary air to the fire to get it established.   I saw where another jotul owner was trying to dampen down his stove and would have his eco-bricks smolder.      I thought about this and attribute it to the small moisture content in the bricks.  You have less steam and less volume of air going up the flue (decreased draft).    I found I had to provide much more air to the bricks to get them going and had to provide more air when the fire was established.   It seems scary at first to "open her up" more than you are used to  - but the stove temperatures are moderate and easy to control.

   I also found it's best to reload the stove while the temp is still relatively high - say 350+ degrees.   If you use a standard technique of letting the stove burn down to coals, it is difficult to re-establish a fire with a large fuel load.     With the stove hot and a sufficient amount of coals -you can load the stove up and get that dense cube of fuel efficiently cooking again with ease.


*Advantages : *
  - Longer burn times with higher average temps for easy overnight burns.
  - Cleaner burning - better for the environment and reduced maintenance costs with less time cleaning the flue and glass.
  - Easier to control fire - greatly reducing chances of over-firing the stove.
  - Great form factor and packaging - like grabbing a case of coke from the garage.  My wife loves them.
  - They take up much less space than other compressed wood products (presto-logs, etc.).
  - Quality and consistency of the fuel - moisture content is very low compared to cord wood.   Purchased cord wood could need 6-12 months more of drying out to be truly seasoned (e.g. Oak takes a long time to season).
  - Can be stored in the garage without fear of insect infestation.   The wood comes pest free and is too dry to be a food supply for wood destroying pests.

*Disadvantages *: 
  - Availability  - Coastal Farm supply was carrying them locally and just quit for some reason.  I don't think users are being properly being educated on their use and Coastal  may have received negative feedback on the product.  Mount Scott Fuel in Portland is carrying them.
  - Learning curve - burn differently from cord wood - usually require more air to get proper draft (less moisture = less steam = less draft).

  Last year I would have said cost is a disadvantage but the price of dried hardwood is up 50-100 dollars per cord this year.   The Bear Bricks were $250 per pallet (just shy of a ton).    For me, it seemed a no brainer, I could get the equivalent of 2 cords of wood (2 pallets)  that fits in a tighter space in my nice dry garage.

    For my stove, there are changes in stove operation - 
        1. more air supply to start fire and keep fire established.   
        2. Reload stove sooner while stove is still hot.
        3. Starting requires new technique.   See bio-bricks website for teepee technique -  www.biopellet.net

*Bottom line - two big thumbs up*.  I'll post to the wiki and also post an update when we get into the burning season.  

Thanks,
jeff


----------



## begreen (Sep 15, 2008)

Great info Jeff. Thanks for posting. I need to get in touch with the Bear Mtn folks. They make some good products from the reports I have read. But I need to get used to the Alderlea a bit more before testing new products. I'm looking forward to your winter review.


----------



## johnnywarm (Sep 15, 2008)

BeGreen said:
			
		

> I'm looking forward to your winter review.




Same here Jeff,Thank you.

John


----------



## Oregon Fire (Sep 15, 2008)

I had listed "availability" as a disadvantage above because employees at Coastal Farm Supply told me they would no longer carry them.   I got the following correction via e-mail from Stan at Bear Mountain Forest Products : 

_*FYI: There was some bad communication between the buying office and the
Coastal Stores. All stores will be getting additional shipments of
Bricks this week, and they will all carry this product for the entire
season. Should you need more later in the season, we will keep Coastal
well supplied.

Regards,

Stan*_

    For coastal farm locations - www.coastalfarm.com.    Bear Bricks are also carried by Parkrose Hardware in Portland, OR.

jeff


----------



## johnnywarm (Sep 15, 2008)

For coastal farm locations - www.coastalfarm.com.    Bear Bricks are also carried by Parkrose Hardware in Portland, OR.

jeff[/quote]


Any places that carrie the Bear-Bricks in Connectiut???


----------



## Heat Miser (Sep 16, 2008)

I've also seen Atlas brand bricks for sale here in SW Washington starting last winter. The local hardware stores were carrying them.


----------



## bcnu (Sep 16, 2008)

I'll have plenty of wood for the next few years but am thinking about a small supply of bio bricks.  I'll do some reading but am wondering if the bricks are roughly equal to a hardwood like oak.  If so I might consider trying them during the cold months here in Portland area.


----------



## Oregon Fire (Sep 17, 2008)

Took some photos after I got done stacking them..

  Here is a pic of the bear brick packaging next to a can of coke to show size...







  And here is a picture showing 2 tons of bear bricks along the side of my garage wall;  With little square bricks - they stack quite nicely into a very compact space.






  The stack is 24 inches deep - 8 feet long and about 4 and half feet tall...   This is 2 tons - the equivalent of 2 cords of fir in a pretty tight space! 

jeff


----------



## johnnywarm (Sep 17, 2008)

Oregon Fire said:
			
		

> Took some photos after I got done stacking them..
> 
> Here is a pic of the bear brick packaging next to a can of coke to show size...
> 
> ...




Jeff Thank you for the pics.How many cords of wood do they(2 tons) Equal????

John


----------



## Jags (Sep 17, 2008)

Excellent review Jeff.  Let us know how ya like them in the long run.  If you do have the ability, is there any way that you can compare the consumption rate of bricks verses cord wood?


----------



## Oregon Fire (Sep 17, 2008)

johnnywarm said:
			
		

> Jeff Thank you for the pics.How many cords of wood do they(2 tons) Equal????
> 
> John




   They say 1 ton is equal to 1 cord of wood - penciling it out - it works out to about 16 Million BTUs per ton.  Which is about the same as a cord of douglas fir.

   It is hard to compare though - because it is more dense than oak with much less moisture content, so burn times are greatly extended.

jeff


----------



## johnnywarm (Sep 17, 2008)

Oregon Fire said:
			
		

> johnnywarm said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Thanks Jeff.I think bio-bricks here are like 290 per ton. Its still high priced if you can cut your own wood.


----------



## bcnu (Sep 18, 2008)

Just got a flyer in the mail from our local fram store and they advertise these bricks for 33 cents. At two pounds each that's 1000 to a ton times 33 so Think I'll pass at $330 a ton. Some guy on Craigslist just listed oak slats 1x3 in 3 and four foot lengths for free. Think I'll look into that right away - I can spend some time sawing them to length and the price is right.


----------



## Oregon Fire (Sep 18, 2008)

bcnu said:
			
		

> Just got a flyer in the mail from our local fram store and they advertise these bricks for 33 cents. At two pounds each that's 1000 to a ton times 33 so Think I'll pass at $330 a ton. Some guy on Craigslist just listed oak slats 1x3 in 3 and four foot lengths for free. Think I'll look into that right away - I can spend some time sawing them to length and the price is right.



   I would pass at $330 per ton  too, but that's not what they cost here in Portland.   And free is definitely a price you can't beat.

    That sounds like the flyer from coastal farm supply - they sell them for 33 cents if you only buy a box or two.  IF you buy a ton the price drops per brick and the pallet price is $253.

   I get a couple of cords of wood, fir and alder, off of a friends property and am supplementing my supply with the bear bricks.    I can get much longer burn times with the bear bricks - even over oak.   So the stove will be loaded up with these when I go to bed.   And in the colder months, I might load up the stove with them before going to work.   There is a plot showing burn times for bio-bricks (same thing as bear bricks) - my experience lines up with this plot.        

jeff


----------



## bcnu (Sep 18, 2008)

Thank Jeff - and yes that was from Coastal.  $253 sounds better but still more than free(if cutting your own is ever free)I do like the sound of extended burn times with the bricks and will probably pick up a couple dozen - even at 33 cents each, just to give them a try.


----------



## woodsie8 (Oct 4, 2008)

Saw these at Coastal, last week.    All my seasoned wood, is not seasoned so may go get a ton, to hold us over and give the wood a little while longer to season.  Wood here up on the mountain is running about $200 seasoned but like I said, seasoned is still pretty wet.  Maybe if a ton of bricks could last us a month or two, that would be enough time to get us some more seasoning time


----------



## woodsie8 (Oct 4, 2008)

how many do you use when you load it fully for a night burn?  So you push the bricks right up against each other and stack them almost to the tubes?  I could see using 24 bricks at a time.  Is that what you mean?  I did see that you leave room on the side walls to all air around the sides.


----------



## Oregon Fire (Oct 5, 2008)

woodsie8 said:
			
		

> how many do you use when you load it fully for a night burn?  So you push the bricks right up against each other and stack them almost to the tubes?  I could see using 24 bricks at a time.  Is that what you mean?  I did see that you leave room on the side walls to all air around the sides.



    My Jotul insert is relatively small - I wouldn't put more than 11 or 12 in mine at a time.    I would start slowly and figure out how your controls on the stove work with this fuel - 7 or 8 bricks at first.    It is much more dense with less moisture content and burns completely differently.   

   Always pack the bricks tightly together to avoid an overfire.   You need to limit the amount of surface area exposed to combustion.   The bricks do expand a little during combustion  - you can use this to your advantage - if you stack the bricks on their side with the "bear" to the right or left.  Then the air gap between them will close as the bricks expand.    On my small insert - I create a wall of them in the back of the stove with the bear label to the side - laying flat down.   I don't get them too close to the secondary air supply at the roof of the firebox.    I had an overfire once where, on my stove, the fire would start drawing off the secondary air for primary combustion - not good!

jeff


----------



## Knifethrower (Oct 25, 2008)

Hi Jeff,

Just an FYI- Western Pet Supply on Beaverton Hillsdale Highway sells a falt of 12 bricks for 4.29 each. A little spendy, but I am sure if a pallet was ordered, they would probably drop the price.

I do have a question for you- you are primarily using them for a tove, but I wonder if its at a beneficial to use them in a fireplace? Aside from the storage and environmental waste factor with wood (emissions, etc...),  is it going to garner any more heat than basic run of the mill wood sold at Chateau Depot? We are deliberating over a half of a cord of wood and a half pallet of bricks.

Any advice?

Thanks,

Jen


----------



## shellyC (Dec 7, 2008)

I'm about to start burning Biobricks this heating season in a Morso 1125 wood stove, and confess to being a bit confused about stacking them inside the firebox. I understand the instructions re starting the bricks in a tee-pee configuration to get them going but I'm not clear about the "wall" of bricks one constructs next as described in some of the threads I've read. Is the "wall" meant to go around all four sides of the initial mass? Should the bricks be flat or stood on edge? What about staggering the courses as indicated on some of the thread in order to minimize air gaps between the bricks? And what should be the total # of bricks to build this so-called wall? Sorry to be so thick about all this considering I played with toy blocks as a child and don't recall having trouble building walls, but the instructions I've come across about building a Biobrick fire have left me scratching my head. Any help would be appreciated, a picture even moreso (pardon the pun).
Sheldon


----------



## bcnu (Dec 7, 2008)

Hey ShellyC, enjoyed your pun. Unfortunately, I'm usually a brick short myself so can't help with the bio wall.  Good luck.  Would like to hear(no pun intended) from those who have tried these  bricks in their stove.


----------



## shellyC (Jan 4, 2009)

Been playing around with starting a BioBrick fire, and devised a method that I think is more effective than the recommended teepee configuration which didn't work out that well for me. I start off by laying four bricks, flat face down, in a U pattern: two bricks length-wise with two projecting forward at each end. This leaves a small area in the center of the "U" to pack a little paper, some kindling, or starter sticks. After the kindling starts up, I lay two bricks horizontally  on top of the U so that the edges of each are exposed to the flames, leaving a little opening between the two bricks for the fire to go up the "chimney" I've created. This works well to ignite the edges of the top bricks as well as the walls of the bricks on the bottom tier. Hopefully this explanation is clear enough to make sense, and that it works for you if the teepee method frustrates you as much as it did me. Happy New Year.


----------



## Oregon Fire (Sep 5, 2009)

It's been a while since I posted this review.  I thought I would stop back and give another update after burning through 2 tons last year.    I just picked up another 2 tons because the bear bricks are on sale locally at Coastal Farm Supply for $199 ton through labor day.  I just picked up another 2 tons at this great price.    And I just finished stacking them in the garage.  I have another 2 cords of fir/alder mix outside.   So I am pretty well set for the season.

  I really like them - they make me lazy in the winter.  It is often blowing and raining here in the winter - so for the cordwood, I grab the wheel barrow and stock up a "rack" next to the house and stock my fireplace racks.   It is so much easier to step out into the garage and grab a "flat" of bricks (12) - lots less time.   Less mess too, but there is sawdust from the bricks - but it is easily vacuumed up.

   At $199 a ton, I am tempted to grab another ton and find some space in the garage to put them.    But I think I am good for now...

   Oh another advantage - the form factor - I can load 7-8 "flats" (12 brick package) on a hand truck and move them around easily...

jeff


----------



## Ratman (Sep 5, 2009)

Great research / post Jeff.

Shouldn't this be in the womans I mean pellet section.
Your killing me.


----------



## LLigetfa (Sep 5, 2009)

Oregon Fire said:
			
		

> Took some photos after I got done stacking them..
> ...
> The stack is 24 inches deep - 8 feet long and about 4 and half feet tall...   This is 2 tons - the equivalent of 2 cords of fir in a pretty tight space!


The pics wouldn't show until I grabbed and pasted the URLs to another window by using "Quote".

I think your math is a bit off.  The flats look to be 16" x 24" each so the bulk of your stack is 16 inches deep by 12 feet long with the exception of the 5 flats above the foundation wall.


----------



## Oregon Fire (Sep 5, 2009)

LLigetfa said:
			
		

> Oregon Fire said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



    hmmm...  The pics work for me - and I used img tags around the path to them.

  No, my numbers are correct  - I just went and double checked the measurements..  They are stacked 2 flats deep  - 12 inch side to 12 inch side for a total of 24 inches deep.

  1. Each flat is 12 X 16 (not 16 X 24).

  2.  So if you look at the photo - you see 6 flats lengthwise @ 16" per flat. = 96" = 8 feet...

  3. There is no foundation projection affecting the stacking - it is a cube of bricks...

  They have high btu output because they are compressed and dried, having less than 6% moisture content.   Again, the lack of moisture and steam to create draft makes it so you have to adjust your burning technique - open up the stove more to allow for proper draft.

   We are due for a big earthquake in the NW - even with several cords of wood outside, the survivalist in me likes having a couple of months worth of fuel "extra".    

jeff


----------



## Miliani (Nov 7, 2009)

I love Bear Bricks.  I live in an apartment and have limited storage space so these were perfect in that respect.  My mom bought the first 24 bricks for me to try, thinking that they would burn easier in my smaller apartment sized fireplace.  She was so right!!  I started adding them to my regular wood fires a couple of weeks ago and now hardly use wood except as starter.  They burn so hot that they easily warm my living room without using conventional heating.  My only problem is that I live in the Seattle area and have yet to find a dealer, so I've contacted Bear Products.  Worse comes to worse I'll drive to Vancouver/Portland area and purchase a ton.  These will definitely help out (and I can stay home) when we loose power this winter.


----------



## tickbitty (Nov 7, 2009)

Since I see this here - has anyone ever heard of Liberty Bricks?  They sell them near here, and you can get a ton of the seconds (chipped bricks or something) for $135.  I was thinking it might be nice to have some of these on hand in case our fairly meager load of seasoned gives out once we actually get a stove rolling.  Plus I am assuming it's from one of our local paper mills which is interesting to me to know if these are used much, or if they are any good.

http://richmond.craigslist.org/grd/1441302805.html
















They are certainly uglier than the bear ones!
Sorry if it's not cool to post a different brand here on your review.  But your review got me much more interested in these because the prices you were mentioning were way higher - this guy sells the seconds at $135 a ton. Interesting!


----------



## begreen (Nov 7, 2009)

I haven't seen those before. They look like compressed newsprint. How do the burn?


----------



## tickbitty (Nov 7, 2009)

BeGreen said:
			
		

> I haven't seen those before. They look like compressed newsprint. How do the burn?


You mean the liberty ones?  They are wood/wood fiber. 
http://www.libertybricks.com/
Supposedly burn a bit hot.  I am assuming that one can make adjustments so as not to overfire?  But I don't know.  Do people who use these things mix them in with cordwood or burn just one or the other I wonder?


----------



## btuser (Nov 8, 2009)

Stop tempting me to the dark side.


----------



## tickbitty (Nov 10, 2009)

Since these things apparently burn a bit hot, are there ways to use them where they will not damage the stove?  What kinds of adjustments might you make for the burn?  Or would it just work to mix the bricks with hardwood, would that keep the temps more at the expected levels?  I'm interested in getting some of those Liberty bricks perhaps since our wood supply is a little low and we haven't gotten started yet.  But I don't want to get them if we (not knowing what we are doing) might damage our stove.


----------



## fredarm (Nov 10, 2009)

I've tried Woodbrickfuel and BioBricks.  Personally, I preferred the BioBricks, they seemed to burn better.  I mixed them with hardwood last year when I had less than well-seasoned wood.  For $135 a ton, I'd definitely try them.  They run $250-$285 a ton here in Mass, which is why I just use them as a supplement.  They also work well as a kind of quasi-kindling.  Since they burn hot, they get the fire going really quickly.  And they're short, so I can load them north-south in my little Vista.  I use them in a modified top-down start, putting two larger splits east-west on the bottom, two Biobricks north-south on top of that with a Supercedar between them, and some smaller splits or kindling on top with a piece of newspaper to start the draft.  Light it all off and in a half hour or so I've got a hot stove and a good bed of coals on top of the bigger splits on the bottom.  I can then add more wood or just let that cruise, depending on how mcuh heat I need at that point.


----------



## Fuelmaker (Nov 11, 2009)

I started a new thread yesterday about our product, Liberty Bricks.  I do not want to divert this thread about Bear Bricks.  We almost bought their machine last year when we were anxious to get started and we had to wait 16 weeks to get our new machine.  All of us are trying to determine what we can do to make the best value product.  I would like to know how you like the packing of bricks into flats, particularly regarding how much sawdust sheds from the bricks and whether they swell and get "oatmeally" when it is humid.  I saw the picture of the bricks in the garage.  Were they restacked?  Did the pallets get delivered with a shroud and stretch wrap to stabilize the load?

Also, we were similarly frustrated by the suggestion to make a teepee.  With bricks it often ends up as a "tippy" that falls over and smothers the fire or goes out before it gets going well.  We discovered that some sort of stack works best.  Are people interested in starting a thread about easy ways to start a fire in different types of stoves?  Bricks are easy to start and because they are so consistent, once you figure out what is best, you can get a good fire every time.  I use newspaper as tinder in the middle of a stack with relatively small gaps between bricks to hold the heat and never need any kindling.


----------



## Fuelmaker (Nov 17, 2009)

We are seriously considering offering Liberty Bricks in “beer trays” made of cardboard like Bear Bricks does.  Although the trays are a little more costly than shrink wrap, they are less labor to pack, so we would offer them at the same price.  We might pay a little extra to get a tray with tabs that does not have to be glued or stapled.  This would make it better to either recycle or burn.  Nearby customers could even return trays for a discount on another ton.  What do you who use Bear Bricks do with the empty trays?  They look to be glued or stapled.  Would you prefer trays that unfold?

How do you like cardboard compared to shrink wrap?  Dust is probably be contained better in a tray than a bag.  It will not protect the bricks from humidity, so they probably should not be stored as long outside, even under the pallet cover or a tarp or shed. 

Should we print anything on the sides of the tray when we pack whole tons for sale?

Would you prefer 35 pound trays to the 24 pound trays made by Bear Mountain?


----------



## nate379 (Mar 19, 2012)

This thread came up on teh google when I was searching bear bricks. There is a place here selling them $350/ton and they are saying 1 ton is = 2 cords of firewood.

The Bear Brick site says one 3 lb brick is 8,200BTU, so a ton would be 5.6 million BTUs. Cord of birch is around 23 million.... Hmmmmmmm.

To equal one cord of birch I'd have to buy almost $1500 of those bricks.


----------

