Heat logs?

[Tony1]

 

I feel that as April comes into view, the time is coming when the stove will not be lit 24/7, as it has been pretty much since November.

There will still be odd days/nights where a few hours of heat is needed, but it's a bit of a faff of building a fire from scratch, just for 4 hours of heat. 

As the self-appointed management facilitator and process improvement consultant for the boat, and a solid contender for the laziest narrrowboater in history, I've been looking at ways of streamlining the operational processes around fire production. 

Me and the team have been solutioneering, brainstorming, blue sky-ing, and running our new concepts up flagpoles, and one of the ideas that has so far stayed up the flagpole is that of using heat logs. 

In theory these things are tossed into the stove (inside their wrapper in many cases), a light is applied. Job done. 

In theory they then provide several hours of heat, and very little ash. 

On the face of it, this sort of thing seems just the ticket for a few hours of heat on a chilly Spring morning, but of course there will be snags. There are always snags. 

So my semi-serious question for the jury this morning is- have you used these things? Are they expensive in terms of the length and duration of heat you get from them, and would I be better resigning as the boat's process improvement consultant, and just build a proper fire when needed?

 

 

[TheBiscuits]

 

I've tried a few, and the best ones are HotMax, followed by FoxBlox.

 

All the rest seem to end up as soggy shavings that won't burn.

 

 

[Guest]

26 minutes ago, Tony1 said:

 

I feel that as April comes into view, the time is coming when the stove will not be lit 24/7, as it has been pretty much since November.

There will still be odd days/nights where a few hours of heat is needed, but it's a bit of a faff of building a fire from scratch, just for 4 hours of heat. 

As the self-appointed management facilitator and process improvement consultant for the boat, and a solid contender for the laziest narrrowboater in history, I've been looking at ways of streamlining the operational processes around fire production. 

Me and the team have been solutioneering, brainstorming, blue sky-ing, and running our new concepts up flagpoles, and one of the ideas that has so far stayed up the flagpole is that of using heat logs. 

In theory these things are tossed into the stove (inside their wrapper in many cases), a light is applied. Job done. 

In theory they then provide several hours of heat, and very little ash. 

On the face of it, this sort of thing seems just the ticket for a few hours of heat on a chilly Spring morning, but of course there will be snags. There are always snags. 

So my semi-serious question for the jury this morning is- have you used these things? Are they expensive in terms of the length and duration of heat you get from them, and would I be better resigning as the boat's process improvement consultant, and just build a proper fire when needed?

 

 

 

Weve used them on the boat and at home. For what you are proposing they are just about ok. The heat output seems fairly limited.

 

We used the ones from Asda, but I cant recall the name.

 

Edit.

 

These are them.

https://groceries.asda.com/product/matches-fire-lighters-fuels/zip-the-firelog/910002288726

 

Edited March 12, 2022 by The Happy Nomad

[Tony1]

Thanks chaps- so it seems these things might actually be some use, but you need to get the right ones... 

 

 

[TheBiscuits]

Use some free firewood without any smokeless fuel for an evening fire.  You've been aboard long enough for your first collection of logs to have seasoned on the roof ...

 

You do have a collection of wood next to the roof teapot don't you?

 

[Tony1]

15 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

Use some free firewood without any smokeless fuel for an evening fire.  You've been aboard long enough for your first collection of logs to have seasoned on the roof ...

 

You do have a collection of wood next to the roof teapot don't you?

 

 

I guess I'm just not a wood-on-the-roof kinda guy 😀

 

Not a shiny boater either, I must add. Although it could do with being a bit shinier at the moment...

 

 

 

[MtB]

I don't see the problem with still using coal. (Ok, 'smokeless solid fuel'.) It hardly takes any longer to light a coal fire that a heat log fire, shirley. 

[Guest]

12 minutes ago, MtB said:

I don't see the problem with still using coal. (Ok, 'smokeless solid fuel'.) It hardly takes any longer to light a coal fire that a heat log fire, shirley. 

 

Solid fuel doesn't generally come wrapped in an ignitable covering that you just touch wit a naked flame. (Though you can even buy such a thing too). So for lighting convenience they do score over solid fuel and because we found they don't put out a huge amount of heat they are good if you just want a low background heat for a short time period.

 

But that said we no longer use them at home and also just use solid fuel/wood as required,

[Tony1]

25 minutes ago, MtB said:

I don't see the problem with still using coal. (Ok, 'smokeless solid fuel'.) It hardly takes any longer to light a coal fire that a heat log fire, shirley. 

 

I shall pass your input on to the Fire Production committee. 

I have to point out that having been recently appointed Process Improvement Manager for the vessel, I really need this key project to produce results.

The numbskull they had overseeing the Heat Procurement action subgroup for the last 4 months (also me) was encouraged to resign by the other members of the General Domestic Comfort Board. 

Frankly, I don't want to end up going the same way.

Again.

 

 

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

I’ve used them from time to time and found them ok. Can’t remember what make.

Ideal for what the OP suggests.

I would also think easier to stack and store than bags of coal and much cleaner.

 

They’re plenty of cold damp summer days and evenings, wise to have something to put on the fire.

I always have some coal on board. I’m not hardy enough to have an annual date of ‘the last fire’ and then wait til November.  

[Ronaldo47]

A fire-lighting tip I read in a mid-1920's home encyclopaedia ( Enquire Within On Everything) is to fill the grate with coal and then  make a small fire from firewood on top of the coal. Not only go you get heat from the burning wood straight away, but the gasses driven off from the coal as it heats up, ignite rather than passing up the chimney as unburnt smoke.

[MtB]

11 minutes ago, Ronaldo47 said:

A fire-lighting tip I read in a mid-1920's home encyclopaedia ( Enquire Within On Everything) is to fill the grate with coal and then  make a small fire from firewood on top of the coal. Not only go you get heat from the burning wood straight away, but the gasses driven off from the coal as it heats up, ignite rather than passing up the chimney as unburnt smoke.

 

 

Good point. There is a very long and very old thread on here where much the same suggestion was made by several posters IIRC. ISTR doing it this way myself for a while after but then forgot about the method. Must try it again.

 

But like most threads on here there was a great deal of disagreement, mostly from people who maintain their way is the only way that should be allowed!

[PCSB]

Someone I know uses the heat logs from a company called Lekto Fuels (I think ... defo Lekto something). He seems to rate them - I've not tried any yet but they seem a tad expensive to me.

[Tonka]

1 hour ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

Solid fuel doesn't generally come wrapped in an ignitable covering that you just touch wit a naked flame. (Though you can even buy such a thing too). So for lighting convenience they do score over solid fuel and because we found they don't put out a huge amount of heat they are good if you just want a low background heat for a short time period.

 

But that said we no longer use them at home and also just use solid fuel/wood as required,

Eh they call it charcoal and it comes in a bag. Called instant bbq

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, Tonka said:

Eh they call it charcoal and it comes in a bag. Called instant bbq

 

Yes we use that all the time. On a BBQ not in our multi fuel stove though.

 

As I indicated you can actually get solid fuel supplied in the same (expansive) format. Our local supermarket sell that too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GUMPY]

If it's only a bit of evening warmth needed I just run the Eberspacher for a couple of hours 😉

 

[Tony1]

1 hour ago, Goliath said:

I’ve used them from time to time and found them ok. Can’t remember what make.

Ideal for what the OP suggests.

I would also think easier to stack and store than bags of coal and much cleaner.

 

They’re plenty of cold damp summer days and evenings, wise to have something to put on the fire.

I always have some coal on board. I’m not hardy enough to have an annual date of ‘the last fire’ and then wait til November.  

 

I'm definitely not a bear grylls kind of boater, and I like my comforts, but the thing is I have diesel CH that can run for an hour or so on those odd chilly mornings in say late May or early June. 

If I know its going to be chilly most of the day then I'm tempted to light a fire.

I found that last year, once we were into June, I can't remember even turning the CH on until late August/early Sept. 

 

I did end up with a few bags of coal left over last year, but they just sat in the cratch being a nuisance until late Sept, so I want to avoid doing that again this year.

 

[Tony1]

1 hour ago, PCSB said:

Someone I know uses the heat logs from a company called Lekto Fuels (I think ... defo Lekto something). He seems to rate them - I've not tried any yet but they seem a tad expensive to me.

 

This might be the slight snag with the heat log plan. 

B+M, which is a store chain usually easy to reach when needed, has some for about £1 per log:

 

https://www.bmstores.co.uk/products/blazers-fuel-logs-295744

 

There are others called fire logs that sell for £1.50, but they look like they might last a bit longer.

 

 

1 hour ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

Yes we use that all the time. On a BBQ not in our multi fuel stove though.

 

As I indicated you can actually get solid fuel supplied in the same (expansive) format. Our local supermarket sell that too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Charcoal might actually be a decent shout for a few hours of modest heat in a stove.

You can get a 5kg bag for about £4, which I would think would make about four separate 'fires', plus its light, easy to get hold of and very easy to light.

 

 

 

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

21 minutes ago, Tony1 said:

 

I'm definitely not a bear grylls kind of boater, and I like my comforts, but the thing is I have diesel CH that can run for an hour or so on those odd chilly mornings in say late May or early June. 

If I know its going to be chilly most of the day then I'm tempted to light a fire.

I found that last year, once we were into June, I can't remember even turning the CH on until late August/early Sept. 

 

I did end up with a few bags of coal left over last year, but they just sat in the cratch being a nuisance until late Sept, so I want to avoid doing that again this year.

 

if you have central heating then your sorted 👍

 

one problem with lighting the fire on a chilly day I can end up roasting at night 

[Guest]

1 hour ago, PCSB said:

Someone I know uses the heat logs from a company called Lekto Fuels (I think ... defo Lekto something). He seems to rate them - I've not tried any yet but they seem a tad expensive to me.

 

I looked into these and I agree they are ridiculously expensive for what they are.

[tree monkey]

I have 3 paraffin lamps, the hurricane type rather than the unpleasant brass things and they seem to do me for those slightly chilly evenings, it's possibly psychosomatic but as long as I don't actually think I'm cold that will do me

[Mad Harold]

1 hour ago, tree monkey said:

I have 3 paraffin lamps, the hurricane type rather than the unpleasant brass things and they seem to do me for those slightly chilly evenings, it's possibly psychosomatic but as long as I don't actually think I'm cold that will do me

But what about the fumes?

[Tony1]

1 hour ago, tree monkey said:

I have 3 paraffin lamps, the hurricane type rather than the unpleasant brass things and they seem to do me for those slightly chilly evenings, it's possibly psychosomatic but as long as I don't actually think I'm cold that will do me

 

I admire your fortitude my dear mr monkey, but I'm not salesman enough to push the case for psychosomatic heaters to those wily devils on the Heat Procurement Committee. 

 

I think its my lack of imagination, but I can't convince myself that I'm warm, unless I am actually warm. 

 

That said, I have heard of van dwellers using arrays of candles as a heat source- so perhaps in a small space it really does take enough of the chill away to do a job.

 

But if I'm honest, the whole scheme has a slight ring of implausibility about it, certainly for a indolent comfort lover like myself. Perhaps one for the Arctic explorers to look into, I feel. Shackleton would have been proud of you.

 

Edited March 12, 2022 by Tony1

[Guest]

14 minutes ago, Mad Harold said:

But what about the fumes?

 

Isn't that the main attraction?

 

That would take me right back to my scouting days.

[tree monkey]

25 minutes ago, Mad Harold said:

But what about the fumes?

I rather like the smell of paraffin lamps and they give off a lovely gentle light.

14 minutes ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

Isn't that the main attraction?

 

That would take me right back to my scouting days.

Never one to join gangs myself but yes the smell is one of the things I love, I suspect from the childhood paraffin heaters and the later greenhouse heaters which are always associated with being warm and dry in the greenhouse whilst it hammers down with rain outside, a lovely feeling

 

15 minutes ago, Tony1 said:

 

I admire your fortitude my dear mr monkey, but I'm not salesman enough to push the case for psychosomatic heaters to those wily devils on the Heat Procurement Committee. 

 

I think its my lack of imagination, but I can't convince myself that I'm warm, unless I am actually warm. 

 

That said, I have heard of van dwellers using arrays of candles as a heat source- so perhaps in a small space it really does take enough of the chill away to do a job.

 

But if I'm honest, the whole scheme has a slight ring of implausibility about it, certainly for a indolent comfort lover like myself. Perhaps one for the Arctic explorers to look into, I feel. Shackleton would have been proud of you.

 

It does seem to work, with the bonus I always have a supply of paraffin to make emergency firelighters with if I ever need them.