Recreational briquettes – for the fireplace and for the grill

Nowadays, heating a home with a live fire or cooking over embers is already a rarity – the domain of mountain shelters and summer cottages.

Modern fuels, such as pellet, are today the standard: ecological, safe and convenient.

Despite this, many of us are still drawn to fire – not only as a source of heat, but also as a symbol of the home hearth. It is no coincidence that a synonym for an atmospheric evening is dinner by candlelight, and not afternoon tea under LEDs.

A substitute for this primal bond with fire today remains a weekend barbecue or an evening by the home fireplace.  

Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), thanks to the development of science, we are today aware that smoke from wood does not serve our health, and sausage from a campfire is a great, holiday adventure, but not the best idea for an everyday dinner.

What if it were somehow possible to reconcile our attachment to blazing flames without at the same time treating our lungs to toxic fumes?

A step in this direction are briquettes - in this case recreational briquettes, intended for fireplaces and grills - let us take a closer look at them.

1. Wood briquettes for the fireplace - an alternative to firewood

Wood briquette, also called sawdust briquette or wooden briquette, is an increasingly popular type of fuel used both strictly for heating purposes and for recreational purposes - as an insert for a home fireplace. 

1.2. Wood briquette - production and characteristics

Wood briquette is created as a result of compressing ground wood waste. A machine called a briquetting machine is responsible for grinding and then compressing the raw material under conditions of high temperature generated as a result of friction. The wood fed into the briquetting machine should be previously pre-shredded using a so-called wood chipper. In the briquetting process, the wood releases a natural binder - lignin. Thanks to this, finished briquettes in the form of cubes or cylinders have a compact consistency and high density. 

The calorific value of wood briquettes ranges between 15 - 19 MJ/kg, depending on the type of wood.

Wood briquette is easy to produce independently, especially for people who have constant access to sawdust, brushwood, bark or wood waste. A briquetting machine is a simple-to-operate machine that does not require high user qualifications.

1.3. Advantages of wood briquettes

In the briquetting process, the wood evaporates part of the water contained in the wood. It is moisture that is responsible for the gray, irritating smoke of burning wood. As a result of biomass compression, the combustion parameters of wood improve - the ash content drops even below 1%.

Wood briquettes, thanks to their high density, burn slowly and evenly.

The use of briquettes in fireplaces also guarantees less soot accumulation on the glass of the combustion chamber. 

Briquettes provide a long-lasting fire while limiting unhealthy fumes. 

This is a good alternative for anyone who appreciates a blazing fire in the fireplace, and at the same time does not like the smell of smoked products permeating carpets, curtains or clothes.

2. Charcoal briquettes - for cooks and allotment owners

Charcoal briquettes need no introduction. From April to late autumn, their sight greets us at the checkout in every supermarket. Unlike the types of fuel discussed above, charcoal briquettes are used only for recreational purposes and are not used for heating homes. 

2.2 Production and characteristics of charcoal briquettes

The production of this briquette begins with burning wood in controlled oxygen-free conditions – in a process called pyrolysis – the result of which is the creation of charcoal. 

Then, according to the definition of a briquette, this charcoal is crushed into fine fractions, 

which are combined with natural binders, such as potato starch, wood flour or clay. 

After mixing, the mass goes to forming presses, where under high pressure it obtains the shape of typical, dark gray pillows, cylinders or cubes.

Unlike wood briquettes and other fuel briquettes, grill briquettes do not have to be dense, and their main goal is not long-term combustion, but even emission of high temperature for a limited time.

Usually, the moisture and ash content in grill briquettes is very low – which affects their ease of ignition and cleanliness of combustion.

Unlike biomass briquettes, grill briquettes are the result of a rather complicated and multi-stage production process. The briquette forming process itself proceeds in a manner similar to the production of other briquettes, however the pyrolysis of wood into charcoal requires knowledge and constant maintenance of appropriate conditions, so that the wood does not undergo combustion.

Applications of charcoal briquettes

Charcoal briquettes are intended primarily for recreational use – especially for grilling and roasting on a grate. Thanks to their structure and composition, they provide a constant, even temperature, which allows precise control of the food preparation process – from delicate vegetables to larger pieces of meat.

Compared to classic charcoal (e.g. in pieces), grill briquettes burn more slowly and more predictably, which is especially appreciated by people using large covered grills or planning longer roasting.

The calorific value of grill briquettes made of charcoal usually amounts to 28–32 MJ/kg, which makes them one of the most energetic fuels in the biomass category. The high heating value results from the fact that charcoal is a product already partially processed, containing mainly elemental carbon. 

Importantly, good quality grill briquettes do not contain chemicals and do not transfer unpleasant odors to food. However, it is worth avoiding products with the addition of artificial flammable substances – these may affect the taste of food and the quality of air.

It is best to choose products marked with FSC or PEFC certificates – this means that the raw material comes from sustainably managed forests.

Recreational briquettes - a compromise on good terms

Of course, nothing can match a real campfire – smelling of resin and crackling with sparks. There are still occasions and places to light such a fire.

On a daily basis, however, in terms of recreation, briquettes successfully replace traditional fuel from the forest – in a convenient, clean and more environmentally friendly way.