Making a model of firewood for an electric fireplace on your own. How to make fuel briquettes with your own hands, simple instructions How to make firewood from paper

The fireplace in the house is always associated with warmth and comfort. But not only a real fireplace, in which there is fire, but also various decorative models can be an excellent option. Especially interesting and uncomplicated in execution will be a home fireplace made of cardboard or boxes.

It is very easy to make a decorative fireplace with your own hands, because it will not only allow you to reveal your talents and imagination, but also create an unusual decoration for your house or apartment. The original fireplace made of cardboard can completely replace the real model for you. At the same time, a cardboard fireplace can be made in any color variations and decorated with various interesting details.

Before creating a false fireplace, you should choose a place where you can place it. It is very important that it is located in "its place". That is, it successfully fit not only into the interior, but also, for example, served as a disguise for a wall with a crack or a not very attractive corner in the room.

Varieties

False - a fireplace made of cardboard can be wall or corner. As for the wall option, then everything is quite simple. Such a fireplace can be compact or, conversely, a little bulky. It all depends on the interior of the room where you want to install a future fireplace. In order for the wall fireplace not to look boring, you can make a decorative shelf for it, it will be able to hold various decor items, for example, small vases or candles. Such a fireplace is not so difficult to manufacture, but we will talk about this a little later.

A corner fireplace requires even less hassle than a wall-mounted one. You can also add a shelf to it. As well as various decorative elements in the "fire zone". As the main materials, you can use paint, various types of wallpaper and self-adhesive film.

Do it yourself from boxes - step by step

If you want to revive your interior and decide to make a fireplace - an imitation of your own hands, then old and unnecessary boxes may well come in handy for you. Now we will tell you how to easily implement a wall-mounted version of the fireplace. You will need the following materials: cardboard (boxes), a ruler or tape measure, a pencil, scissors and a stationery knife, glue, double-sided and masking tape, as well as various decor materials, such as paint and wallpaper.

Before starting work, you need to choose the installation location for the future false fireplace, decide on the final shape and size, and also make a small drawing. In addition, it is worth remembering that your fireplace will consist of three main components that are an integral part of the entire structure. The base, the portal for the fireplace (a place for the future hearth) and, of course, the top shelf, which will serve as a future stand for various decor elements.

First you need to conveniently lay out the cardboard box and draw all the details for the future fireplace according to the drawing. Next, cut out these details.

In addition, you should cut out a place or window for the future hearth - a portal. You can use a utility knife. You can choose the shape according to your taste, it can be classic rectangular or in the form of an arch.

To strengthen the folds of the future fireplace design, you can use glue or tape, or both at the same time. In order for the structure to be stable and not stagger, you need to make it more rigid. For this, stiffeners are most often used. Particular attention should be paid to the base of the fireplace, which is recommended to be strengthened with cardboard ribs. Such ribs are glued either randomly or assembled into a lattice.

You can make a mantelpiece in several ways. But it is worth remembering that it should be dense, since, most likely, you will want to place various kinds of decor items on it. If you decide to make a shelf out of cardboard, then it is better to use several layers glued together. Do not make the shelf too bulky, otherwise your future design may well fall. Sometimes thin plywood can also be used as a mantelpiece. Such a shelf is attached to double-sided tape, liquid nails or polymer glue.

And, finally, after collecting and gluing the entire structure, it needs to be given the look of a real fireplace. To do this, you can use any materials for decoration and decor. The finished fireplace is primed, covered with water-based paint, and to get the desired shade of paint, you can add different colors. You can also use different wallpapers, self-adhesive paper, or a combination of all these materials. You can decorate your fireplace however you see fit. You can use decorative openwork plinths, stucco molding or draw various patterns using stencils.

If there is not much space in your room, but you really want to install a decorative fireplace, then a corner false fireplace will be a great option. In addition, with this design, you will not only diversify the interior of your home, but also be able to hide a nondescript corner or mask cracks on the wall.

As with the creation of any fireplace, initially, you need to choose a place to install the future fireplace and make an appropriate drawing. To create a homemade corner fireplace, you will need a large box. In this design, the most important thing is to cut off one of the four sides of the box so that the other three will form a triangle.

On the facade, which is installed in the corner of the box, using scissors or a clerical knife, you need to cut a rounded hole and make a bend inward. It is very important not to touch the bottom of the structure. Here, on both sides, it is necessary to cut two arcs. And in the end, you will get an angle that you can fix between the side walls of your fireplace.

For facing a corner fireplace, wallpaper with imitation of brick is very well suited. The hearth of the fireplace can be decorated with decorative candles or logs or any other items.

Necessary materials

If you decide to create a fake fireplace, then for this you will not need a lot of rare and expensive materials. When choosing to create such a fireplace, you will have minimal material costs, but at the same time you will get the maximum pleasure from the whole process. After all, creating something with your own hands is always interesting and even useful.

The main material you need is cardboard. Most often, large and small cardboard boxes are used, depending on the desired result. For a mantelpiece, you can use cardboard or thin plywood, sometimes drywall. You also need a ruler or tape measure, a pencil, scissors or a stationery knife, masking and double-sided tape, stationery glue and PVA. In addition, you need a variety of wallpapers to decorate the finished fireplace structure, self-adhesive paper, for example, with a stone print. The lining of the fireplace can also be made from superisol. As a variety of details for decoration, you can use various skirting boards and stucco moldings. Thanks to such details, the fireplace - imitation will look like a real one.

Drawing

To properly make a fireplace with your own hands, you must first make a drawing and sketch of the future design with all the exact measurements. Such a drawing is a kind of technology project. Before creating a drawing, you should choose a place for the future fireplace, empty walls or corners are ideal. In addition, with the help of a wall or corner false - fireplace, you can easily mask various irregularities on the walls.

Next, you need to decide what size fireplace will fit best in your chosen installation location. At the next stage, you need to draw up a detailed sketch of the future fireplace, where you will enter all the dimensions and measurements. The drawing is one of the components in the process of creating a decorative fireplace, all measurements must be as accurate as possible, with minimal errors, so that during the work you are not distracted by various trifles. Experienced craftsmen advise to prepare and draw a fireplace in finished form, it is recommended to make it colored and with future details that you want to place directly on the fireplace itself. Such a drawing will greatly facilitate your work, in addition, you will immediately know which materials should be purchased first.

Decoration and decor

So, even at the planning stage of the future fireplace, you should think about the design and decoration of the fireplace structure. Immediately after you have done the bulk of the work, and a cardboard fireplace appeared in front of you, you need to prime it. For this, water-based white paint is most often used. In addition, you can add color to such paint and get the shade you need for an already finished product or for some specific details. You can use acrylic paints for exterior decor.

photos

For example, to create a fake baroque fireplace, you can paint the details of the fireplace with gold or bronze acrylic paints. In addition, you can use stucco, which will be very useful for this style, and make the entire fireplace in white shades. You can decorate such a luxurious fireplace with various candles. Moreover, you can arrange them not only on the mantelpiece, but also inside the fireplace itself.

You can also design your cardboard fireplace in country or Provence style. But do not forget that you should not only like this version of the fireplace, but also successfully harmonize with the entire interior. To create such a fireplace, you can use wallpaper with imitation of wood or stones. Above the fireplace, a picture with nature or a mirror will look very good. And on the mantelpiece you can place small vases.

A very interesting and easy-to-perform solution would be to create a Scandinavian-style fireplace. This style involves light shades and uncomplicated details. Such a fireplace will be an excellent solution for lovers of minimalism.

To make a fireplace look like marble chips, you can use liquid volumetric wallpaper. You can also use any other wallpaper, for example, with imitation of brick or stone.

In addition, the decor elements of the fireplace can be not only various stucco moldings, but also miniature columns that you can arrange at your discretion. You can also use decorative moldings. These are the same skirting boards. With the help of such moldings, you can decorate the portal and the edges of the facades on the fireplace.

And now you have completely designed and installed the fireplace and now it's time to think about various accessories and other elements that you can place directly in the fireplace itself. As already mentioned, candles will look very good in the fireplace portal. But no less interesting solution will be decorative firewood. They can often be purchased from natural wood, or you can make your own from corrugated board. Such crafts - logs will very successfully decorate the firebox of your fireplace.

How to decorate a firebox

You can decorate the decorative firebox of your fireplace with the help of various accessories. Candles will no doubt be a good option, and they can be not only classic light shades, but also bright ones, for example, red, orange or blue. They will look especially good if you decide to decorate a cardboard fireplace for the New Year. Also, if you're decorating a New Year's fireplace, don't forget to bring those very Christmas gift stockings that are so popular in the West. In addition to candles, you can put artificial branches of spruce and mountain ash in the fireplace insert. A good option would be live spruce branches, as well as cones, as they will not only create a festive atmosphere, but will also delight the household with a wonderful forest smell. Let your imagination run wild. Use various thin garlands with bows and other decorations. Festive fireplace you can diversify as you wish.

How to make cardboard fireplace logs

As already mentioned, you can decorate your fireplace insert with decorative corrugated cardboard logs. Making such logs is quite simple and it will not take you much time. On corrugated cardboard, you need to measure the length and width and cut off the necessary strips. Then these strips need to be rolled into tubes. After that, you need to fix the remaining edge with glue, until completely dry, you need to tie the resulting logs with a rope.

Today, special attention in the interior is paid to the issue of decoration. Most of the installed fireplaces do not function as heating, but as decoration. And the usual varieties of fuel are being replaced by biofuels or electricity. Therefore, making a fake firewood for an electric fireplace with your own hands is considered a fairly popular topic.

What are they needed for

Many will ask the question - why do we need such dummies? Well, first of all, it's a matter of aesthetics. And secondly, deep knowledge in the field of stove equipment is not needed to notice the difference between a hearth with an electric heating element and a wood-burning fireplace.

Due to the absence of smoke and the rapid heating of the room, electric fireplaces are in the black when compared with a wood-burning hearth. But with all this, a certain naturalness of the hearth is lost, its charm and charm are lost. If a model of firewood is added to such a design, the picture of the fireplace changes radically.

This situation is especially relevant for a city apartment, where the installation of a real fireplace is simply impossible.

Firewood imitation options and materials

In stores you can find many options for such products. They can be plastic or ceramic. Any imitation, purchased or made by hand, is intended to give realism to an artificial hearth in order to help you feel the beauty of home comfort and warmth.

Imitation of firewood or coals, made of plastic, has a very simple principle of operation. Usually such objects are illuminated with red light bulbs.

It is also possible that the light bulb is inside each element. Of course, this is not entirely realistic, but still.

For more expensive fireplace models, a flickering picture or imitation of artificial flame tongues is characteristic, which occurs due to a special mechanism in which elements rotate around the lamp, with alternating transparent and shaded sectors. This type of lighting can be located either behind the firewood dummy, or inside it.

The exact same lighting system can be used to achieve a burning effect, using real charcoal, which is placed in a fireplace niche.

In this case, the dummy and coals are illuminated from the bottom. Imitation of plastic firewood and coals, of course, is not perfect, and it has its own errors.

In order to hide all the flaws as much as possible, backlit artificial firewood is placed as deep as possible into the fireplace niche, and the hearth is decorated with a fireplace grate, which serves as a disguise for flaws.

In expensive models of electric fireplaces, you can find several methods of simulating fire. For realism, the paintings use not only dummies of firewood, but also mirrors, with strips of foil or ribbons in which the lights of the backlight glow, creating the illusion of flames. In addition to everything, the models are equipped with various functions, steam supply, which imitates the smoke from a fire, a sound device that reproduces sounds similar to the crackling of firewood.

If your financial capabilities are not enough for such items, then as an option, you can try to make dummies of firewood with your own hands.

Production of decorative firewood

Making decorative firewood with your own hands is quite easy, for this you can use the materials that almost every person can find.

Shops offer ready-made firewood made of plastic or ceramics, but the cost is quite high.

Therefore, it is more expedient to make decorative firewood with your own hands with minimal financial costs.

To make a dummy, you need to prepare:

cardboard;
paint;
glue;
Scotch.

The manufacturing process can be divided into four stages.

The first step is to prepare blanks that have different sizes. Some parts of future firewood may be longer, the side parts of the logs are slightly smaller.
The second stage is gluing the cut blanks. To do this, rectangular sheets of cardboard must be tightly rolled up. For gluing, you can use glue or tape. Short rolls are attached at an arbitrary angle to a longer size blank, forming the remainder of the branch.
The third stage involves coloring blanks. To do this, you can use paint of various colors, black, white or brown. The main goal of coloring is maximum realism.
The final step in staining is varnishing the logs.
And the last stage is the laying of logs in the niche of the electric fireplace. They can be laid in any direction, crossing or placing in a certain order.

Based on this, wood-burning imitation for a fireplace is very easy to do with your own hands, it will not require large financial costs, and you will definitely enjoy the end result.

Decorative Firewood

Placement of decorative firewood

The location of firewood in the niche of the fireplace must be given special attention. This can be done with your own hands and give the hearth a more aesthetic appearance, it will become more believable.
To place a fake log in a fireplace niche, you need to decide on the installation option.

Set the logs in the form of a "house".

Arrange the firewood in a cone.

In a chaotic manner, as your fantasy suggests.

Imitation of firewood looks quite impressive in combination with other decorative elements, such as stones or candles.

If for some reason it is impossible to place artificial firewood in the depths of the firebox, you can make a separate emphasis on firewood by placing it outside the hearth.

In addition, you can build a firewood shed with your own hands, into which decorative firewood is placed.

With a harmonious selection of stove equipment and decor for it, you can turn the hearth into an object of great attention. The combination of firewood and fire, regardless of whether they are natural or artificial, will give any interior a unique charm and comfort.

Video: How to make a fire (hearth) for a decorative fireplace

Produce biofuel for heating. Such fuel can be used in various types of stoves, barbecues, potbelly stoves and so on. The process of its manufacture is quite simple, and all the necessary components can be easily found, and for free.

The main task that the author has set for himself is to use sawdust as fuel. Finding them is quite easy and in most cases it doesn't even cost anything. But there is one caveat, in its natural form, sawdust smokes very strongly, burns poorly and emits little heat. To solve this problem, the author decided to make briquettes from sawdust, and paper will be used as a binder. How exactly to make such briquettes will be discussed below.

Materials and tools for manufacturing:
- sawdust (can be found at sawmills);
- paper (old books, newspapers, etc. will do);
- Press;
- thick plywood;
- a plastic cylinder (a piece of sewer pipe will do);
- a trough or bucket for mixing components;
- water;
- drill, hacksaw and other tools.

Manufacturing process:

Step one. We create a form for the formation of briquettes
First you need to find a plastic cylinder of a suitable diameter, the author used a piece of a sewer pipe for this purpose. Next, a drill is taken and rows of holes are drilled in the cylinder. They are needed so that during the formation of briquettes, water comes out of the cylinder.

When the holes are drilled, you can begin to manufacture the upper and lower parts of the device. First of all, the bottom is made, it is made from a piece of thick plywood. As a result, the cylinder will have to be placed on the form, no other methods of fastening are provided. You can understand what the shape of the bottom of the cylinder should be from the photo.

As for the cylinder cover, it is also made from a thick piece of plywood. As a result, the cover should enter the cylinder, it will be a kind of piston that will compress the contents of the cylinder.

Step two. Create a mixture
Now you need to create a mixture from which briquettes will be formed. You need to take paper and dissolve it in water to get a mushy mass. Paper dissolves in cold water for about 30 minutes, in hot water for 5-10 minutes. Next, sawdust must be added to this paper mass on the basis that two parts of sawdust fall on one part of the paper. All the resulting porridge must be thoroughly mixed.

Step three. Formation of fuel briquettes
Now you need to take the cylinder and install it on the bottom. Next, you can start pouring the mixture. Pour under the neck. Subsequently, the cylinder is covered with a lid from above and placed under the press. After the water is displaced, the finished briquettes can be removed from the cylinder.

That's all, now it only remains to lay out the manufactured briquettes in the sun or in a barn so that they dry. It takes about three days to completely dry. After the briquettes have dried, they can be stacked, thereby preparing for the heating season.
If there is a sawmill nearby, such

Is it possible to make fuel briquettes with your own hands? This question is of interest today to many owners of suburban areas. And the craftsmen did not take long to wait and came up with a technology of how to make fuel out of seemingly unnecessary materials, with which it would be possible to heat a house, a garage, a greenhouse, and so on. And such materials can be found in any country house! It can be not only old boards and sawdust, but also straw, cardboard, paper, dry branches and leaves. And this is not a complete list.

Simply put, what burns can be crushed and used for briquettes. And the chopper itself in this case will not be a problem, because ready-made appliances are sold in many stores. It can be, for example, a rotary machine that grinds all materials of plant origin using a set of knives. This kind of machine is relatively cheap, but in our case it will help a lot at the initial stage of making briquettes. But let's not get ahead of ourselves - first, let's get acquainted with some important points.

And here we compare the technical characteristics and cost of fuel briquettes from different manufacturers -

Strengths and weaknesses of fuel briquettes

Such fuel can be used not only for solid fuel appliances, but also for stoves or fireplaces. If we talk about the industrial production of briquettes, then they use as raw materials:

woodworking waste;
charcoal;
straw and various husks;
peat.

And all that is mentioned above is, as you know, renewable natural resources.

Attention! The main advantage of this type of fuel is its environmental friendliness, as well as excellent heat transfer and efficiency.

Moreover, if we compare briquettes with wood, they flare up faster, smoke less, so that the humidity in the air does not increase and remains at the right level. During combustion, a permanent temperature is maintained and sparks are not formed, and due to the correct geometric shape, they are convenient to transport and store.

Of course, there are also disadvantages - for example, briquettes are easily damaged during transportation and are characterized by low moisture resistance.

Nevertheless, if you make fuel briquettes with your own hands, then several problems are solved at once:

home heating (although, rather, as an additional source, because you are unlikely to be able to prepare the amount of fuel needed for the winter);
savings - briquettes will cost practically nothing;
finally, by making briquettes, you thereby get rid of various garbage that you could not take to the landfill.

Attention! The most convenient form for briquettes is bricks. Therefore, further technology will be based on this.

Stage 1. Preparing the necessary equipment

There are a number of enterprises that specialize in the production and sale of equipment for the production of fuel briquettes. Moreover, such equipment is usually brought, installed and tested (for an additional fee), and sometimes even trained in proper operation.

So, for work you will need:

device for grinding raw materials;
drying complex;
a special press, which can be screw, mechanical or hydraulic.

Of course, if you produce briquettes at home, then you can do it without a drying complex, because ready-made briquettes can be dried simply in the open air. And if sawdust is used as a raw material, then a chopper is also not needed.

Also take care of a box with cells of the same shape - you can make it yourself from any box by nailing strips of appropriate sizes to divide into the same sectors. In these sectors you will fill up the feedstock!

Often, home craftsmen resort to another option - the independent manufacture of pressing equipment.

Video - Making a press for fuel briquettes

Stage 2. Choosing a room - what should it be like?

And the room should be chosen in such a way that it can not only accommodate all the necessary equipment, but also store raw materials and finished products. The area of such a room directly depends on the scale of future production, but, for example, a minimum of 55-60 m2 is required for pressing.

Attention! During the arrangement of the premises, carefully monitor the quality of ventilation of the area where it is planned to carry out pressing, as well as fire extinguishing systems and the reliability of electrical networks.

Stage 3. Preparation of raw materials

This is the most important step in the process in which do-it-yourself fuel briquettes are created. But for work, you will need not only waste, but also components such as:

water in a small amount - only to soften the clay;
clay itself - it will serve as a binder; we note that no additives are used in industry, since the binding element is lignin, a substance released by wood at high pressure, but at home you are unlikely to achieve such pressure, therefore you will use additional components so that the briquettes “keep their shape”.

Stage 4. Formation of briquettes

Step 1. First, take the prepared raw materials (sawdust, etc.) and mix it with dry clay. For a kilogram of waste, approximately 100 grams of clay will be required, therefore, the ratio will be as follows: 10: 1. Add a small amount of water to the resulting mixture, mix everything thoroughly again. Make sure that the mixture does not turn out to be too thin or too thick - ideally, it should be perfectly sculpted.

Attention! In this case, one should take into account the fact that the density of the finished product is inversely proportional to the amount of added water. Moreover, if there is too much liquid, then the briquettes will dry for a long time.

You can add some finely chopped paper to the mixture - this will greatly improve combustion.

Step 2 Pour the resulting mixture into pre-prepared molds and carefully compress. Try to get the maximum amount of liquid out of the products under pressure. Leave the briquettes in this form for a while.

Step 3 Next, dry the finished product. For drying, it is advisable to use a firebox, although in its absence you can do it in the sun. Make sure it dries completely! If the briquettes turn out to be raw, then they will not only not burn, but will also crumble due to their low strength. And in order to somehow increase strength, cover the products with dry leaves or paper when drying.

Step 4 As soon as the briquettes are completely dry, lay them in a pre-prepared place and then use them for their intended purpose.

And here is another interesting production option.

Video - Production of fuel briquettes

Use of other materials

Perhaps, it is not worth talking once again about how well paper burns and how much ash remains after that. For example, a kilogram of compressed paper can burn for about 2 hours, releasing large amounts of thermal energy during this time. At the same time, very little ash remains after this - about 5 percent of the original mass.

Hence the question is: is it worth selling waste paper and is it possible to buy firewood for the money received for it? Or is it better to use it in the manufacture of fuel briquettes? In this case, everything is quite complicated, since there are a number of important nuances.

It takes a lot of paper to make briquettes.
The paper needs to be shredded somehow, which is extremely difficult - this is not sawdust or firewood for you! All waste paper will need to be torn into pieces measuring 20x20 millimeters. To do this, you will have to use a combine.
Next, shredded paper should be poured with warm water. Then you need to wait until the paper transforms into slurry, and the solution becomes liquid.
The remaining water is removed, and the resulting mixture is poured into pre-prepared molds.
After the mass gets rid of all the liquid, the briquettes are removed from the molds and dried in the open air.

From the trash

Attention! Experienced craftsmen who used the described technology advise adding starch to the paper after filling it with water.

In addition, paper can be used as a binder when fuel briquettes are made by hand from wood chips (we already mentioned this above). But there are a number of other materials that can perform a similar function - for example, husks from seeds or needles. To be honest, not the best options, but in the absence of an alternative, it is quite suitable. Although they have their drawbacks:

if the needles of the needles are very large, then they will have to be chopped with ordinary scissors, and this is very difficult, and takes a lot of time; and the needles in finished products will constantly prick your hands;
there are even more troubles with the husk - yes, it is quite convenient during the manufacturing process, only mice love the finished briquettes made in this way, so in winter you will have a lot of them in the warehouse; rodents will begin to "feast" even at the drying stage, therefore, a large number of products will be hopelessly spoiled.

industrial production

If we talk about industrial production, here fuel briquettes are made using one of three possible technologies:

through hydraulic presses and at high pressure - as a result, products are obtained that look like small bricks;
by means of screw presses under pressure and heat treatment - as a result, briquettes come out having the shape of an empty polyhedron;
by means of hydraulic or mechanical presses at high pressure - as a result, products of a cylindrical shape.

To learn more about this process, watch the thematic video.

Video - Industrial production of briquettes

Let's summarize a little

Do-it-yourself fuel briquettes are inexpensive and at the same time quite effective!

They can be used for heating not only household buildings, but also a residential building. But does self-production make any sense if briquettes can be purchased in specialized stores? Of course, it has, as always, when it comes to making something with your own hands. After all, a little effort and desire - and in the winter you will save a lot!

Warm winters and good luck in your work!

A fuel briquette is an alternative type of fuel that is used to speed up the ignition of a stove or replace wood in a fireplace. In addition, briquettes are widely used for heating greenhouses, garages, country houses or garden houses for temporary residence.

Modern technologies make it possible to obtain briquettes from unnecessary materials and waste.

The main advantages of fuel briquettes include:

Possibility of making fuel briquettes with your own hands, and if you have simple devices, their production can be organized as a way to run your own business.
Compared to wood– longer burning time, with minimal sparking and smoke formation.
Ecological cleanliness, as in the production of briquetted fuel, vegetable waste is mainly used.
Profitability of briquettes compared with coal or firewood, it is explained by the use of waste and the use of its muscular strength and the simplest devices;
Waste-free use- the ash formed after combustion can be used as fertilizer.
Practicality, unpretentiousness and profitability during storage– stacked briquettes take up less space than loose firewood or coal.
Can be used in any heating systems and devices, ranging from a country fire and ending with a boiler of an individual heating system that runs on solid fuel.

Features of use

Sunflower briquette

Before proceeding with the disposal of waste in your backyard or garden plot and deploying production, you need to determine the scope of the use of briquetted fuel and calculate the need for the source material.

If briquettes are supposed to be used as an alternative, additional fuel for burning in a stove or fireplace in a country house building, then any plant waste can be used as a starting material:

Sawdust, shavings, wood chips, chopped small branches remaining after pruning trees.
Agricultural waste- dry plant stems, straw, seed husks.
garden waste, which are usually burned or composted - dry grass (weeds), fallen leaves, tops of root crops.
Household waste- cardboard, paper.

Some gardeners use plastic wrap as an additive to the plant mass. However, there are no official recommendations on this matter and the use of plastic waste is carried out at the own risk of the producer and consumer of briquettes.

Clay or starch is used as a binder.

Preparation of source material

Briquette press

The main problem in self-manufacturing of fuel blocks is the need to grind the raw materials. Of course, when using sawdust, small chips, cereal husks, this operation is not required. But small branches, shavings, cardboard waste, before briquetting, must be crushed to obtain uniform particles.

For grinding, you can use any household agricultural crusher, in which hammers are replaced with cutting plates. In the rural backyard, these devices are usually available and used for the preparation of feed for pets and poultry.

A city dweller who has a garden or summer cottage will have to find a suitable model in a garden supply store. Today, special devices are also produced for grinding household waste and garbage.

By purchasing this crusher, the summer resident will be able to use it not only for the preparation of briquette starting material, but also for other purposes.

Production

For the production of briquetted fuel for heating a summer house or a garden house, crushed waste and clay will be required. They are mixed in a ratio of 10: 1, adding a little water until a pasty mass is obtained.

The quality of combustion will depend on how evenly the initial components are mixed, so mixing is best done using a household construction mixer (concrete mixer).

From special equipment for the production of small batches, it is necessary to make a cellular form. For test batches, the form can be knocked together from boards. The size of the cells is chosen arbitrarily, based on the desired form of obtaining briquettes.

Some summer residents press the mixture in old pots, drawers and other unnecessary household containers. However, a rectangular shape is preferred because rectangular fuel blocks are easier to store.

The wet mass is placed in the cells of the form and rammed. The quality of homemade fuel depends on the degree of compaction.

In order for the briquettes not to crumble and crumble in the hands, it is advisable to lay several layers of newsprint on the bottom of the mold (or under the mold when using cells without a bottom).

Drying is done naturally in the air. On sunny summer days, this process does not take much time. After removing the briquettes from the mold, they are placed under a canopy, in a stack with gaps, where they are dried in a draft.

Waste briquetting device

homemade press

In the event that heating briquettes are supposed to be used for winter heating of a country house in winter or as an alternative fuel in an individual house, it is rather laborious to make them manually.

In this case, it is advisable to make a simple machine that will speed up and facilitate the work. Today, various modifications of machine tools are commercially available. They differ in functionality, the number of cells in the forms, the type of drive - manual or mechanical.

All models have one thing in common - they allow you to mechanize the most laborious process - the compaction of the wet mass in the cells of the form.

The simplest machine is a metal frame welded from a corner, on which a wooden tabletop painted with moisture-resistant paint is fixed. A “P” is welded to the frame - a shaped bracket, between the uprights of which a swinging lever is fixed - a rocker, the length of which depends on the compression force.

A punch is pivotally mounted on the lever, the dimensions of which are slightly smaller than the dimensions of the cells. The form filled with the briquette mass is placed on the countertop and pressed with a punch until the briquettes are given the desired density. Moving the mold over the tabletop, the compression operation is repeated for each cell.

In order for the press to serve long enough, after each pressing operation, it should be cleaned of adhering mass.

If the gardener has the opportunity to get or make a vibrating plate, then a press is not required. Compaction of sawdust-clay mass is carried out due to vibration.

The use of paper in the manufacture

paper briquettes

Waste paper can also be used to make fuel briquettes. At the same time, it can play not only the role of fuel, but also act as a binder for sawdust, replacing clay.

Paper and cardboard contain a lot of adhesive mass, which, when swollen, will be an excellent binder when using sawdust. However, briquetted and dried paper and cardboard are themselves an excellent combustible material.

Unfortunately, when preparing the initial mass, paper and cardboard waste cannot be crushed in a crusher. They will have to be torn or cut into small pieces, no larger than 2.0 × 2.0 centimeters in size.

Many summer residents, after a single cutting procedure, curse everything in the world and prefer to return to clay. Non-fast "homemade" use a food processor cutter to grind.

The paper pulp preparation sequence is as follows:

Shredded pieces of paper waste pour warm water and wait for them to completely soak.
The resulting slurry after draining excess water briquetted or mixed with sawdust.
Further pressing and drying operations similar to the processing of a clay-based mixture.

By experimenting with the percentage of paper and sawdust, you can create your own recipe for briquetted fuel. For example, some gardeners add starch to increase its strength. Of course, you don’t need to buy starch on purpose, but in the country there will always be old stocks that survived the winter or a bug wound up in them.