: Briquette Maker for Recycling Newspaper and Junk Mail eko-mania E-M1020 - BLACK

Rating: - Does what it says on the tin!
Solid piece of kit really - no bending or bulging evident.
Handles havent caused any difficulties as reported but I did use my feet once to help lift out the briquette.
I lined the container with a double sheet of dry newspaper first and this contained the pulp and provided a nice finish, easy to handle.
In future I will just tear up newsprint and only shred the glossy supplements etc. as the newsprint does break down quicker.
So now I just need to wait until they dry.
So it's back to - rip, tear, shred and soak!

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Rating: - Working well: has made hundreds of logs at almost no cost
Our Briquette Maker has been in use for about six months now and is standing up to daily wear-and-tear very well. I admit to standing on it to compress the wet paper, and haven't managed to break it yet. Not bad, considering my general reputation for utter destruction of most mechanical things...
We are building up a huge stack of 'logs' which have cost us virtually NOTHING, which is great news considering how much all fuels now cost.
The Briquette Maker is extremely simple to use and produces neat oblong 'logs' which burn well once they have fully dried out. We use it to get rid of all our junk mail, newspapers, magazines, paperwork, envelopes and so on.
Normally we soak the rubbish for 24hrs; we don't use bleach (cos we're trying to be properly eco!) but leave the bucket in a warm place. Newspaper and white paper goes mushy very fast; glossy magazine paper and brochures take much longer to break down and benefit from 'dobbing' with a big stick. The best logs have a decent proportion of newspaper or similar in them because the more glossy stuff goes in, the harder it is to get them to burn.
We've left our logs for three months in a greenhouse to dry thoroughly: you also need to make sure that in wet weather they don't absorb moisture from the atmosphere!
Another tip: if your material is full of staples (like magazines often are) or plastic windows or glue/gum, then it's best to leave these bits out before you soak the paper. Any woodburner won't like getting lots of metal/plastic fed to it, so we try to weed them out as we go.
It make take a few attempts to get the hang of the maker, so don't be afraid to get a bit mucky (or buy thick rubber gloves), and learn how to use your feet to keep the frame steady as you extract each log!

This is a fab piece of kit; proving to be robust and it's going to save us a fortune in wood and heatlogs this winter.
8/10

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Rating: - briquette maker
very easy to make,if you first fit newspaper in base,bottom and sides,with enough to cover top later,fill with your newspaper,then cover,when you press down and remove,you will have a completely encased brick.

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Rating: - Just as Good as the Green One
Before making our purchase we read the reviews of other buyers. Although one or two people experienced difficulties, the general consensus was favourable. When trawling trough the Amazon site to see what other products were available we spotted the black model made by the same manufacturer. Apart from the colour, it was identical to the apparently more popular green one and it was on special offer. We have not been disappointed by our choice.

The product comes with straightforward instructions. It is a simple press designed to squeeze water from (mainly) wet newspaper and leave brick-shaped blocks for burning once they have dried. It is not part of a Rolls Royce engine so a degree of crudeness in its design and a small amount of mess with paper debris are inevitable. But it is robust and does the job it is intended for without fuss.

One criticism is the design of the handles. These do dig into one's hands when squeezing out the water. I made up a couple of add-ons from rigid plastic tubing cut open lengthwise, slipped over the originals and bound with duck tape. These made a big difference. Five stars would have been awarded if the manufacturer had included a couple of professionally-moulded items in the first place.

When using newspapers, don't cut/tear them too small and don't let them steep until they disintegrate and form a porridge - some will certainly ooze through the holes. Pieces a few inches square, well saturated, work fine. Shredded junk mail can be added to the mix.

The briquettes do take a while to dry. We stock ours in the garden shed and some made in September were still slightly damp a month later. Maybe 2008 wasn't a vintage year for making them but the chiminea will be put to good use in the autumn.

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Rating: - brickmaker
Almost impossible to make useable paper bricks even in small quantites by this experienced brickmaker. The construction is even flimsier than other brickmakers bought through Amazon. The thin metal sides balloon out causing paper to squeeze out, awful mess and much more (wasted) effort needed. Look elsewhere or make your own.