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How to use a paper log maker

Updated: 22.10.2026

You have a paper log maker and you want the labour before you clear a corner for drying. Soak waste paper, press one brick, and leave it until the middle is no longer heavy and cool. A brick that feels dry on the outside can still smoke. The [paper briquette press comparison](/hub/fireplaces-and-stoves/paper-briquette-press) is the product table. This page is soak, press, and weeks of drying. Links to amazon.co.uk use the tag pcuk26-21, and a qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. The steps come from the 19 October 2026 seller lines and one UK review, not a moisture meter.

You have a paper log maker and you want the labour before you clear a corner for drying. Soak waste paper, press one brick, and leave it until the middle is no longer heavy and cool.

Our top picks

eBuzz eBuzz paper log maker

Best overall

eBuzz eBuzz paper log maker
7.4/10about £19.99
View offer
Relaxdays Relaxdays paper press, black

Best value

Relaxdays Relaxdays paper press, black
7.0/10about £32.90
View offer
VIOLK VIOLK paper press

Alternative

VIOLK VIOLK paper press
2.0/10about £133
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Soak and pack the paper
  2. 2.Press water out without bending the frame
  3. 3.Dry the brick for weeks
  4. 4.Light it only where the fuel is allowed

Soak and pack the paper

Tear the paper before it goes into the water. Whole sheets trap dry pockets. Seller soak times in this capture do not agree. VIOLK’s bullets say about 30 minutes. eBuzz says a couple of hours for newspaper and magazines. lyrlody and LUCKDANO say overnight. One UK review on eBuzz talks about five days in the water. A Clarke sheet, not a row in this table, says newspaper holds better than glossy junk mail. Thirty minutes may wet thin newsprint. If you can still pull a dry sheet from the middle, it is not ready.

Press water out without bending the frame

Stand the press on a firm surface and pull the levers down in stages. If the plate or a strut bows, stop. eBuzz, at 3 kg, has reports of a bent plate, strut, or basket. AB Tools MVL095 is described as distorted after about 20–40 bricks. Harewood includes a bend on first use. The black Relaxdays press has a UK note of bending after about 70. LUCKDANO’s handles bent after about 20 bricks. Relaxdays titles that say hydraulic still describe two hand levers. If water is still pouring, take pulp out. Do not bounce your weight on a 3 kg frame. VIOLK’s 1.2 mm claim has no reviews, so it is not a licence to stand on the handle.
eBuzz eBuzz paper log maker

Testsieger

eBuzz eBuzz paper log maker
7.4/10about £19.99
View offer

Dry the brick for weeks

Seller copy runs from weeks to a couple of months. An eBuzz UK note of a few months sits at the long end. Forum accounts describe bricks still wet after two days. Two days is not a finished brick. Split one brick. A cool, heavy middle is not ready, however dry the corners feel. Give the bricks air gaps on a rack in a dry shed or spare room. Do not put a damp brick on the stove to finish it. These files have no moisture percentage for a homemade brick. Ready to Burn’s figure for wood that is sold does not certify your rack.

Light it only where the fuel is allowed

A dry brick can still be the wrong fuel. Defra’s open-fire guidance says wet fuel smokes, and not to burn household rubbish. HETAS says cardboard and colour-printed paper do not belong in a wood burner, and that black-and-white newspaper is a firelighter, not the main load. Seller lines of up to two hours are not a measurement. The one UK figure in the eBuzz file is about 30–40 minutes. Use the brick as a starter on an open fire you are allowed to run. Stop if paper is not on the fuel list or you do not know whether the street is a smoke control area. The legal limits are on the paper logs and smoke control page.

Common questions

How long should you soak newspaper?
The captured sellers do not agree. VIOLK says about 30 minutes, eBuzz a couple of hours, and lyrlody and LUCKDANO overnight. One UK review on eBuzz describes about five days. Start with a couple of hours for ordinary newspaper, and soak longer if you can still peel a dry sheet from the middle. Glossy junk mail does not wet evenly in the same time. Do not treat 30 minutes as enough for a thick bundle.
How long do the bricks take to dry?
Plan on weeks, and allow a couple of months if the room is cool. An eBuzz UK review mentions a few months. Forum reports describe bricks that are still wet after two days, including in a greenhouse. There is no single drying time in this capture, and there is no lab moisture figure for a homemade brick. A light brick with a dry broken face is the practical check. A heavy, cool middle is not finished.
Why do paper bricks fall apart?
The pulp was too loose, still wet in the core, or full of glossy sheets that never matted. Newspaper holds better than junk mail. Card in large pieces makes a crumbly brick and is the wrong fuel for a wood burner anyway. Pressing harder on a bent plate does not glue a loose brick back together. Repack a smaller load that is evenly soaked, and give it air while it dries.
Why does the press bend while you squeeze?
You are asking a light frame to act as a jack. eBuzz is 3 kg, with UK notes of a bent plate, strut, or basket. Other rows bend at about 20 bricks, about 20–40, or about 70. If the plate moves, stop. Remove pulp instead of adding your weight. A title that says hydraulic, when the bullets say two levers, does not add a ram. VIOLK’s 1.2 mm claim has no reviews behind it.
Can you burn the brick as soon as the outside feels dry?
No. The crust dries first. A brick that is still cool and heavy in the middle will steam and smoke, which is the wet-fuel problem Defra describes for open fires. Leave it weeks, not a weekend, and split one before you commit a batch to the grate. Seller lines of up to two hours do not apply to a damp brick, and one UK review put a burn at about 30–40 minutes even after a long dry.

Related pages

Newspaper or cardboard

Paper briquette press buying guide

Paper briquette press

Best paper log maker: who should try and who should skip

Paper logs in a smoke control area: the chimney rule

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. amazon.co.uk prices, stars and review counts were taken from the listings on 19 October 2026.

  1. Smoke control areas: the rules, GOV.UK (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Selling manufactured solid fuels in England, GOV.UK (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Air Quality (Domestic Solid Fuels Standards) (England) Regulations 2020 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. Selling wood for domestic use in England, GOV.UK (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. 16 things you should never burn, HETAS (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. Correct fuel for optimal burning, HETAS (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Open fires and wood-burning stoves, Defra (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Carbon monoxide alarms for landlords, GOV.UK (retrieved 19 October 2026)