40 Balsam Sticks and Holder - Paine's Fir Balsam Incense

If you light these, it is good, but very strong and there is a burnt smell. However, when you use an electric burner you get only the magic of the Fir balsam smell, and not the burnt smell.....when used with an electric burner, they are fabulous!

I’ve purchased these balsam particular incense sticks several times now. They really smell like balsam burning in a fireplace. For me, they are a must have/purchase during the winter months (and I live in Florida)

I was really surprised to find such negative reviews on these (& on the company's other products). I've had nothing but good experiences. That said, they're a little different than the incense you might be used to.First, they smell great, but they're not perfumed at all. They smell just like wood smoke, which, if that's what you're after, is perfect. I'm not sure what to make of the folks who bought these and then complained in their review that they smell like smoke. Check the description and the ingredients, folks.They light well, they have a decent burn time (not incredibly long, but not too fast either). The little wood block holder that comes with them works fine. A suggestion for anyone who found their stand got "plugged": Just take a phillips screwdriver and use it to grind out the char from the last stick. There you go, good as new.

I had no problem keeping it lit. Just be sure when you're lighting it to roll it and be sure it's got red ash all the way around. BUT, this may not be your concern when you smell it. It's a very nasty smell like an old used ashtray. Both my husband and daughter came in and asked who was in the house smoking cigarettes. Even it if had smelled like Santa's pipe, I would have been happy, but the only reminder of Christmas about this incense is my Dad smoking one cigarette after the other trying to put toys together on Christmas Eve.

My expectations may have been too high. The sticks are a little tricky to light but then usually burn without further attention. Some need a second lighting after a few minutes. The sticks are small. They give off the expected "woodsy balsam" scent for less than ten minutes but then continue to burn without scent. To me the smell of Christmas is balsam fir. I am not in a position to buy a balsam Christmas tree. I thought these sticks would make my home smell Christmasy. I hate the fake "pine" scent of most candles and air fresheners. These sticks fit the bill and smelled as I wanted. I was just hoping for more than 7 minutes of Christmas per stick.

I made the mistake of lighting one and waiting for magic to happen. Unfortunately, lighting it on fire can overpower the delicate fragrance! It did go out (even when I had it on a slant instead of straight up on the holder).From other reviews, that seems to work for some. For me, the smokiness overtook the delicate fragrance of Balsam Fir.This is what I ended up doing:I did find that lots of heat can burn the wood without releasing the aromas. Unfortunately I had to learn that through experiment as the box doesn't really have any indications on proper usage. I found that using a charcoal and crumbling a little bit of it right on the hot coal will release a small amount of smoke that can easily fill a small room. Repeat as necessary.If I used an entire charcoal disk, it would get too hot and burn right through the scent. If I broke the disk into halves or quarters, I could crumble just a bit of it and it would be a better combo of heat and smoke.For a large area, you can crumble half of a stick onto half or a whole charcoal.All in all, it's not a bad smell but does take practice in burning it properly. I'm sure that 40 of these logs will last quite a long time

The bf loves them. Prefers the pine, then the Cedar, over any of the scented incense

I like the smell but my wife does not <groan>.