High-tech fire pit will light up DUMBO Christmas tree

Literally igniting holiday cheer

December 6, 2013 By Mary Frost Brooklyn Daily Eagle

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This year’s DUMBO Christmas tree will be illuminated using the electricity generated by a wood-burning “FirePit” using a high-tech stove designed by a DUMBO startup.

BioLite, a company that develops small stoves for campers and larger ones for use in developing countries, says they’ll be “firing up the holidays” December 12 – 22 at the Pearl Street Triangle.

Not only do BioLite’s stoves provide heat for cooking, they also power digital devices like cell phones, iPods — or in this case, Christmas tree lights.

DUMBO’s official tree lighting, with Santa, live music, movie projections, a photobooth and more takes place on December 12 from 6 – 7 p.m.

“We are installing this FirePit as a way to showcase local technology developed right here in DUMBO, Brooklyn and share it as a community experience,” BioLite’s spokesperson Erica Rosen told the Brooklyn Eagle on Friday.

“We are using the same technology found in our BioLite CampStove, scaling it up in size by 200 percent and in power by 500 percent,” Rosen explained. “The electricity generated by the heat of the fire (using Thermoelectric Generators) will be used to power the lights on the local tree.”

BioLite’s stoves, invented by Alexander Drummond and Jonathan Cedar, burn wood more efficiently and cleaner than traditional stoves.

The holiday display is supported with a grant from the NYC Department of Small Business Services and is part of the DUMBO Improvement District’s “DUMBO as Test Kitchen” initiative, which invites local tech companies to pilot innovative ideas in the neighborhood’s public space.

BioLite is also co-hosting “Evening FireSide Chat – Hot Ideas for Big Impact,” with guest speakers on Thursday, December 19, from 7 – 9 p.m.

Kids will enjoy DUMBO’s free “Daytime Family Festival” with art and cookie decorating on Thursday, December 19, from 1-3 p.m., co-hosted by Creatively Wild Art Studio.