Starting a Stove Fire

[CADplans]

A while back some prankster burned down a whole grocery store when he set fire to some potato chips. Could be something to think about.

My survival guide says a bag of Doritos is almost 100% grease and super combustible,, great for starting a survival fire,,

DO NOT use the slick inserts in the newspaper, or slick magazines to start a fire,,,
The paper is slick because there is a high percentage of clay mixed in the paper,,
clay will not burn, the clay simply stops the air flow,,, and makes starting a fire difficult.

 

[shooterdon]

I have nearly stopped using kindling. Nice to have but I find I do not need it. I have a wood insert so not sure if it matters.

3-5" wide split in the back, a gap of 2-4", 3-5" log or split in the front. Fill gap with cardboard (food boxes, Kleenex boxes, egg crates, Amazon boxes etc)...at times a non-returnable plastic bottle or two. Put a couple of smaller splits on top of the base logs. Light...Open damper fully and crack door. When most of the smoke is done, close the door, after 15 minutes or so, close the damper.

I pay for trash disposal so burning carboard started as a cost savings but worked so well I stopped making kindling. I live in a very remote area and buy a lot from Amazon so there is an endless supply of carboard. Frankly, kindling is easier and faster but certainly not needed.

Many times I have enough coals to start a fire in the morning without any assistance.

 

[Diggin It]

I won't use plastics of any kind in it. Paper and some small boxes filled with chainsaw chips or sawdust with a squirt or two of charcoal starter fluid only. No dryer, no lint. I have a yard full of twigs and sticks free for the pickin'up and I need the exercise. I got piles of splitter leavins, aka spliteratti. Short curley que stack (more surface area to transfer heat) gets enough draft that I can get a blowtorch effect in the firebox.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I don't like relying on hot coals to start a fire as it may smoulder and make creosote for a good while before it catches on fire. Waxed milk cartons and freezer packaging is always good to maybe not start, but help a fire to get going. I used to keep bacon grease in the fridge which was great to help a fire get going, but eat very little pork anymore,

 

[CobyRupert]

Y'all talking about what fuel to start a fire with. That's only 1/3 of the "fire triangle" - Fuel, air, heat.
Stacking the fuel so it allows (or maximizes) air flow, and retains heat, is an equally important aspect of starting a fire.

I always take the larger pieces of wood and stack them so there's a "air space tunnel" between them. This is where the kindling or half a page of newspaper goes.
This ensures that the larger pieces don't collapse and smoother the flame as the kindling quickly burns and collapses.
This ensure that all the heat has to travel full length of the "tunnel", which better ignites the "roof" piece.
This creates a draft through the tunnel, giving a "blast furnace" effect, and generating greater heat, versus natural aspiration from various direction.
:2cents:

 

[Industrial Toys]

EXACTLY! Now try explaining that to a woman!

 

[Doofy]

One match, One fire! That was in the day when matches were matches. Modern day wooden stick matches are a poor substitute for the real thing. Thin, wimpy sticks that usually break and heads that are small and hard to light.

 

[RedNeckGeek]

I don't like relying on hot coals to start a fire as it may smoulder and make creosote for a good while before it catches on fire. Waxed milk cartons and freezer packaging is always good to maybe not start, but help a fire to get going. I used to keep bacon grease in the fridge which was great to help a fire get going, but eat very little pork anymore,

It's usually not cold enough out here to burn more than one fire a day, but when it is, I like to use the coals to start the next fire. It's the only time I ever use a bottom up approach, and start by gathering up some nice coals and put them in the center of the stove, Then I drop on a few wood chips, and get out a 2' piece of 5/16" ID aluminum tubing to blow air onto the coals until the chips flame. This keeps smoke to a minimum. Then I add a few pieces of kindling to the flames, and around that start stacking my splits, making sure not to crush the kindling and put it out. When the stove is full, I set the automatic damper (it's a QuadraFire 4300), close the door, and in ten minutes the wood is fully engulfed.

I used to know a guy that used bacon grease to lube his black powder revolver loads. Smelled like Sunday morning breakfast out on the range...:thumbsup::laughing:

 

[RedNeckGeek]

One match, One fire! That was in the day when matches were matches. Modern day wooden stick matches are a poor substitute for the real thing. Thin, wimpy sticks that usually break and heads that are small and hard to light.

Ohio Bluetips were the best, but they don't seem to be made anymore. They were real strike anywhere, even on the seat of your pants. When I was a kid, we'd drop 'em down the barrels of our unloaded BB guns, shoot 'em up in the air, and they'd come down tip first and light when they hit the street. The Diamond matches I get out here will barely light on the striker that comes on the box, and a lot of times the tip just rubs off without lighting. I got some fancy waterproof matches from an outdoor store, but just keep them in my possibles bag when I'm out hiking; they're too expensive to use for every day. For the wood stove, I use one of those disposable butane lighters with the long stem. They're cheap and pair of 'em will get me through the heating season.:2cents:

 

[milkman]

With a woodstove that has an ash tray, I've been able stop using kindling all together:

1) When the stove is cold, take a poker and sweep the ash over the grate holes so the light gray ash drops into the tray. Empty the ash tray if its full and put back.

2) Sweep black coals so they're over the ash tray grate.

3) Add firewood over the black coals, but leave some coals visible in the front.

4) Zap the black coals with a propane or mapp gas torch, it only takes a second to light and you only need a few small burning embers to start.

5) Close up the stove doors and vents completely but open the ash tray a crack.

6) The air will draft through the ash grate and burning coals creating a blast furnace effect.

7) Before the fire gets too hot, close the ash tray and open the air vents and/or crack the door as you normally would to get a fire going. A word of caution here, the stove can overheat if you leave the ash tray open.

8) When the fire is sufficiently burning and reached the desired operating temps, adjust the damper or close the catalytic combuster bypass.

That's how I start a fire, my stove has a grate and an ash pan, I use a couple of big handsfull of paper from the shredder, place them on the grate and just stack whatever wood I have on top of the shredded paper. I light the paper on the bottom and close everything but the ash door. I have to stay close by because it starts fast and I have to close the ash door and open the damper slightly after it gets going then I close the bypass door. I haven't used kindling since I got this stove, Consolidated Dutchwest Extra Large 2462, almost 20 yrs ago.