The Burn

[RedNeckGeek]

I don't build too big of pile but it becomes an all day affair to keep feeding a burn and then supposed to have it out at dark!

The regs make an exception for Fire Hazard Reduction Burning in that the piles can be much larger and don't need to be out by dark. You can't start them before 8 AM (I think) and can't add fuel after 3PM, it has to be a burn day approved by the Air Quality folks, and you can't burn at all once fire season starts. All that is posted on CalFire's web site somewhere (it's a .pdf file as I recall), but I've still had the unfortunate pleasure of having to educate my local firefighters after being awakened from a sound sleep by pounding on the bedroom sliding glass door at 11PM when my lovely nosy neighbor called them out. Scared the heck out of both my wife and I, and it's lucky nobody got shot. The CalFire boys were pretty excited at first, telling their commander by phone that they thought it would take another three units to put out the embers. Then I showed them my copy of the regs, they verified I was in compliance, and everything turned out OK.

But yes, this winter's burn season was very short, and many of the days were so dry and windy I didn't think it was safe to light a fire. That meant my slash pile kept getting bigger and bigger, but I've learned that if I keep it long and narrow, light it on the up hill side, and stand by with the garden hose, I can keep the flames down and still get everything burned to ash. I've also learned that leaves on the limbs really cause the flames to leap, but that after sitting on the ground for a year most of them drop off and it pretty much eliminates the problem. Most of my piles are on moderately steep slopes, and I've gotten into the habit of putting up a few T-stakes and stretching some horse fence on the down hill side to catch anything that decides to roll out of the fire.

I love a good hot dog, too, and will snag one of the $1.75 Costco specials whenever I get a chance. Then I learned that the same dogs and buns are available in the store, and I've been enjoying them on the BBQ ever since. Once a burn pile gets goin' you can't get within twenty feet without losing your hair, and the grill is soooooo much more convenient

 

[Pine Strip]

Now here is the Kind of Camp-Fire I can really enjoy, while watching my Kokopelli's humpbacked flute players, as I roast my Wiener.

 

[dave1949]

We are supposed to burn between 5pm and 9am. Typically lower winds and higher humidity overnight are the stated reasons.

Permits are issued when the fire danger level is Class 1 or 2.

 

[Pepsiboy]

We do the same thing here every year, sometimes twice a year. Good way to get rid of excess lumber scraps from the shop, too.

I'm originally from Minnesota, too. Small town called Farmington. How about you??

 

[Pine Strip]

We do the same thing here every year, sometimes twice a year. Good way to get rid of excess lumber scraps from the shop, too.

I'm originally from Minnesota, too. Small town called Farmington. How about you??

PM sent

 

[Xfaxman]

Now here is the Kind of Camp-Fire I can really enjoy, while watching my Kokopelli's humpbacked flute players, as I roast my Wiener.

View attachment 377246

If you are roasting your Wiener, you are standing too close! :laughing:

 

[Mike_Kanzer]

This is a small burn pile compared to yours. I know what you mean about being uncomfortable when it starts to really burn. You don't feel,like you have control of it.

 

[LouieJunior]

My Aunt always used to brag about getting burn permit No. 0001 five years in a row where she lives in Vermont -- until I told her she was probably the only one dumb enough to comply.

If I had to get a permit every time I burned, I would have my own parking place down at the FD.

 

[Cord]

This the last remaining brush from my recent burn. A couple of years ago we cut down over 100 trees on the property and they all went on the brush pile. At first it started off with branches and before long we were using a telehandler to push whole trees onto the pile. When done the pile was 100' long, 50' wide and 30' tall! The barren ground the skid steer is pictured on was the footprint of the pile. Over two winters the pile compressed down and we couldn't separate it. Thankfully the grapple was able to rip it apart. Over 7 very calm days we tore the pile apart and fed it into the fire. After a full day of burning we would have a 5' high pile of ash that would be hot for another month.

Safety is the #1 priority. However there also has to be a balance. When I tried to get a burn permit, my local FD denied the request. They wanted all fires to be less than a 2' diameter. Needless to say, that wasn't going to get the job done. I always had a hose on hand and found that a very gentle mist was enough to keep the fire under control. Once the fines were gone we could then let the fire go. I also had a 25 gallon sprayer mounted on the atv as a back up brush unit and had another 55 gallons in the atv trailer with a bucket handy should things really get out of control. The fire was largely uneventful, but we did have one gust kick up that cause the fire to flair. We found two trivial spot fires from embers, but nothing else. We knocked the fire down and hosed the rest of the pile as a preventative measure.

 

[Snowback]

Re: The Burn------ Dead tree caught fire!!!

I have burned many brush piles over the last 30 years, so this was a surprise to me.

The pile, not very big, but dead wood and some cedar.
View attachment 377120 View attachment 377121

Started it with some old diesel fuel.
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Looked over and saw smoke rising from a dead tree 150 feet away!
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Called the fire department because burning bark was falling down into the grass and leaves on the hillside at the base of the tree. Pushed it over later and set it on the other side of the driveway.
The Fire Chief said it was the radiant heat from the fire that started it burning! :shocked:
View attachment 377133 View attachment 377134

Great pics and story! I would bet $100 this was not radiant heat, but rather that an ember from the fire had floated over and settled into a portion of the rotting trunk at the top of the tree. We live in a small acreage community and a neighbor down the street had to call the fire department when his small leaf and limb cleanup fire sent an ember up into a 50+ year old Oak on the other neighbor's property line. Turned into a full fledged fire at the top of the tree where dry leaves had nestled into a fork, but the FD was able to put it out quickly. Everyone had a good laugh, but burning is serious business, especially with other trees in close proximity. I have verified the travel distance of hot embers while performing burns after dark. Those big fires look an order of magnitude more impressive when their tracer fire can be seen a hundred + feet in the air and a hundred + feet downwind too at night. Thanks for sharing this cautionary tale!