What do you use as your primary fire starter ? - Survey

I fill egg cartons with a mixture of sawdust and wax. Break the acrton apart into 12 pieces and place one in the stove under a full size log. you'll have fire in minutes.

I've been using a half of the fire starters which come in packs of 6. You can get 48 of them for like 18.00. I do the top down method with several logs criss crossed and then one half of the starter and there she goes. Fire in minutes. No fussing with the kindling stuff.

i use bout gallon of diesel fuel in beginning of winter and the fire never goes out lol. seriously i use newspaper and some ded pine twigs most of the time but i do use various forms of waxed firestarters from wally world, waiting on my super cedars as i type, from all the rave reviews these may be my choice when i don't want to play with twigs and paper

ControlFreak said:

Yes, I use a flammable liquid. 1/3 cup of camping lantern fuel in a ziplock baggy with sawdust in there. Instant fire with no smoke. This would be a bad idea with something that flashes like gasoline.

Ok, now I'm ready. Call me an idiot. It's the only thing that creates a fast enough fire to overcome the downdraft I have with a cold chimney on the north side of the house. Most people think I'm nuts until they try this. Camping fuel is not explosive, that's why it's used in lanterns. Now, about the camping stoves that use gasoline. That's crazy.

But you asked...

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I think you are talking Coleman fuel when you say camping lantern fuel. That stuff is white gas...very highly refined gasoline. Very expensive stuff... I admit I have thrown a half cup of Coleman fuel on a wet wood fire, while camping, to get some good flame. Always out of doors of coarse. But I also did play with gasoline as a kid as did my friends. I did learn certain things while playing with gasoline, one of them was that you could put a burning stick into a pot of gasoline and not have it explode, but only light the pot on fire. I think that was because it had so much air surrounding it, but in a limited area where the heat and air and fuel can't expand ...you will most likely get an explosion. Perhaps you have been doing this forever and it works for you, but Coleman fuel has a very low flash point...You could be courting diaster.

Heres is one remedy I remember from boy scouts..... Smear a bunch of cotton balls in vaseline jelly and then store then in a film canister. you can smush down 8-10 of these things and they make great firestarters...This is more camping and survival stuff, but I suspect that they would be good in the wood stove or fireplace too.

1/4 of a super cedar with some small pieces of pallets and some bigger splits.

soxfan13 said:

1/4 of a super cedar with some small pieces of pallets and some bigger splits.

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I use the same recipe. Just got a box of 100 Super-Cedars

JoeyJ said:

Heres is one remedy I remember from boy scouts..... Smear a bunch of cotton balls in vaseline jelly and then store then in a film canister. you can smush down 8-10 of these things and they make great firestarters...This is more camping and survival stuff, but I suspect that they would be good in the wood stove or fireplace too.

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Dryer lint works very well in place of the cotton balls.

I keep a 55-gallon drum of rocket fuel about 2 feet from the stove for "pre-heating". When I need to start a new fire, I put the hose in the stove, open the valve, and meter out EXACTLY four gallons of "starter" fuel into the stove. No more, no less. On top of that, I place three crumpled sunday news papers, and top it off with a keg of black powder (smokless powder is OK in a pinch). Place three small sticks of kindling on top. Light 'er up, and step back. You have to do this pretty quick so the liquid doesn't start trickling out of the stove (it REALLY makes a mess). Oh, yeah...keep the cats away when you're lighting. I made that mistake one time :red:

Anyway, that always gets it going, I've never had the fire go out on me.

JoeyJ said:

They come individually wrapped and look like a red hockey puck or Gaines Burger for all you older folks...
Joey

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Mmmmm....Gaines Burger....

I'm sure there's lots of us old folks on here who don't eat Gaines Burger.

kenny chaos said:

I'm sure there's lots of us old folks on here who don't eat Gaines Burger.

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Well Kenny when you are hard up Gaines burgers taste better than 9 lives cat food...

Yes, that's different.

I used newspaper and small sticks at first. Now I use Fatwood and larger sticks. Fatwood is great and not all that expensive. I also to used newspaper to start a good updraft (or to reverse a down draft). This year (after a couple of bad experiences using newspaper) I decided to try one of those small butane stoves to heat the chimney before I start a fire (I'm talking about placing it in the stove for a brief time - just long enough to create a good updraft). I don't believe that butane will fill the room with smoke (unless you set the house on fire first) :coolsmile:

Kindling and birch bark, and all the tinder I collect after I split the wood.

I even peel the bark off the birch before I put birch in if I already have the fire started. I'm Cheap, and read the web instead of newspapers.

I us everything from pine lighter to pine cones and also kero. I just got a good bit of cedar wood from a carpenter friend of mine. I will give that a try too.

Propane plumber's torch on cedar scraps is all I use -- and frequently don't even bother with the cedar and just torch smaller splits. Works fast and is very cheap cost per fire.

Benzomatic grass torch. I will run thru two small propane canisters during the average winter.

I also have a small woodshop (nothing I have ever made comes close to what Scott does) and will toss wood scraps in there as well, but for the most part it's just the weed torch. I put wood in a cold stove, turn the handle to turn on the gas and hit the ignition button. Stand there by the stove ( no bending over) and light the wood. Easy.

5 Gallons of diesel and a road flare... oh you meant inside I buy a box of starters from the store a box of 24 brick looking things then I just break off a little piece of that so I get about 100 fire starters from a box of 24. and that lasts me about 4-5 years

SEMTEX, or our propane brush pile flame thrower. Either does the job.
Oh yeah, forgot: expired boat flares both the smoke and red and yellow ones.

Two crinkled balls of newspaper with some bark and small pieces of wood. 5 Minutes later I can usually put a small split on.

I started using the wax StarterLog things back when we had the Fisher. We also used to get nasty downdrafts and the room would begin to fill with smoke. I used to take rolled up newspapers and stick them up the flue and this worked most times. Once, I had so much trouble, I grabbed my acetylene torch with the swirl tip and ran it around the flue to warm it up. Pow; instant draft! Don't have that problem now as the chimney is inside and drafts great. I still have an entire case of the firestarters which will probably last me for the next 10 years or so. A 1/4 piece of starter, small splits, large splits, BBQ lighter, close the door and walk away. Works every time.

Chris

Newspaper, cardboard and a kerosene-soaked "torch stone."

http://mitchelschimney.stores.yahoo.net/tostfili.html

Super Cedars here.. I used newspapers and fat wood (NOT store bought) before.. The super cedars are GREAT, I break them in quarters and they work like a charm.. I bought a case of 100 from them last year and doubt I'll need any for a while but if I run short you best bet I'll pony up.. I can light it and forget it for 15 minutes or so..

Jason

Going into the fall we fill a garbage can full of sticks that fall out of trees (silver maples) and break/cut them into around 6" pieces and use them to start fires with and put a couple of egg carton pieces under the kindling and off it goes.