What do you use for kindling?

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You know you dredged up a thread that's more than a year old? Read it from the beginning and you'll get a zillion perspectives on kindling. Rick
 
fossil said:
You know you dredged up a thread that's more than a year old? Read it from the beginning and you'll get a zillion perspectives on kindling. Rick

didn't even notice the date of the last post..
 
fossil said:
You know you dredged up a thread that's more than a year old? Read it from the beginning and you'll get a zillion perspectives on kindling. Rick


As my 15 year old daughter would say " Like, we are supposed to care that it's a year old or something?"

I didn't know we were supposed to read dates here. Geeze - more pressure to pay attention to details....What is this world coming to. THe only time I pay attention is when I back the car out of our garage. Don't want to hit my son's car. My husband already did that and I want him to feel bad for awhile longer. ;-)
 
Kindling? I'm a bad boy.

I use firestarting sawdust/paraffin blocks ....... not the big logs, but just the small fire-starters, they come in (3) per package, each of them only as big as the palm of your hand, 3 for about $2.

I use 1/3 of one to start the fire, so 9 fires for $2.
 
We gather up splitting flotsam and keep it in a big garbage can out on the carport.
That said it is still full, as my goal is to light a fire in October and let it go out in April.
 
Every time the wind blows I get free wood from the sky! I just walk around the yard and pick all the OAK branches that come down to my lawn. Most of it is small dead dry twigs that help when starting the fire.
 
IDEAL KINDLING TO START A FIRE (order of preference)

1. None - with dry splits, you simply don't need it, just one of the below
2. Pine cones - when I have them
3. Cedar, pine or hardwood scrap
4. Fagot (look it up), dried and tied
5. Cardboard, scrap wax/cooking oil impregnated
6. Cardboard, plain
7. Home made wax/sawdust 'cookies'
8. Paper, crunched up
9. Bark
10. Commercial firestarter, Fatwood stick ($, $$)

Aye,
Marty
Grandma used to say, "Work smarter not harder."
 
I cut and split up two or three standing dead cedar trees . . . needless to say I have quite a stack of kindling which should last me through this winter and maybe even until next year. Like other folks I also use splitter trash, scraps from my renovation projects (unpainted/not varnished), pallets and I took some time this Fall to gather up six or seven grocery store bags full of dried pine cones -- I just wanted to make sure I will always have some dry fuel to get things up and running.
 
Last Xmas i got a gift card to HomeDe bought a box of firestarter & still using it.
The gift that keeps giving.
 
I set the straight grained splits of whatever I have aside and split 'em as need be. I also pull the birch bark off my white birch splits before I toss 'em in - I use that instead of accelerants/fire starters.

Here is my little splitting axe I had made from an old head I found in my late grandfather in laws garage behind the wood stove. Works sweet, hand made custom handle, and two were done for less than 40 bucks. I'm bragging, and should probably post this in the Gear forum, but I can't resist showing off my little kindling axes again. Father-in-law got the second one as a Christmas gift.

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