Best Firestarter?

[sportbikerider78]

I live in the woods. I'm surrounded by dead sticks that drop dry british thermal units on me. Sticks are literally everywhere.

 

[ElmBurner]

I've tried a lot of the other methods (the wax firestarters, fatwood, pinecones, crumpled up newspaper, kindling, dead branches) but I prefer to spray used cooking oil on newspaper or brown packing paper. It gets rid of something you want gone anyway and it burns forever (and hot).

Except for the very first fire of the year, I am always sifting the ashes for the charcoal bits and I save these as well. It helps with some extra heat to get stubborn splits going.

 

[DaveInPhilly]

I have been using Fatwood but I got a box of Super Cedars, just waiting for the temps to drop low enough to fire one up.

 

[firefighterjake]

Can someone describe why the super cedars are so good? Is it long a long burn time? Hot flame? Do you just stack regular splits above it? Or are you still using kindling?


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Long burn . . . with even just a quarter of a puck . . . I cannot imagine how long a single, unbroken puck would burn for.

I do top down fires so the Super Cedar is on top . . . and I do use kindling, but some folks report not using kindling at all and only use small splits to get things going.

 

[kinzuacountry]

As a contractor, I have access to old wood plaster lathe from repair projects. I cut the lathe to length to fit inside a coffee can. I soak the lathe in diesel fuel in a covered 5 gallon bucket (kerosene works as well but diesel fuel is cheaper) for a few days. I transfer the lathe pieces to the coffee can without the fuel and they will stay damp with a lid on. 5-6 pieces of dry, untreated lathe at the bottom and 1 piece of the fuel soaked with them and it lights and stays lit even on mild mornings and a cold stove with no coals. A small soaked piece will light without releasing enough vapor to cause a flash or flair.

 

[gerry100]

I live in the woods. I'm surrounded by dead sticks that drop dry british thermal units on me. Sticks are literally everywhere.

Same thing about 150 miles east.

Tip - birch bark off your firewood or on the ground . like super hot newspaper

 

[Kelster]

Planer shavings soaked OK n Diesel fuel. Best ever!

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[JabaduGarfunkle]

Then Thomas (from Super Cedar) sent me a couple of free samples (I still believe they will do this if you send them your addy).

Sent an email yesterday night and was emailed back today confirming my samples were on their way so... Yep they still will.

 

[Jeffm1]

You folks have probably hit this subject before, but I've never seen it discussed here. How do you start a fire?

I use a blowtorch to light a pine cone or two under a stack of kindling. I've used sticks of a product called Fatwood derived from pine as well. I've heard pine kindling is excellent too.

What do you use?

Newspaper and the chips from splitting I use as kindling. I also split some regular firewood pieces into very thin and narrow pieces.

 

[JabaduGarfunkle]

Newspaper and the chips from splitting I use as kindling. I also split some regular firewood pieces into very thin and narrow pieces.

+1

 

[coreboy83]

If you guys have a chop saw. Do yourself a favor and just buy a 2x4. cut it to 12" pieces and use a hatched to get your own kindling. Stuff works great and is easy to do.

that's what I did. first year in the house, so I will see how it goes. my Know It All mother-in-law thinks that ALL 2x lumber is "sprayed with chemicals"

 

[bboulier]

Definitely SuperCedars.

 

[Woody Stover]

I use SuperCedars. I also use the Meeco firelighting squares but there might be a small amount something in the paper that I don't want to expose the cat to. Package says "These wood chip and wax based squares contain 10% recycled wood and paper fiber." But later it says "Safe for catalytic stoves" so I probably have no cause for concern.
I split them with a knife to half thickness, then I can fold them into an inverted-V and light the folded edge...they stay put and burn nicely.


I catch "splitter trash" crumbs in a bag from cutting up SuperCedars. To get rid of the crumbs, I put a couple small piles on a flat split, and add kindling.

 

[blacktail]

I use homemade starters...wax poured into egg cartons full of sawdust.
I place splits in the stove front to back. Put a firestarter between a couple of those splits. Break up a chunk of cedar kindling or use a knife to split off a few chunks of kindling and place them on the firestarter. Put a few smallish splits on top of that. Light it off and enjoy.

 

[Longstreet]

Am I the only one who still top lights? I'll never go back to lighting from the bottom.

I'm a pretty active hobbiest woodworker, so i save up my scraps all year. Enough for the most of the season.

Super cedars are hands down the best manufactured fire starter. I just dont see how it's worth my time to try to save money making my own. Storing Sawdust and wax until i make a batch? Sorrry, but I'll just pay the 18 cents a fire to buy.

 

[colin.p]

Since I have such a small stove, I'm always having to start it. Currently, I use pellets as they seem to be the cheapest. I just throw in a scoop or two, some newspaper and away we go. The privilege of living in paradise is we don't have access to all the really cool stuff y'all have down your way and SuperCedars (?) nobody (up here anyway) outside a wood forum have ever heard of them.

 

[ohlongarm]

I live in the woods. I'm surrounded by dead sticks that drop dry british thermal units on me. Sticks are literally everywhere.

Super cedars by far,check out thread best price found on them ,anybody find em cheaper?

 

[excessads]

We don't usually buy newspaper and rely on weekly circulars (used to toss them straight to recycling bin without a second look). Now I hold on to the non waxy ones and use two to start. Top or medium level lit with chips and 2 pieces of newspaper. The chips and ash are dry enough (with 18% moisture). So far onto the third fire this season, it starts every time!

 

[EJL923]

Supercedars. I had to warm up to them as i was using the wax based starters sold at lowes and wally and the cedars were more expensive. However, once i started using them it was worth it. They light with minimal effort. I lay two medium size logs across the bottom, place a 1/4 piece of SC in between, two pieces of kindling diag across those, and 1 or two medium/small splits diag across those. Rip roaring in minutes and burns for a couple hours.

 

[excessads]

I had to warm up to them as i was using the "wax based starters"

She has a box of artificially scented wax candles which I hate, I can now slice them into cookies to start fire! Thx!

 

[Vikestand]

I have the same newspaper from 2014 still. Once the fire season gets here(like it is now), I will have atleast one little red coal that I can get my wood cooking with. Just stack on coal(s) and open bottom door. It'll be back up in no time.

 

[Oldman47]

That's a cool idea. Does that take a lot of wax? Candle wax? I've burned some eastern red cedar, but didn't think it was a great firestarter. You probably have a different species.

The less wax the better. You just want enough to hold the wood chips together, especially with a cat stove.

 

[EJL923]

The less wax the better. You just want enough to hold the wood chips together, especially with a cat stove.

That's why supercedars are great, just enough wax

 

[heavy hammer]

Being a lineman I have access to old cedar poles 50 plus years old. When we replace these old poles many guys take them to the mill, but the a lot just get thrown in the dumpster. You split these old rounds up into kindling they start with a match. Pretty simple and easy nothing better than getting paid to take kindling home. They are so dry it's amazing how easy it is to start a fire.

 

[blades]

Lets see I got a 250000 btu propane torch- dries the wet wood, lights it and warms the flue in one short blast. course i could just point it in the back door for a few minutes but that is kinda hard on the paint on the walls close by- don't like the color anyway. smoke/co alarm won't be a problem as it will melt off ceiling.- more btus. ok just funnin. Reality- I use a chunk of super cedar. or if a restart that is smoldering a bit of paper sets thing ablaze.