Re: Firestarters

[Boozie]

Are the cardboard cores that come inside paper towels OK to use to start a fire? Is the glue holding the cardboard together a problem on the inside of the chimney liner? What say ye? Is there enough glue in there to cause a problem?

Babs
(my insert gets installed this week)

 

[soupy1957]

I find it amazing that this thread was read 28 times and nobody had the nuts to chime in! (lol)

Being a person who is always ready to be shot down in a New York Minute, I'll say................sure, go ahead, ...........use em if you like. It's just that they will vaporize rather quickly. I HAVE heard it said in here and other places that "cardboard" is not a good idea, because (as you pointed out) there is glue in there; and glue creates issues. However, I tend to think there is more glue in corrugated cardboard, than in a paper towel or toilet paper roll. So the impact would not be as great as it would be if you were burning a box.

You're gonna need a FEW of those cores to keep a fire going. I've never tried to lite one of those babies off. Maybe they don't burn well..........

Anyone???????

-Soupy1957

 

[Shari]

Well, I'm one that read this and didn't reply but we were kind of in a hurry getting a snowblower home in anticipation of 4-10 inches of snow that didn't show up.

Any way, to the OP's question: Nope, never burned paper towel tubes here. However, I have used toilet paper tubes stuffed semi loosely with dryer lint just as fire starters.

Shari

 

[LLigetfa]

I find it amazing that this thread was read 28 times and nobody had the nuts to chime in! (lol)

There's no way I want to get into a pissing match with some environmentalist on the ingredients in the glue. I ain't 'fessin up on what I burn in my stove besides wood either.

Dunno about the OP, but around here we don't use enough paper towels to have a consistent supply of cardboard tubes. Before someone suggests that I must have an over-abundance of toilet paper cores, that would be assuming I... nevermind.

As for firestarters, everyone here knows Super Cedars are the way to go. I buy the "green" ones and hug a tree before I cut it down.

 

[nate379]

I don't burn that stuff in my stove, but I do burn it all in the barrel out back. They wanted $40 a month for 1 can a week pickup service. Yeah that's ok, matches are pretty much free!

 

[JotulOwner]

I use Fatwood. Not for any particular reason except I became aware of them when I got my stove, they work (like many other fire starters), they aren't really expensive, and (to my knowledge) they don't contain any ingredients that I need to be concerned about (they are made from the stumps of pine trees). Oh, yeah.... they smell nice too.

 

[tommytwofingerss]

oh did you say pine , as in the worst thing you could put in the chimney ( creasote = pine) but the small amounts are ok.
sorry to state that but people do mistake hard wood and sap wood. try building fires with a large log and rolled news paper no slick adds, tied in loose knot with small sticks to logs crossed on top. start hott and slope out.

ps tube paper and small amount of glue is fine, clean your chimney.

 

[Boozie]

Thank you all for your replies. It's been a while since I was in the habit of building a fire. Thanks for your help.

 

[Dakotas Dad]

oh did you say pine , as in the worst thing you could put in the chimney ( creasote = pine) but the small amounts are ok.
sorry to state that but people do mistake hard wood and sap wood. try building fires with a large log and rolled news paper no slick adds, tied in loose knot with small sticks to logs crossed on top. start hott and slope out.

ps tube paper and small amount of glue is fine, clean your chimney.

Unbelievably, my father has burned nothing but pine, in northern California it's about all there is, for near on to 40 years, never a problem. Using "fatwood" to start a fire is not the same as burning pine anyways.

As to the OP, how many paper towel rolls do you generate? We have maybe 4-5 a year, I am pretty sure that would be enough to start about 1 fire for us.

 

[Danno77]

use just about whatever you want to start a fire. I got tired of smoke and paper and trying top down fires only to smoke up the place and have problems starting a draft. I bought a box of those firestarter brick deals, there are like 6 packages of 4 in each box (24 total). I light one and put it in the stove and walk away for about ten minutes to start the draft. Then I throw the wood in there around/on it and shut the door. Good dry wood starts right up and not only catches quick, but temps rise faster this way than any other method I've used.

If you are frugal, you can easily start a fire with 1/3 of one of those starters, which would bean you could start around 70 fires in a season. I used to use pieces, just because I wanted to see if I could, but now I don't let the fire die out very often, so a box will last me a year even if I use a whole starter each time.

 

[velvetfoot]

 

[Treacherous]

 

[Dakotas Dad]

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

 

[soupy1957]

Shameless self-promotion going on here! (lol)

Isn't it more appropriate to restrict "ads" to the "Classified" Section in here? (Not for nothin).

-Soupy1957

 

[Dakotas Dad]

Shameless self-promotion going on here! (lol)

Isn't it more appropriate to restrict "ads" to the "Classified" Section in here? (Not for nothin).

-Soupy1957

Not sure I catch your drift.. I am not in the least bit affiliated with Super Cedars, other than being a VERY happy user. I don't want to speak for Treacherous, but I will admit I just quoted him so I didn't have to copy and paste the same relevant picture.

I also seriously doubt Velvetfoot owns Rutland...

 

[soupy1957]

Just stokin the coals..............lololol........no offense meant.

-Soupy1957

 

[soupy1957]

Dang double post.........sorry.

-Soupy1957

 

[basswidow]

Never thought about using dryer lint. Gonna try that one.

I use fatwood when the stove goes completely out and needs starting. I've also used a paper towel roll, paper plates, newspaper, etc.

 

[firefighterjake]

I burn the TP and paper towel rolls in my stove . . . I'm not too worried about the small amount of glue in them.