Essential tools you've made that you can't live without

[NovaScotian902]

I need some ideas of tools I can make for my wood burning stove so I am curious if anyone out there has made any that are essential and you couldn't operate without. Thanks folks!

 

[matt1@]

I use a small shovel and welding gloves that I bought. I made a rake which was scrap 1/8 inch plate steel cut about 12 inches long and 2 inches wide. I welded that at the end of a piece of steel tube electrical conduit to rake coals forward or move wood if needed. I made a poker which is 1 inch wide aluminum strip that was laying around and bolted a long stud on it to scrape my ash grate when it gets clogged. Just some ideas that may help

 

[bsruther]

I can live without them, but here are 2 I made recently.

I bent the end of an ash shovel to make the coal rake. It works fairly well, but can be hot to handle, even with a glove. Probably make something better next summer.
I made the thing on the left to pull the ash plug out and push the ashes into the pan and it works pretty well. It's made of 1/8" rod that comes from the leftover political signs that I usually abscond with around this time of year.