Favorite non-standard fire tending tool?

[wahoowad]

I have meant to weld up a new set of fire tending tools to go with my new wood stove, just haven't done it yet. Instead (this is quite rediculous) I have been using a 6 inch wide putty knife all season long to poke logs and scrape ash into my ash tray. Wondering who else uses something silly...

 

[Shane]

I use an old hacksaw blade to clean exchanger tubes on pellet stoves.

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

I have a poker type device that functions as a bellows powered by your lungs.

 

[count brewski]

stainless steel steak tongs from HDepot serve as tongs, poker is a garden tool I have no idea what it is/was (it's a poker now), standard stamped-metal ash shovel, another standard stamped- metal ash shovel bent to 90 degree angle serves as coal rake, winter work gloves, and a metal dustpan and brush.....everything sits in a coal hod......I think/hope my total expenditure for hearth tools is around than 25 bucks, and that's a "good thing" Martha.......oh and two damp paper towels and some ashes keep the glass clean

 

[Sundeep Arole]

A "grate" with which I made out of hardware cloth and attached to a metal handle to separate the coals from the ashes.

 

[Mike Wilson]

A Wife.

 

[wahoowad]

Mike,

I had "a wife" but got rid of her too. Now I use the "the girfriend."

 

[begreen]

I don't know how I'd finish the job without these

 

[Mo Heat]

I don't know how I'd finish the job without these

Hey BeGreen, it's Fire tools, not Firewater tools...

BTW: I love those articulated helix wine de-corkers.

And it's been a while since I saw a authentic 'church key' like that.

 

[FireGlow1]

How about a rake made from a 4" piece of lawn mower blade welded to 1/4" x 15"x 1" steel bar. It is great for poking, pulling ash forward and keeping the kids in line.

 

[hafreed]

Hi, my first post .
I use what we called in the Boy Scouts an "inspirator". One of the troops high goals was was to make it througha camping trip using only 1 match. This device often made the difference in achieving that goal.

An inspirator is about 3' of surgical tubing pushed onto 5" of copper tubing. It is used to blow directly onto coals. I highly recommend it for starting kindling from banked coals. You can also use it to coax embers on to log to flame up. It keeps your face away from the ash and heat while giving a very direct and precise delivery of oxygen to the coals.

I suppose most people would just rebuild and restart the fire, but it gives me a sense of accomplishment.

 

[Roospike]

How about a rake made from a 4" piece of lawn mower blade welded to 1/4" x 15"x 1" steel bar. It is great for poking, pulling ash forward and keeping the kids in line.

I'm locking my doors tonight.

scary isnt it .

 

[babalu87]

9 times out of 10

 

[pinetop]

surgical tubing and copper pipe plus some boyscouts sounds like a one hitter to me

 

[martel]

surgical tubing and copper pipe plus some boyscouts sounds like a one hitter to me

yes and they called it the "inspirator"--- I hear it inspires... (edited

 

[hafreed]

Well there you go. We were a pretty square group of scouts, but of all the things that I converted later in life, I never considered the inspirator. Duh! Good thinking guys, you've still got a few brains cells firing I guess :-S .

Still a great tool, but may also be a multi-tool