Building a Fire - Basics

In a survival situation, being able to build a fire can be one of the most important skills to have. Not only does a fire provide light and warmth, but it allows you to cook food, purify water, and drying clothing. It's also an important signaling mechanism. And finally, a fire can provide a psychological benefit as people are inherently comforted by it.

Since the ability to build a fire may mean the difference between life and death, I highly recommend you know how to make one before departing for the wilderness. When building a fire, be sure you keep it under control. There's no benefit to you in allowing an emergency fire spread to engulf the forest.

Fire Site Selection

Choose the right site for your fire can make creating it and maintaining it easier.

• Choose a location close to fire materials.
• Make sure there is adequate protection from wind and rain.
• Ideally the fire site should be near shelter, but not so close as to threaten the shelter.
• Flat, level ground will make your activities easier.

Fire Site Preparation

Clear a 3 foot circle by scraping away all leaves and brush. If the ground is covered with snow, you will need to create a platform on for the fire. This will keep the melting snow from putting the fire out. It's also much more difficult to start a fire on a wet surface.

Also consider building a fire wall to reflect the fire's heat in your direction. To do this, secure two poles that are 3 feet long into the ground about 1 foot behind the fire. These poles should lean slightly forward. To get these poles in to the ground they'll need to be sharpened on one end. Next, place two more poles of similar size 4 to 6 inches in front of the others. Place as many green logs as necessary between the poles so that they form a 3 foot high wall.

The Three Stages of Fuel

Tinder
Tinder is simply any material, natural or synthetic, that will light from a spark. It's an extremely important element in getting the larger stages of fuel lit.

Examples of natural tinder include dry or pitch wood scrapings; birch or cedar bark; straw; and dead grasses, ferns, or fungi. For natural tinder to work, it needs to be dry, have edges that will light from a spark, and be a material that will allow oxygen to circulate within it. Sometimes it is necessary to prepare the tinder prior to using it.

1. Remove any bark or pith.
2. If necessary, dry tinder in the sun. Alternatively, you can place the tinder between your layers of clothing which will allow your body heat to dry the tinder as you go about your daily routine.
3. Prepare the tinder only when you're actually ready to build a fire. If you prepare it too early, it'll collect moisture from the air possibly rendering it useless.

Layered forms of tinder can be prepared by working them between your hands and fingers until they're light and airy so that you should be able to light it from a spark.

Wood scrapings, which are often the most readily form of tinder, can be created by repeatedly running a knife blade at a 90 degree angle across a flat section of pitch or heartwood. For the scrapings to be effective there'll need to be enough of them to fill the palm of your hand.

Kindling
Kindling is usually composed of twigs or wood shavings. Twigs shouldn't be thicker than a pencil or they won't burn. The key is that kindling should ignite easily and quickly when place on a small flame such as that produced by tinder. Examples of kindling include small, dead twigs found on the dead branches at the bottom of many trees; shavings from larger pieces of dry, dead wood; pieces of heavy cardboard; and gasoline or oil soaked wood.

Fuel
Fuel is any material that is thumb-sized or bigger that will burn slowly and steadily once lit. Kinds of fuel include dry standing wood and branches; heartwood (the dry insider portion of a fallen tree trunk or large branches); green wood that is finely split; dry grasses twisted into bunches; and dry animal dung. Note: Use live trees only in emergency survival situations.

Platform for the Fire

A platform ensures that your tinder and small kindling will not contact the moist ground. If when warm climates, the ground can be wet not to mention the complications posed by snow. Here are some suggestions for platforms:

1. Dry tree bark.
2. Dry, nonporous rock. Be sure the rocks aren't waterlogged since they may explode when heated.
3. In the snow, build a platform using 2 rows of green logs that are wrist size and break or cut them into 3 foot long lengths. Place the top row perpendicular to the bottom row.
4. An alternative to green wood is to use branches or poles made of dead wood.

Brace for the Fire
A brace is an often forgotten part of building a fire, but it is important nonetheless. Its purpose is to ensure that the fire will get the oxygen it needs to exist. A branch that is of wrist thickness or a dry, nonporous rock 2 to 3 inches high will suffice. Lay the brace on or next to the platform and then lean the kindling against the brace and over the tinder. Doing so allows oxygen to circulate within the fire.

Heat Sources
Any of the following heat sources can be used effectively: metal match, bow and drill, flint and steel, pyrotechnics, battery and steel wool, matches, and lighters.

References:
Wilderness Survival by Gregory J. Davenport