4 Tips for Building an Amazing Campfire
02-22-2018
Author: in We Wander Wherever
Everyone knows that a proper camping trip should include at least one campfire. Whether you are RVing full-time, seasonally, or just on weekends, you simply must learn to build a decent fire. Unfortunately, learning this skill is not always easy. Therefore, we have compiled a list of tips for building an amazing fire that is perfect for roasting marshmallows.
#1: Grab the Cotton
Start by grabbing some cotton balls out of your bathroom. That’s right, regular cotton balls. Dip these in petroleum jelly, making sure they are well coated on at least one side. These jelly covered cotton pieces will be your firestarters. They are ideal because they are small and lightweight, but quick to catch on fire and relatively slow to burn.
Now you need to gather your tinder and kindling. In most aspects of life, it is best to go green. However, when gathering burnable bits for your fire, you want to skip the green stuff and go straight for the driest, brownest stuff you can find. Small twigs, dry leaves, brittle sticks, and even dryer lint all work well for this purpose.
#3: Start Small and Build
After gathering plenty of tinder and kindling, you will want to sort it all by size. Begin by putting a small collection of the smallest stuff such as dry leaves and lint in the middle of the fire pit. Add 2 or 3 of your jelly covered cotton balls and light them with a lighter or match.
Once those small bits catch fire, add a few of the smallest twigs.These should be arranged in a criss-cross pattern or built into a teepee shape. These will likely catch fire quickly, at which point slightly larger sticks can be added.
Keep adding slightly larger items until the fire is big enough to add a couple of pieces of “fuel” firewood. After those catch, add one or two more. At this point, your fire is ready to go.
#4: Leave Room for Air
As your campfire burns, you may find that all the logs try to settle toward the bottom. This is not good because it doesn’t give the fire the airflow it needs. Therefore, you will want to try to keep the end of the logs stacked a bit, leaving pockets of air in various places. This will ensure your campfire receives plenty of oxygen.
By sticking to these simple steps and doing a bit of your own experimenting, you are sure to be a campfire-building pro in no time at all. Lucky for you, this means plenty of s’mores, hot dogs, and campfire songs are likely in your near future.
#1: Grab the Cotton
Start by grabbing some cotton balls out of your bathroom. That’s right, regular cotton balls. Dip these in petroleum jelly, making sure they are well coated on at least one side. These jelly covered cotton pieces will be your firestarters. They are ideal because they are small and lightweight, but quick to catch on fire and relatively slow to burn.
Related Read: Campfire Construction 101
#2: Go DryNow you need to gather your tinder and kindling. In most aspects of life, it is best to go green. However, when gathering burnable bits for your fire, you want to skip the green stuff and go straight for the driest, brownest stuff you can find. Small twigs, dry leaves, brittle sticks, and even dryer lint all work well for this purpose.
#3: Start Small and Build
After gathering plenty of tinder and kindling, you will want to sort it all by size. Begin by putting a small collection of the smallest stuff such as dry leaves and lint in the middle of the fire pit. Add 2 or 3 of your jelly covered cotton balls and light them with a lighter or match.
Once those small bits catch fire, add a few of the smallest twigs.These should be arranged in a criss-cross pattern or built into a teepee shape. These will likely catch fire quickly, at which point slightly larger sticks can be added.
Keep adding slightly larger items until the fire is big enough to add a couple of pieces of “fuel” firewood. After those catch, add one or two more. At this point, your fire is ready to go.
Related Read: How to Start a Fire without Matches – Part 1
#4: Leave Room for Air
As your campfire burns, you may find that all the logs try to settle toward the bottom. This is not good because it doesn’t give the fire the airflow it needs. Therefore, you will want to try to keep the end of the logs stacked a bit, leaving pockets of air in various places. This will ensure your campfire receives plenty of oxygen.
By sticking to these simple steps and doing a bit of your own experimenting, you are sure to be a campfire-building pro in no time at all. Lucky for you, this means plenty of s’mores, hot dogs, and campfire songs are likely in your near future.
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Author: Chelsea Barron
