The fire pit is set up for the big night. Your log fire can barely contain its excitement. It sits right there on your patio, striking a pose in all of its glory as you prepare to impress your guests with all sorts of interesting chatter and memory-making throughout the evening. You prepare some logs, and you strike that match, but oh no! That didn’t go as smoothly as planned. The log fire seems really distracted because it just isn’t catching on to what needs to be done. There’s a flame, though — don’t worry! This situation is salvageable so long as everyone knows exactly what to do every step of the way — even if it requires fans of an additional kind to breathe life into the flames.
Wow, you caught on fire! Why didn’t someone tell you what a great job you were doing?! Now we’ve all got to open our arms and pretend that we are waving at the wind in an attempt to look as though nothing is going on. We don’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable or suspicious of the heavy smoke lingering in the air because it was all part of the plan! I hope the wind is strong enough tonight because that much smoke can make you dizzy if you’re not careful.
How to light a fire pit without smoke
A Smokey fire pit is something no one enjoys. We have been there too, and now we know how to fix it. It only takes five steps to make your best smokeless fire pit.
1-Use ready to burn logs
Think of logs like trees. When you just start up a fire in your fireplace, you’ll see logs as they are. But if these trees are still too green to burn, you could end up getting burnt yourself if the wood is too wet. If that’s the case, it’s not the best time to try and be burning much of anything!
There are some ways in which you can minimize the excess smoke that emanates from your fire pit or furnace. You will only need to buy logs that have been kiln dried to a moisture content below 20%. This way, you are guaranteed to get wood that has very little water in it and is, therefore, ready to burn. Buying these logs from a Ready To Burn certified supplier is probably your best bet for success because of the fact that these suppliers have committed to ensuring their wood is fully dried out before being sold, so you don’t end up wasting money on fuel.
Air quality and wood fuel have become more important than ever before. The Ready to Burn scheme is here to ensure everyone burns cleaner and more efficient logs, as well as be much kinder to the environment. We have seen wood suppliers claiming their wood is kiln-dried when in actual fact, it’s a long way from being anywhere close.
2-Ditch any old damp ash
It’s not worth saving money by using old, damp kiln-dried logs if you find that it doesn’t take long for the pillars in your fireplace to become eroded and unstable. To truly get the best of your winter fireplace experience, you should try to start from scratch with new logs or re-purposed wood by tearing out all traces of old ash and soot before starting.
3-Use of kindling
You’ll find it’s pretty difficult to get fire lit if you try to light dry logs with just one lighter at once. But is doesnt matters when there are ways to build your fire more effectively and efficiently. The trick is to start with small fires, add bigger pieces on as they burn down, and keep the fire burning hot by feeding it more fuel! This will help make sure your fire stays intact while burning hot.
Kindling can be hard to light on its own, but it combusts easily and quickly when exposed to heat. We recommend you take a handful of kindling (or a lot), place it inside your fire pit so that it makes a little nest of sticks and twigs. Then, place natural firelighters in between the kindling so they create sparks. The combination of the spark and kindling is guaranteed to create flames, which will build upon themselves until your whole nest lights up!
4-Use kiln-dried hardwood logs
Although the softwood and hardwood firewood logs you bought are both easy to light, they’re not really the same when it comes to burning. Softwood firewood logs catch on fire easily, but they burn quickly too, so for long lasting fire, you would have to keep adding more logs constantly. If you bought kiln-dried hardwood logs instead, they’re denser and can take longer before turning into embers and ashes. You can keep them going effectively for hours with just one piece!
5-Have some patience and enjoy
Starting a fire is not an easy feat, but one mustn’t let impatience be a downfall. A fire requires patience, but it also requires focus and commitment to getting done what needs to get done. Remember: Rome wasn’t built in a day! Exercise restraint when lighting your fire pit or any log burners for that matter, as rushing will only end up making you more frustrated than you need be.
