I had very good success in a fireplace and outside in the firepit. The main difference imho is that you put the time in first and then the fire burns nicely down without the need to fumble around to keep it going. But then what fun is it to have e.g. a campfire without messing with it ?
Tried it a few times...for arguments sake, used the bottom up style most....now OTOH, this is what I do on a cold start- Pack the stove 2/3 full, preheat the flu with MAPP Torch, then touch off the kindling bundle in the middle of the charge. 5 minutes to temp. Done.
I tried upside down or top down fire starting method so I do not offend anyone with my description here. I tried this method to start a fire in my chiminea last night. I must say that it worked great. It started quick and hot. I left it unattended for 3 hours and it was still burning well. There was no smoke at first then when it finally made it to the tight big logs on the bottom which were some logs that were not season great a small amount of smoke appeared but I used some wetter wood than I would burn inside on purpose. I have to say however I do not think there was not as much smoke as I was expecting. Overall this was a Damascus road experience for me. I think I wi be starting my fires from now on this way. If you have questions please ask. Thank you everyone for your input.
I'll try it here and there but in my experience it takes longer, I've gotten more smoke and I don't quite see any advantage. I'm gonna have to mess around with it a bit more this season, maybe I was trying to build it too big from the get-go so it was just smoldering, combined with wood that isn't prime seasoned.
I should have mentioned that it does take longer to build up. I think for a cold start this is the way to go however.
Few years ago when I started burning I tried every which way and found top down to work well for me, so I stuck with it. However looking back I wasn't burning very dry wood and was having all sorts of problems getting her going sometimes. So I'll be trying traditional methods as well this winter but I've had good success with the top down for sure, I like it.
Yes, I tried it but did not find it any better than what I normally do; if anything, much slower to get the fire going. When you need heat, why slow it down? What I do is to lay a couple splits on the bottom. I use the triangle shaped splits for this. Lay a 1/4 super ceder in the center of that and light it. Then I usually put just a couple pieces of kindling on that and then a couple more splits. All is well. It starts quickly and we have no smoke issues.
Has anyone tried the sideways starting method? It’s when you light it from the left side only and let it burn across...or if you are right handed from the right... Then you have to get even more specific. Right sided top down or right sided bottom up. And then of course, the same goes for the left side....
I agree. Heat rises and travels up so this makes sense...if you are using dry wood and construct your fire correctly smoke is not an issue.
I think alot of people saying it doesnt matter have good drafting chimneys. mine is marginal at best and the top down really helps my struggling draft get started. I load alot of kindling on top to get the flue really hot before the main load starts to go.... That being said my stove rarely gets to the point where i dont have coals for a reload. I only have to lite it 5 or six times a year, mostly after a cleanout, or sweeping.
I wasn’t sure at first what was meant by upside down either. But since flames shooting downward and smoke sinking down to the ground didn’t seem likely I elected to go with the alternative meaning
I’ve tried it multiple times with limited success. Last year I had terrible problems with downdraft which I had initially attributed to running the gas furnace for the first time in 8yrs since woodstove install. One night after smoking the house up a couple times I cracked the front door 1/2” for a normal bottom up after running the MAPP up the flue and presto no draft issue. Turns out fixing door seals that had worn or the dogs scratched up had reduced my fresh air to near nothing.
