I feel like kindling does not get enough respect on this board. Kindling(aka wood shop gold) is the spark plug of the stoves community. Heres a box that my class prepped for me as well as some other cash money woodsman pics.
They're scraps that would ordinarily be thrown in the garbage. I'm sure there is a woodworking teacher, wherever you teach, that is missing boxes of scraps from you.
I agree with you, SC! A solid kindling supply is the key to a happy wife when I’m at the fire station and can’t build a fire for her. I built this little storage “shed” last fall for my kindling. I put it in an area that is blocked off from the snow. Used some scrap pressure treated wood, random shingles, and a little brace kit I bought on Amazon for like 12 bucks. I restock it every couple of weeks. I stock it mostly with scraps from my wood splitting operation and junk from my garage. It’s roughly 4’ x 5’. Plus I always keep a couple of crates of kindling in the house as backup.
Since I bought the hydraulic splitter I haven’t made any kindling. Plenty of scraps from the splitting process and my wood is dry enough the fire starts easily, normally with a piece of paper towel. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Yeah, our wood shop teacher actually loves that I’ll take all the scraps if they cut them to about 16”. They are all smaller than 3/4” one way and he says it’s good practice for kids to cut with multiple saws when they aren’t doing projects. I love it as it’s. A lot of oak scraps. I’ve also started cutting my mass of old pallets. Just the thin boards between the stringers. Quick and fills a box pretty fast. Then a quick couple swings with my small hatchet and in set for a week or two. Course once winter really hits, don’t usually need kindling. But it does help it get to choo chooing quicker! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Kindling is certainly an unsung hero. It helps start the whole shebang off! Now... let me immediately contradict myself. Moving from an old smoke dragon to a catalytic stove I have all of this kindling going unused because my fire never goes out! I am away all day, or asleep all night, open the air supply full, throw in splits or in some instances whole rounds and they take off in a minute or two with the door ajar. Differently... Does anyone else peel the bark off their splits when they're splitting wood and save that for kindling? That's what I've been doing for a few years. Last winter when I was on the old Vigilant I was starting fires twice a day in a cold stove and I found the bark to do a great job. I've also pried apart pallets, grabbed scrap wood and (gasp) bought some kindling in the past. Looks like I'm on my way to only get by on the bark this year.... unless I just jinxed myself.
Oh yes! Splits dry so much faster without the bark and I fill milk crates with the bark to burn later. Makes great kindling either for starting the fire or getting it going again when I waited too long and sometimes I just burn a whole lot of bark for a while.
I'm kind of superstitious about burning bark, I don't save it and I remove it when it's easy enough. Right or wrong, I think it makes smoke. For kindling I use birch sticks and thin splits, red and white cedar splits, unpainted lumber scraps, and chips from splitting. It's stored in numerous milk crates in the basement.
Theres all kinds of kindling that works well. Lately I’ve been splitting cookies. I have a lot of wood that was cut for our old fisher mama bear. It would take a 24” log. Been trimming them down which isn’t fun but turning cookies into kindling.
I use bark on top of split lumber scraps. Burn a lot more of it in the fire pit during the warmer weather. I dont intentionally remove it, but only if it comes off on its own or falls off when im unstacking/moving seasoned splits. Moved a bunch of seasoned sugar maple last week and got a bunch of decent bark from that. We are surrounded by woods, so ill take a tote or garbage pail in the woods and gather sticks and twigs. They work great too.
I set aside straight grained splits and Split them down on the splitter. They then go into a 35 gal trash can and put on the back porch. I bought one of those Kindling Krackers put haven't used it yet.
I find bark is rather smoky as well. I 've got a pretty good sized pile of pine and oak bark going. Supposed to make good potting soil for some things but I haven't tried it yet. The last batch I had I just threw in one of my paths in the woods.
The tulip popular I picked up this spring seems to be it’s own kindling, even when split real thick. I really enjoy throwing a stack of them on the coals first thing in the morning. To limit the smoking I directly light it with a lighter. I think I will stock up on some more for next year once my back is feeling better.
