Firewood Processor Forum

Ok so i have a kinda stupid question, My boyfriend ordered a cord of firewood, which is great and all, its stacked in a nice neat lil pile along the fence all pretty like.. but heres the question.. don't you need kindling to have a good fire? where are you ment to get that? well, we could prolly get some off a friends land or something, but how much would we need? and how do you store it?

Not stupid
yes you need kindling,
you can buy wood shims at a lumber yd & split them , [makes good kindling]
or you can pick up small limbs from trees , save your cardboard egg cartons, Buy fire starters at wally world and small pc,s of wood will work

Your best kindling is cedar..cut into little pieces..you can strip small pieces off with a small axe..it will always catch...mix it with some newspaper that has been balled up..put that on the bottom, a bit of cedar, some small pieces of wood and when that is going good, you can put the larger pieces on.

You could chop up some of the firewood to make the kindling, but we used to use "fatwood"- You can buy it at fireplace stores. Here are a couple of on line examples:

http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?categoryId=38687&storeId=1&catalogId=1&langId=-1&from=SR&feat=sr

http://www.plowhearth.com/product.asp?section_id=2002&department=3050&search_type=category&search_value=1029&cm_val=&cm_pos=&cur_index=&cm_type=&pcode=6249

We would put in in a fancy brass container that we left on the hearth.

Just get small pieces to start the Fire. Once You get it burning good just add wood as needed. This wasn't a stupid Question. People have Burned wood for Ages,but starting the fire hasn't never been easy

No you don't get kindling when you order cord of wood. Kindling is more like small scraps of wood ( take one log and sort of shred it) or leaves or paper...If you want to buy a fire starter block (duralog) those work really well. You can get them at pretty much any hardware store, and most grocery stores carry them in winter.

There is also another type fo firestarter..sometimes a bit harder to find already made, but are really easy to make. Wax covered pinecones. Some craft stores have them. If you cant find them, all you need to do is buy a bag of the large pine cones and some candle wax and wick. Tie the wick around part of the pinecone. Melt the wax in an old pot and dip the pinecones in the wax and set on a sheet of wax paper to cool.

No you don't get kindling when you order cord of wood. Kindling is more like small scraps of wood ( take one log and sort of shred it) or leaves or paper...If you want to buy a fire starter block (duralog) those work really well. You can get them at pretty much any hardware store, and most grocery stores carry them in winter.

There is also another type fo firestarter..sometimes a bit harder to find already made, but are really easy to make. Wax covered pinecones. Some craft stores have them. If you cant find them, all you need to do is buy a bag of the large pine cones and some candle wax and wick. Tie the wick around part of the pinecone. Melt the wax in an old pot and dip the pinecones in the wax and set on a sheet of wax paper to cool.

Any kind of wood split into thin strips will work as kindling. Old pine pallets, packing crates, or wood shingles work great.
If you don't have access to these items, you can purchase a fire starter brick which is essentially a porous stone in a metal container. You add kerosene to the stone, place it under your firewood-filled grate, and light it. This will burn for sometime igniting your firewood and starting your fire.

all you have to do is split some of your big pieces into smaller pieces...buy a hatchet and sit around and make kindling in your spare time...i use a hatchet that has a hammer head on one end and i use a mash hammer to hit the hatchet head...a mash hammer has a softer head so it wont throw shreds of metal when you strike the 2 hammers together...

kindling is just small twigs and bits of bark and maybe some pinecones, all dry and ready to help a fire get going better.... around here, we pick up twigs that trees have dropped in the yard, pinecones and branches that the wind blows off our persimmon tree.... we save cuttings from trees and shrubs, too.... so yes, the friend's land would be a good spot to go to collect some... you usually need a couple handfulls for a fire, so gather a bushel basket full.... then just add to it as you go... when you walk in the park, hike in the woods, whatever, bring home a stick or two.... greenways are great spots, too... ask around.. folks would love for you to clean up branches out of their lawns!....

or... failing all that... get a hatchet and start cutting very small splits off some of your wood... it should be dry and seasoned already, so small pieces will help get your fires going good....and if you buy a bag of bark chips mulch, you'll have some help there, too... just don't use too many as pine spit's and sparks badly....