Simple Firestarting

[BigBackyard]

What do you carry with you that will guarantee an easy starting fire? I've carried those waterproof matches for a while, but is there anything else that you would recommend?

[Archer]

Matches are good; if not waterproof than I keep them in a ziploc bag or container (or both, if I'm going to be on a boat with them!). I often use toilet paper to really get it started, and I've never had a problem.

[Outdooruser]

Matches are okay, but I find using the bic starters are even better. You can buy them anywhere and they are easy to just put in your pocket because they fold up.

[woodzman]

In my opinion, a bic lighter is about as easy as it gets.

[SQuirrel]

the trick is to build your fire up. kindling tinder than fuel. Small grasses and papers for kindling, tinder is basically twigs that will catch next, and then add slightly larger peices of wood untill you have the fire you want.

I like to use cotton balls soaked in vasaline (you can put the closed container of vasaline in hot water, and the vaseline will liquify so the cotton will really soak it up. wrap those up in foil, and if available, put each of them into little dime bags. When ready to use, cut open the top of your foil, and pull a little cotton up. It will burn like an oil candle for a good five to ten minutes. The other thing I use is a tea light candle. place one of these right under some pencil to finger thick sticks and your in buisness.

[southerngal]

We got a flint with a steel striker and tried to start a small fire in our backyard ....for hours! We could not get it lit. We tried everything dry grass, wood chips, dryer lint, paper, cottonballs with vaseline...we could always get the tinder lit just not the twigs. Next time I'll try your method of using the cottonballs squirrel.

[paloma]

I use a lighter instead of a match to light up pieces of rolled paper placed under the dry twigs and grass. It always works fine for me.

[Flannelshirt]

I bring a lighter and small paper cups filled with cotton balls that have been rolled around in vaseline. Always works like a charm.

[Flowerchild]

I have never heard of the cotton ball trick before. We are going to have to try it. We usually don't have a problem starting the fire though. It's only a problem when it has rained or is sprinkling. I thought about buying the fire starter logs this year.

[oldsarge]

Besides the normal matches and lighter. I also carry a magnesium fire starter, a few cotton balls with Vaseline and a few packs of Trioxane fuel tabs.