Fire without burning

[jinx]

Yoh people,

Has the collective conscious any thoughts on lighting small campfires with out doing damage to the ground (or surroundings)?

Not many campsites allow fires, and owners of woods rightly worry about having them burned to the ground. So how do you enjoy the ambiance of a fire with out incurring wroth?

I was thinking of some portable devise not unlike some of the mini wood stoves you can buy but a little bigger. I saw this portable BBQ set and it seems ideal, especially as most campsites seem to allow BBQ's.

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3455384.htm

All thoughts and advise gratefully received.

Jinx

 

[Apac]

Link dont work m8!

 

[jinx]

Hi Apac,

I have copied the link back in again and it seems to work fine on my browser, I will try it again later to check. You can see the product by going to the Argos website and looking under BBQ;s. Its a Table Top Charcoal BBQ. for £19.99.

Jinx

 

[cyclist]

take 2 cardboard boxes, aluminum foil, black paint, a piece of glas and some tape to fabricate a solar oven (there must be tons of instructions on how to make one on the net).
If the sun is shining it´ll take some time and you get your meal without even striking a match.

No worries about the forest - same applies with all stoves used with a bit more than just common sense

 

[Goose]

take 2 cardboard boxes, aluminum foil, black paint, a piece of glas and some tape to fabricate a solar oven (there must be tons of instructions on how to make one on the net).
If the sun is shining it´ll take some time and you get your meal without even striking a match.

No worries about the forest - same applies with all stoves used with a bit more than just common sense

There are some instructions on this site, http://www.bushcraftuk.com/downloads/pdf/solarbox.pdf
Don't forget the website as well as the forum!

 

[jinx]

There are some instructions on this site, http://www.bushcraftuk.com/downloads/pdf/solarbox.pdf
Don't forget the website as well as the forum!

What a great idea, I have down loaded the PDF file and will have a go in the back garden (trouble is if it workes well the wife might get me to do all the cooking . I suppose it does baked beans fine though).

I was originally thinking about how to have a fire for warmth and flame gazing without doing damage or raising alarm. Your further thoughts would be most welcome.

Jinx

 

[torc]

Many years ago in scouts I was thought to hammer four stoutish, pointed wooden poles vertically into the ground in a square pattern about 1m. apart. The poles were approx. 1m. long and driven to a depth of about 10cm.
Each vertical pole was attached to the next with a horizontal pole forming a level square just below the tops of the uprights. The poles were tied with a square lashing secured by clove hitch. The finished (hopefully sturdy) structure should now resemble a cube.
Now coat the knots liberally with wet mud and then place a sheet of corrugated iron of suitable size upon the structure, bending up its corners so that it is supported by all four horizontals.
On the iron place dry stones in a circle well in from the edges which will support a metal grill and prevent the heat from reaching the wood and lashings.
The dimensions of the structure (i.e. 2m x1m fire surface) can be altered by varying the lengths and positions of the poles.
A true free standing structure can be formed by adding another horizontal square just above the the bottom of the unburied vertical members and then diagonally cross bracing the verticals.
Just remember to renew the wet mud regularly and keep the fire well in from the edges.
On the other hand you could just cut an empty steel beer keg in half length-ways and weld four stubby legs on it to make a brazier.

Happy trails....torc.

 

[sam_acw]

i got a grilliput compact firebowl for just this reasson. Haven't used it yet though.

 

[Matt Weir]

Hi jinx,

Maybe something like this...

It's a cast iron bbq in the region of 12" tall by 16" across. I generally use it for small parties in the back garden under a gazebo throughout winter. It allows for a nice small open fire that leaves no scorch mark.

Matt.

 

[jinx]

Interesting suggestions on the fire bowl line, the Grilliput bowl seems a bit small for warming fire though. How big is yours Matt?

Torc, ingenious, but Im a bit lazy and would prefer to just put something on the floor and set light. Cheers for the story though.

Thanks guys

jinx

 

[FGYT]

Many years ago in scouts I was thought to hammer four stoutish, pointed wooden poles vertically into the ground in a square pattern about 1m. apart. The poles were approx. 1m. long and driven to a depth of about 10cm.
Each vertical pole was attached to the next with a horizontal pole forming a level square just below the tops of the uprights. The poles were tied with a square lashing secured by clove hitch. The finished (hopefully sturdy) structure should now resemble a cube.
Now coat the knots liberally with wet mud and then place a sheet of corrugated iron of suitable size upon the structure, bending up its corners so that it is supported by all four horizontals.
On the iron place dry stones in a circle well in from the edges which will support a metal grill and prevent the heat from reaching the wood and lashings.
The dimensions of the structure (i.e. 2m x1m fire surface) can be altered by varying the lengths and positions of the poles.
A true free standing structure can be formed by adding another horizontal square just above the the bottom of the unburied vertical members and then diagonally cross bracing the verticals.
Just remember to renew the wet mud regularly and keep the fire well in from the edges.
On the other hand you could just cut an empty steel beer keg in half length-ways and weld four stubby legs on it to make a brazier.

Happy trails....torc.

we used to use a similer job at all our camps its called an Alter Fire
you can do the table top with saplings and cover with 6" of dirt then put your fire on top great as you dont have to bend down to cook
http://www.scoutbase.org.uk/library/hqdocs/facts/pdfs/fs315076.pdf

i use this is in the garden and have taken it to Camp sites

works a treat thats a Lobster boiling up on there

it is a bit bulky so for car camping only really


ATB

Duncan

 

[gregorach]

Well, it's not too much of a worry up here (unless your on peat in dry weather, like that ever happens ... ) but I tend to just lift an area of turf to avoid leaving a scar. Works fine - as long as you remember (a) where you put it, and (b) to put it back afterwards.

 

[jinx]

Lobster BBQ! Corrrr, some ones posh .

Im more the burned on the outside, raw on inside sausage kind of guy.

Jinx

 

[Matt Weir]

Interesting suggestions on the fire bowl line, the Grilliput bowl seems a bit small for warming fire though. How big is yours Matt?

jinx

It's a cast iron bbq in the region of 12" tall by 16" across.

Matt.

Matt.

 

[weekender]

I think it was possibly last year Tesco's did a small round BBQ cost 79p which worked really well, it was about 12 to 14 inches across but at that price it was a real bargin.