How To Start A Fire In A Fire Pit

In this guide we’ll be teaching you the best way to get a fire going in your fire pit, as getting a fire ignited can be a struggle for anyone and you don’t want to have to resort to using accelerants such as lighter fluid. These can lead to damage to your fire pit not to mention the unpleasant aromas they release.

Kindling

Let's start by making a good base, you’ll want to make a cone or dome shape out of kindling. You can use anything that is easy to light and will burn for a few minutes. This can be scrunched up newspaper, tiny bits of dry twigs and leaves or a natural firelighter will also work. Next place larger pieces of kindling over the top, being careful to leave enough gaps for air to flow through your fire.

There are several ways to do this including stacking them into a tent, cone-like shape above your firelighter, another method is stacking them into a square shape, making sure to pack them tight enough so that your kindling is touching the inner parts of your fire.

Logs

Next we move onto the last layer, you want to build this up out of your biggest bits of wood. If you are worried that your biggest pieces of wood are still too big to burn on your current fire, then you can split a few of them up to use as a stepping stone for your bigger bits of wood. You can leave a slight gap for access when building your fire, which allows for easier access when lighting it. It is best to use kiln dried logs on your fire, as these will be not only easier to light, but they will also burn hotter and cleaner.

Lighting Your Fire

It’s now time to light your fire, this can be done with matches, lighters, etc. Being careful not to burn yourself, take the lighter and lead it into the centre of your fire. Now hold it there for a few seconds while the firelighter ignites. If you have a sizeable fire, you may want to light it in a few different spots inside. Once you have seen that your firelighters has been lit, you can remove the lighter and wait to see if your kindling catches fire. If you see that your fire is struggling then you can blow into it, to help get more oxygen into the centre. (plus it's pretty fun)

By this point one of three things has happened, firstly, your kindling has lit and your fire is spreading to your logs. If this has happened, great! You can move onto Keeping Your Fire Stocked Up. The second option is that it hasn’t spread throughout your fire properly and the fire that you lit has been snuffed out. This can be fixed by making the gaps in between your pieces of wood larger and blowing into the centre to get as much oxygen into the inner depths of your fire as possible. If you don’t see any embers on your kindling, then you may need to light it again and possibly add more wood, depending on how much has been burnt.

The final option is that your fire has collapsed and the juvenile blaze has been snuffed out. But fret not as your fire may still yet be burning underneath, so be careful and wait to see if the fire continues to grow. If it continues to burn, then this means you can add more logs to your fire. If your wood doesn’t light after a few minutes then unfortunately it is time to take it out of your fire pit and rebuild your fire. You could also try the other building shape methods depending on whether you went for the cone or the square and see if you have better luck that way as well. Finally if your fire has fallen out of your fire pit, you will need to make sure that the fire is fully extinguished, to avoid any spread. 

Keeping Your Fire Stocked Up

Depending how long you are going to be using your fire it is important to keep it stocked up if you want it to keep producing a strong warm heat. The trick with keeping your fire pit stocked up is to not overfill it, as this can choke out the fire and cause it to produce less heat. You should also keep an eye on the ash and remove any build up if it is causing any problems. To remove ash you are going to need a long handled brush or other suitable long handed tool, as both the ash and the fire pit will be quite hot by this point.

With that, our guide on how to light a fire on a fire pit is finished and hopefully you have success with your fires in the future! We stock a wide range of high quality, kiln dried hardwood logs! Or if you are after more in depth articles, then we also have plenty to choose from!