How I build a fire and why you shouldn't care much
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Date: 2025-12-12
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Comments and reviews: 20
pXnTilde
You don't need to wrap wood - it might actually be a detriment. It is sufficient to simply cover it. A piece of plywood set at an angle for a little lean-to shed, for example.
It's not ideal to burn leaves for the same reason as cardboard - they will create deposits in your chimney (although probably not a big deal if you actually get it cleaned regularly)
You can make kindling by just splitting your wood to kindling size and drying it with the other wood - no need to buy it. If its covered it'll stay dry enough
If you have extra sawdust you can mix it 1: 1 with melted wax (you can buy wax beads really cheap online) and form it into small blocks or whatever shape you like. Make sure the saw dust is dry, and the finer the better
Different kinds of trees burn different. Some are really smokey, some burn hot and fast, some will burn really dirty.
The reason for the increasing size is because smaller pieces heat up and dry out faster, but larger pieces burn long, so you only need enough small stuff to get the larger stuff going which usually isn't very much. Its all experimentation with what wood you're using, but I would bet Adam can get away with about half as much kindling. The more moisture the longer it will take because it has to drive out all the water.
If you burn human flesh it will leave deposits in your chimney and they absolutely will be able to figure out what you did
Wood stoves are very different than fireplaces. Learn how to use the airflow controls and the damper for maximum efficiency!
If you're in the woods and the fire is tough to get started, the most important thing is to keep the flame going - no matter how small. Don't take stuff off, just try to get dry stuff down by the flame. The stuff above is drying and will eventually go
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You don't need to wrap wood - it might actually be a detriment. It is sufficient to simply cover it. A piece of plywood set at an angle for a little lean-to shed, for example.
It's not ideal to burn leaves for the same reason as cardboard - they will create deposits in your chimney (although probably not a big deal if you actually get it cleaned regularly)
You can make kindling by just splitting your wood to kindling size and drying it with the other wood - no need to buy it. If its covered it'll stay dry enough
If you have extra sawdust you can mix it 1: 1 with melted wax (you can buy wax beads really cheap online) and form it into small blocks or whatever shape you like. Make sure the saw dust is dry, and the finer the better
Different kinds of trees burn different. Some are really smokey, some burn hot and fast, some will burn really dirty.
The reason for the increasing size is because smaller pieces heat up and dry out faster, but larger pieces burn long, so you only need enough small stuff to get the larger stuff going which usually isn't very much. Its all experimentation with what wood you're using, but I would bet Adam can get away with about half as much kindling. The more moisture the longer it will take because it has to drive out all the water.
If you burn human flesh it will leave deposits in your chimney and they absolutely will be able to figure out what you did
Wood stoves are very different than fireplaces. Learn how to use the airflow controls and the damper for maximum efficiency!
If you're in the woods and the fire is tough to get started, the most important thing is to keep the flame going - no matter how small. Don't take stuff off, just try to get dry stuff down by the flame. The stuff above is drying and will eventually go
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kyler1984
Great reminder to put claims and advice by popular people into perspective! On the other hand (and this is maybe me being a bit pedantic, what counts as expertise or not could be subjective as well, or at least there might be fuzzy lines around that idea, which could mean we are experts at a lot more things than we might think! For instance: I could be considered an expert at walking for every-day functional navigation, and I have been since I was very young (as many of us are, in whatever form of mobility is needed for your body. I suspect many people are experts at that kind of thing, and it's very common. Someone also might be the only expert in the world who knows their child or other loved one's particular communication style, wants and desires, etc. A lot of people are experts at navigating their local streets for getting places, etc. most of us are not expert mathematicians, but most of us are probably experts at solving the equation of 11. maybe a slightly smaller percentage of people are experts at solving the equation of 5x22, etc. I suppose it just depends on where you set the bar and how complicated the task has to be to be considered expertise.
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Great reminder to put claims and advice by popular people into perspective! On the other hand (and this is maybe me being a bit pedantic, what counts as expertise or not could be subjective as well, or at least there might be fuzzy lines around that idea, which could mean we are experts at a lot more things than we might think! For instance: I could be considered an expert at walking for every-day functional navigation, and I have been since I was very young (as many of us are, in whatever form of mobility is needed for your body. I suspect many people are experts at that kind of thing, and it's very common. Someone also might be the only expert in the world who knows their child or other loved one's particular communication style, wants and desires, etc. A lot of people are experts at navigating their local streets for getting places, etc. most of us are not expert mathematicians, but most of us are probably experts at solving the equation of 11. maybe a slightly smaller percentage of people are experts at solving the equation of 5x22, etc. I suppose it just depends on where you set the bar and how complicated the task has to be to be considered expertise.
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BrookeSimmons
Astrophysicist here with a minor clarification: Carl Sagan was great at research. He had a competitive postdoctoral fellowship at Berkeley, published in very prestigious research journals, and did get tenure at Cornell. One of the major NASA postdoctoral fellowships is named after him, mostly because of his research legacy. (The other two are named after Edwin Hubble and Albert Einstein, for context) Being denied tenure at one ivy league institution -- or indeed, not being offered a tenure-track position at all, in this day and age -- doesn't mean you don't meet all reasonable definitions of great at the thing. It can mean many things; in this particular case, the story we have all heard is that Sagan being great at science communication made a few people at Harvard less likely to give him tenure no matter his research track record. Shocker: some Harvard professors are elitist.
This correction doesn't invalidate your point; in fact, it probably validates it given you have not claimed to be a great researcher of the history of science.
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Astrophysicist here with a minor clarification: Carl Sagan was great at research. He had a competitive postdoctoral fellowship at Berkeley, published in very prestigious research journals, and did get tenure at Cornell. One of the major NASA postdoctoral fellowships is named after him, mostly because of his research legacy. (The other two are named after Edwin Hubble and Albert Einstein, for context) Being denied tenure at one ivy league institution -- or indeed, not being offered a tenure-track position at all, in this day and age -- doesn't mean you don't meet all reasonable definitions of great at the thing. It can mean many things; in this particular case, the story we have all heard is that Sagan being great at science communication made a few people at Harvard less likely to give him tenure no matter his research track record. Shocker: some Harvard professors are elitist.
This correction doesn't invalidate your point; in fact, it probably validates it given you have not claimed to be a great researcher of the history of science.
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joels5150
My experience building fires taught me, you have to start with light pieces first, arranging them in such a way that there is air flow between the pieces.
They should be slender and dry, but sturdy enough to support a modest amount of weight (5-10 lbs. They need to be able to burn for about 15-30 minutes before they lose their structural integrity, so there is enough time for the flames and heat to catch the first log on fire.
In addition to the smaller pieces, you need a starter, which can be something like straw or paper. This is something that will burn itself up within the span of a few minutes, so you need enough to keep that initial flame going, long enough to catch the smaller twigs on fire.
Once the first log (which should be mid-sized, not a big heavy one) has caught fire, you can put another couple mid-sized logs atop it, and by then there should be enough heat built up to catch larger pieces of wood on fire. At that point, you can just add a big piece every couple of hours to keep the fire stoked.
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My experience building fires taught me, you have to start with light pieces first, arranging them in such a way that there is air flow between the pieces.
They should be slender and dry, but sturdy enough to support a modest amount of weight (5-10 lbs. They need to be able to burn for about 15-30 minutes before they lose their structural integrity, so there is enough time for the flames and heat to catch the first log on fire.
In addition to the smaller pieces, you need a starter, which can be something like straw or paper. This is something that will burn itself up within the span of a few minutes, so you need enough to keep that initial flame going, long enough to catch the smaller twigs on fire.
Once the first log (which should be mid-sized, not a big heavy one) has caught fire, you can put another couple mid-sized logs atop it, and by then there should be enough heat built up to catch larger pieces of wood on fire. At that point, you can just add a big piece every couple of hours to keep the fire stoked.
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collinsnyder8682
To prove Adams point of people in the comments section having a different way: when he mentions open the flue along with the overall temperature differential. If you were to open the flue here in Michigan right now then immediately start the fire, you'll get smoke throughout the house. This is because the cold air from the chimney rushes down. To avoid this, you have to prime the flue. Open it up well before you start the fire to to let warm air start rising through. To test to see if it's ready, light a bit of newspaper and stock it up the flue. If the flame points down or goes out, it's not ready. If it points up, you're good to go.
The problem with this is it takes forever and your house gets really drafty until you start the fire. Modern technology hack to the rescue. Get an ELECTRIC leaf blower and point it up the flue. Run it for like 30 seconds and you supercharge that air current direction change process.
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To prove Adams point of people in the comments section having a different way: when he mentions open the flue along with the overall temperature differential. If you were to open the flue here in Michigan right now then immediately start the fire, you'll get smoke throughout the house. This is because the cold air from the chimney rushes down. To avoid this, you have to prime the flue. Open it up well before you start the fire to to let warm air start rising through. To test to see if it's ready, light a bit of newspaper and stock it up the flue. If the flame points down or goes out, it's not ready. If it points up, you're good to go.
The problem with this is it takes forever and your house gets really drafty until you start the fire. Modern technology hack to the rescue. Get an ELECTRIC leaf blower and point it up the flue. Run it for like 30 seconds and you supercharge that air current direction change process.
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pata-k
Psst! aragusea
A tip about piling wood outside!
Do it like you did in your stove except one meter by one meter and leave no gap in between. Ergo one layer with ends facing one way and another with ends facing the other.
If possible, have the wood pieces tilt each other very slightly towards the center. You'll create a pile that is falling onto itself.
This'll create sturdy piles that provides the air to go through every piece of wood, making drying easier and practically removing the risk of mold. Since it's one meter wide from all sides, it doesn't even take that much space, making it easier to cover the top with a single tarp and some string.
It's how my pa is used to do it and is very peculiar about the angles of the wood pieces to a fault xD but I guarantee you, the pile will practically dry itself
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Psst! aragusea
A tip about piling wood outside!
Do it like you did in your stove except one meter by one meter and leave no gap in between. Ergo one layer with ends facing one way and another with ends facing the other.
If possible, have the wood pieces tilt each other very slightly towards the center. You'll create a pile that is falling onto itself.
This'll create sturdy piles that provides the air to go through every piece of wood, making drying easier and practically removing the risk of mold. Since it's one meter wide from all sides, it doesn't even take that much space, making it easier to cover the top with a single tarp and some string.
It's how my pa is used to do it and is very peculiar about the angles of the wood pieces to a fault xD but I guarantee you, the pile will practically dry itself
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ChristopherCurtis
This video needs an explainer video. From the comments I gather this is related to Dr. Mike/Mr. Mike a bodybuilder influencer, and how his degree is nonsense but his job is something else. In which case, this video was very dumb but I hope more people watch it. Too many don't understand the basics of reality.
That said, adding oil to what is normally crumpled newspaper makes sense, but I've never thought of doing that. When splitting, it helps to use a stump instead of doing it directly on the ground as two angled surfaces will almost guarantee you'll have a level cutting angle at some rotation. When the thing you're splitting gets stuck on the axe, lift the whole thing and just bring it down again. I suppose it could fall on your head that way, but that's just more potential content, right
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This video needs an explainer video. From the comments I gather this is related to Dr. Mike/Mr. Mike a bodybuilder influencer, and how his degree is nonsense but his job is something else. In which case, this video was very dumb but I hope more people watch it. Too many don't understand the basics of reality.
That said, adding oil to what is normally crumpled newspaper makes sense, but I've never thought of doing that. When splitting, it helps to use a stump instead of doing it directly on the ground as two angled surfaces will almost guarantee you'll have a level cutting angle at some rotation. When the thing you're splitting gets stuck on the axe, lift the whole thing and just bring it down again. I suppose it could fall on your head that way, but that's just more potential content, right
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bordershader
Very much agree with this. I'm an ex-IT trainer, and I'm pretty bloody great at communicating the nuances of a given program so they can use it efficiently and effectively. I'm great at spotting where someone's having difficulties and helping them fix and learn from their errors. But: expert user I'm not. I just act as the light switch so others can take what I give them and become the expert. And I'm not interested in the glory or the accolades of being a pro user of whatever software either. That's not where my talents lie.
(And for anyone spotting the ex- there and wondering why I'm not still doing it - my hearing loss is now too bad and it's a painful thing for me to bear; I had to retrain and I'm mediocre in my new field at best, and it's gutting to be in this position)
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Very much agree with this. I'm an ex-IT trainer, and I'm pretty bloody great at communicating the nuances of a given program so they can use it efficiently and effectively. I'm great at spotting where someone's having difficulties and helping them fix and learn from their errors. But: expert user I'm not. I just act as the light switch so others can take what I give them and become the expert. And I'm not interested in the glory or the accolades of being a pro user of whatever software either. That's not where my talents lie.
(And for anyone spotting the ex- there and wondering why I'm not still doing it - my hearing loss is now too bad and it's a painful thing for me to bear; I had to retrain and I'm mediocre in my new field at best, and it's gutting to be in this position)
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frattman
Thanks for the video, I like the cooking oil idea. I've been heating with my wood burning stove for over a decade and right off the bat I got advice from a guy on a forum - soak a paper towel in a little kerosene and roll up a square of cardboard and light it under hardwood that's been seasoned (ideally) 2 years (1 year for softwood. Definitely don't trust this method because I use it, but boy is it failsafe, and incredibly cheap. Obviously there is danger involved here if you're careless, and obviously you can burn yourself of your house down, but it's been a long time, and it's been a good method for me.
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Thanks for the video, I like the cooking oil idea. I've been heating with my wood burning stove for over a decade and right off the bat I got advice from a guy on a forum - soak a paper towel in a little kerosene and roll up a square of cardboard and light it under hardwood that's been seasoned (ideally) 2 years (1 year for softwood. Definitely don't trust this method because I use it, but boy is it failsafe, and incredibly cheap. Obviously there is danger involved here if you're careless, and obviously you can burn yourself of your house down, but it's been a long time, and it's been a good method for me.
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fishyerik
Great video! :) Many great points. Still, there's the matter of how important it really is that the one telling you something is a truly great authority on the subject, or just good enough. A lot of people seems unable to tell if the ones they trust just makes sht up, or have a decent level of knowledge and understanding that they're trying to share.
Blindly trusting some individual that makes statements without any uncertainty or nuance, that also won't be there for you when that trust leads to trouble for you is generally a bad idea.
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Great video! :) Many great points. Still, there's the matter of how important it really is that the one telling you something is a truly great authority on the subject, or just good enough. A lot of people seems unable to tell if the ones they trust just makes sht up, or have a decent level of knowledge and understanding that they're trying to share.
Blindly trusting some individual that makes statements without any uncertainty or nuance, that also won't be there for you when that trust leads to trouble for you is generally a bad idea.
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Kekspere
I'm not an expert in lighting fires, but warm my house with a tiled stove so I do it every day now in winter. For efficient heat you need to light it on the top, basically the opposite of what Adam did. Bigger logs on bottom and kindling on top. This way it doesn't burn too quickly and it is also more enviromentally friendly as the wood burns more clean with enough air all the time.
Also if you have birch bark that is the craziest kindling in the world. Burns hot for like 3 minutes
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I'm not an expert in lighting fires, but warm my house with a tiled stove so I do it every day now in winter. For efficient heat you need to light it on the top, basically the opposite of what Adam did. Bigger logs on bottom and kindling on top. This way it doesn't burn too quickly and it is also more enviromentally friendly as the wood burns more clean with enough air all the time.
Also if you have birch bark that is the craziest kindling in the world. Burns hot for like 3 minutes
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elmadouf
You should try the Top Down method. Basically you put the bigger logs first and you build your pile from big on bottom to small on top.
The heat from the top transfers progressively to the layer underneath and ignites it. In theory, the gasses from incomplete combustion of the bottom part go through the fire on top and burn, thus extracting more heat and rejecting less fine particules in the air so less pollution, and less soot buildup in the chimney. It works well for me.
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You should try the Top Down method. Basically you put the bigger logs first and you build your pile from big on bottom to small on top.
The heat from the top transfers progressively to the layer underneath and ignites it. In theory, the gasses from incomplete combustion of the bottom part go through the fire on top and burn, thus extracting more heat and rejecting less fine particules in the air so less pollution, and less soot buildup in the chimney. It works well for me.
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terrasque13
Adam, I don’t watch people who are great at something. I watch people who are Experienced with something. I haven’t cooked most things, but there’s lots of people who cooked most anything i can think of, and know how to do it well enough for me.
I don’t want to become great at something, I just want to spend less time being terrible at that thing. And to know what problems they solved before it was a problem for me, so I can limit the things that can go wrong
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Adam, I don’t watch people who are great at something. I watch people who are Experienced with something. I haven’t cooked most things, but there’s lots of people who cooked most anything i can think of, and know how to do it well enough for me.
I don’t want to become great at something, I just want to spend less time being terrible at that thing. And to know what problems they solved before it was a problem for me, so I can limit the things that can go wrong
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MrAssChapman
There's 2 attributes that can easily put you in the top 10% of anything you choose to do.
1. Actually knowing how to learn. Do research, put a plan together, maybe even use the scientific method to improve.
2. Just generally be intelligent.
Its pretty trivial to get into the top 10-20% of the vast majority of things. Most people are dumb and/or lazy and never actually just take the time to learn the fundamentals of anything or do any type of formal study.
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There's 2 attributes that can easily put you in the top 10% of anything you choose to do.
1. Actually knowing how to learn. Do research, put a plan together, maybe even use the scientific method to improve.
2. Just generally be intelligent.
Its pretty trivial to get into the top 10-20% of the vast majority of things. Most people are dumb and/or lazy and never actually just take the time to learn the fundamentals of anything or do any type of formal study.
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HectorHectorMyMan
I'm curious if your views on this video are lower than normal. I mean, I'm not going to watch it because you told me not to trust you in the thumbnail and that I shouldn't care about what you're sharing in the title. I'm not trolling, it's a thought I've had every time this comes up in my feed so I thought I would engage. But I still haven't watched it, which says more about me than you and is kind of the whole point. the psychology of clicks.
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I'm curious if your views on this video are lower than normal. I mean, I'm not going to watch it because you told me not to trust you in the thumbnail and that I shouldn't care about what you're sharing in the title. I'm not trolling, it's a thought I've had every time this comes up in my feed so I thought I would engage. But I still haven't watched it, which says more about me than you and is kind of the whole point. the psychology of clicks.
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shodanxx
You seem to be using a relative definition of greatness, ignoring that it's entirely possible for almost everyone in the normal distribution of skill to be great. I was a great cyclist when I was young, most people who bike are actually great at it, you're just focused on a definition that excludes 99%, so of course greatness appears rare to you but just go to your stranger neighbour and you'll find they're great at many more than 2 things.
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You seem to be using a relative definition of greatness, ignoring that it's entirely possible for almost everyone in the normal distribution of skill to be great. I was a great cyclist when I was young, most people who bike are actually great at it, you're just focused on a definition that excludes 99%, so of course greatness appears rare to you but just go to your stranger neighbour and you'll find they're great at many more than 2 things.
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AshvinVerma2004
I don't know if Carl Sagan's example is so accurate. He did end up becoming a full professor at Cornell, director of the Lab for Planetary Studies there, arranged experiments for many NASA missions, and helped to assemble the Voyager golden record. He also helped discover Venus's surface conditions! He's one of the most cited plenary scientists and the most cited SETI scientist of all time.
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I don't know if Carl Sagan's example is so accurate. He did end up becoming a full professor at Cornell, director of the Lab for Planetary Studies there, arranged experiments for many NASA missions, and helped to assemble the Voyager golden record. He also helped discover Venus's surface conditions! He's one of the most cited plenary scientists and the most cited SETI scientist of all time.
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100mexk
Probably tiring as all hell for someone who has to do it a lot, but for someone just trying to split a couple logs for the fireplace, my dad and me do this: it doesnt matter if you actually split the wood when you swing at it. As long as the axe is somewhat safely lodged in there, just lift it up, with the log still attached, and kinda violently swing back down. Does the trick quite nicely.
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Probably tiring as all hell for someone who has to do it a lot, but for someone just trying to split a couple logs for the fireplace, my dad and me do this: it doesnt matter if you actually split the wood when you swing at it. As long as the axe is somewhat safely lodged in there, just lift it up, with the log still attached, and kinda violently swing back down. Does the trick quite nicely.
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dirtrider88
1: 56 uhhh im truly great at a LOT of things. im really great at eating, only gotten sick from it a few times in my 37 years. im really great at taking shits, 100% success rate. at putting my finger where i intend to, look at all this typing. at speaking English. at breathing, at taking showers. at putting my clothes on. the list goes on an on. you just have a limited perspective.
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1: 56 uhhh im truly great at a LOT of things. im really great at eating, only gotten sick from it a few times in my 37 years. im really great at taking shits, 100% success rate. at putting my finger where i intend to, look at all this typing. at speaking English. at breathing, at taking showers. at putting my clothes on. the list goes on an on. you just have a limited perspective.
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scottmartin5990
You forgot that besides expertise, people, both online and off, have other characteristics that can and should influence how much you trust the information they provide. Things like diligence and thoroughmess of their research, honesty in pointing out weak points in their own arguments, proper citation of sources, and the respect and cooperation of real experts.
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You forgot that besides expertise, people, both online and off, have other characteristics that can and should influence how much you trust the information they provide. Things like diligence and thoroughmess of their research, honesty in pointing out weak points in their own arguments, proper citation of sources, and the respect and cooperation of real experts.
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