Thinking about all those nights spent in your backyard with all your family members gives you a heartful nostalgic moment. Things become more and more enjoyable when all of them come up with their stories. All these things make a remarkable memory to gather and get involved in.
Now, imagine all these things again but, introduce a fire pit along with all these nostalgic moments, heard some cracklings? We all are familiar with the fire pit, whether it is just a small hole in the ground or a high-tech one.
Sitting in a circle having a fire pit at the center and all the family members are laughing, cracking jokes on one another, all this happening under the sky full of stars which harmonize with the cracklings and sparks of fire lit inside the fire pit.
Nowadays, we do not see these moments often. We spend our winter nights inside our separate rooms, scrolling down the Facebook feed, chatting with friends, etc. Why don’t we make those moments alive again? How to start a fire in a fire pit so that you can take everyone out in the night to relive all those moments?
Well, this is not something you cannot do. It would help if you had a fire pit, and we will teach you how to start it like a pro. This article will teach about how you can start a wood-burning fire pit quickly and without any accidents.
Before we jump on our guide on how to start a fire in a fire pit, it would be better if you know what type of fire pit you have and how we are giving the details here in this article.
Types of Fire Pit Available
All the fire pits are classified, or we can say categorized based on the fuel they use. It is that simple, and there is no rocket science behind how to start a fire in a fire pit. Therefore, you may have known till now about what we mean by a Wood-burning fire pit.
But incomplete information is always insufficient. Therefore, down below, we have mentioned the primary type of fire pit you will come across, or you may have come crossed till now.
1. Wood-burning Fire Pits
As its name suggests, the fuel we use to lit a fire in this fire pit will be wood. It does not matter what type of wood you use. If it is wood, it will be called a Wood-burning fire pit. They give a similar vibe to the campfire.
Among all the wood-burning fire pits, they differ by the pit’s size, and there is not much difference among them. They come with different heights as well, which can be controlled in some of them. Nobody will be left alone from the warmth of these smoky fire pits.
2. Gel Fuel Fire Pits
If you want to add ambiance to any outdoor space, then this is the one for you. They are cleaner and less smoky when compared to any of their counterparts. Therefore, you can keep it anywhere outdoors without any worries of smoke prints on walls or getting sparks all over your clothes from the fire pit.
They do not give out much heat either. It operated through the gel container, which needs to be refilled once empty. Therefore, it may seem a bit time-consuming if someone is just a beginner in how to start a fire in a fire pit.
3. Propane Fire Pits
When it comes to convenience, there is no single person who will not take the name of these fire pits. They are so convenient that you must turn the knob, and the fire will come out quickly.
If you have a friend who does not know how to start a fire in a fire pit, suggest these fire pits. You can control how much heat you want and how large your flame will be. Due to this, they can be kept almost everywhere outdoor.
They come in various shapes and designs, which makes them look cool even after spreading warmth. Isn’t it amazing?
4. Natural Gas Fire Pits
This is something that requires additional installation. You must install natural gas container for this, and you are ready to go anywhere anytime. As you will get a permanent supply of natural gas, you will never run out of fuel like the case in propane Firepits.
You do not have to worry about the refills, neither you must worry about where you will keep it when not in use. Starting a fire in a fire pit is not the question for those who use these fire pit types as they are convenient, like propane fire pits.
As you have gathered much information regarding fire pits, let us now take you to our guide on how to start a fire in a fire pit. It will be a well-informed part of this article that is surely going to help you a lot. Once you complete reading this whole article, we assure you that you will be the one who lit the fire pits in every family gathering in the backyard.
How to Start A Fire in A Fire Pit: Wood-Burning?
Starting a fire in a fire depends on the situation and place you want to use it for. Therefore, we have discussed both the situation, outdoors and indoors as well.
Brush Up Your Inventory
Make all these things ready before you start looking for ignition fuel to build up a fire.
- Matches – We know this is most obvious, but hey, we all forget those things quickly, which are easy to guess. It is not necessary that you must have matches. Any fire starter can do the work for you.
- Tinder – A small fire that will help you to burn the more giant wooden logs. For outdoors, it will be small sticks, dry twigs, and some dry scratches of logs can also be kept as a tinder.
- Kindling – It will be like a bigger version of tinder. You will use tinder to light up this or you can say that this is going to be the second step towards the main fire building. Once it will burn out completely this will make a coal bed under your bigger woods to give them enough heat to lit up quickly.
- Log – This is the primary source of fire, and this is what you must change or add up again and again till you want the pit to burning. Ensure that these are dry, as you do not want to waste your time trying wet logs to catch fire.
- Water – Finally, a savior is essential. This will be there so that if a fire breaks out, you can control it easily and take the situation under control before it spreads and some bigger problem arises.
Now, as you have all the things you will need to start a fire, you have come closer to how to start a fire in a fire pit. So, let us do it.
Building an Outdoor Fire
If you have a fireplace, then it is beautiful. Otherwise, it will not be any problem as we already have a savior, water.
- First, make sure that you are not near anything which can catches fire from your fire pit, and neither you have any flammable substances around you or your fire pit. We all know that prevention is better than cure; therefore, it is just a step to minimize any mishappenings that can happen at the fire site.
- Put some tinder in the center of your fire pit before someone starts wondering how to start a fire in a fire pit and starts experimenting with the fire. Ensure the tinder you are using is dry as the more easily tinder will burn more efficiently and effectively you will build up a fire.
- Once you are done with the tinder, it is time to grab some kindling and arrange them on top of the tinder. The arrangement should be in a hut manner. The sides of which must be open so that you can get your fire burning. Make sure that the kindlings are also dry so that it does not become a barrier between tinder and log, which is not what you would want.
- If you want to keep a side of your fire pit safe, you can use a wooden shield there. Otherwise, let the structure unchanged. It is not mandatory to arrange kindling’s in a hut manner. You can also keep it in a square structure as well. A hut structure will give you high flames, while a square structure provides slow and steady warmth all around the fire pit.
- Arrange your logs now in whatever structure you would like. Do not just put a whole lot of logs, never. Put them little by little and only when one is about to finish. We would recommend you make a square arrangement to get a more steady and small fire build-up.
- Light up the arrangement. You do not just have to light up the tinder in one place only. Lit it up at many places so that your kindlings catch fire evenly. If your tinder is about to end, but your kindlings have not got any fire, then out some more tinder until the kindling’s catches fire. To build up more fire, add logs accordingly.
Tada! You have successfully built up the fire in your fire pit, and now you know how to start a fire in a fire pit. But you just have known only how to start a fire in a fire pit outdoors. You must scroll down a bit to know how to start a fire in a fire pit indoors.
Building an Indoor Fire
When it comes to indoors, and there is fire involvement in it, you must be in alarming mode. Double-check all your set-up and never compromise with safety. We repeat, never.
This happens when winter arises, and you cannot stay outside in the cold building up a fire. You should have quality wood to use indoors and make sure the grate or fuel you use does not create airborne particles which can stick to your walls, windows, fans, etc.
- Before you start doing anything, make sure there is an open site from where the smoke will escape; otherwise, the smoke inside of your house will vanish up all the vibe of the fire in a fire pit, and there will be no use in knowing how to start a fire in a fire pit.
- Now, like that of an outdoor fire, you will need a tinder. This time you will not use wood as you do not want to create much smoke. So, a newspaper or tissue paper will work fine as a tinder.
- Put out some kindling’s and arrange them on top of the tinder you have settled at the center of your fire pit. Do not put much kindling’s to make enough open space for the flow of air. More frequently and freely, the air will pass by less smoke you will get.
- Once you are done with the fire arrangements, now it is time to light some fire with matches or any other fire starter. Start with the base, a newspaper (tinder), and let the fire build up nicely.
- Make sure you add log slowly and in short dosage or a small lot. You do not want to fill your entire house with smoke. So, keep the flame steady and maintain the airflow between the kindlings.
- Keep the fire extinguisher steady in case if you will need it.
There you have a warm and wonderful fire in your fire pit. Now enjoy back with your family and let them exhale all their memories right in front of the fireplace harmonizing with the cracking of wood.
Certain precautions are necessary to take, and it does not matter if you are making an outdoor or indoor fire. Make sure you do not use any fuel accelerants. This will be lit up your fuel suddenly with a high and uncontrollable flame.
Therefore, to maintain the decorum of the house and for the sake of safety, do not use it. Do not use smelly fuels as well. Kerosene oil and other lubricants may burn quickly, but they create some fumes which may harm you from inside. Therefore, make sure you are not using any of those to build up fire quickly and enormously.
Enjoying a fire pit with care will give you an immersive and long-lasting experience for sure. They are ready-to-go appliances that you can keep for a long. As they are used occasionally, it is essential to store them effectively in the right place.
Always be ready to lead the fire build team to know that you understand how to start a fire in a fire pit. Please share your knowledge and understanding with others and take from them what they. This will enhance your knowledge and understanding as well.
Collect just a few things and learn how to start a fire in a fire pit with an easy guide. Click here to know more about a wood-burning fire pit and some expert tips and tricks as well.
