AS 410 “Firecraft” Chpt 3-1

The Story of Fire Your fire making story…good or bad So What?

Why is it important to learn how to build a fire? • The ability to start a fire can make the difference between living and dying.

• Fire can fulfill many needs: It can provide warmth and comfort. It not only cooks and preserves food, it also provides warmth in the form of heated food that saves calories our body normally uses to produce body heat.

• You can use fire to purify water, sterilize bandages, signal for rescue, and provide protection from animals and the smoke from a fire can be used to discourage insects.

• You can also use fire to produce tools and weapons. Necessities to Maintain Life

Chapter 3-1: Firecraft 1. Chapter Objective Know how to build, design, and light a fire when in a survival situation. 2. Samples of Behavior/Main Points a. List the three essential elements of a fire. b. Define tinder, kindling, and fuel. c. List some examples of tinders and kindling. d. Describe four recommended fuel sources. e. Describe how to prepare a fire site. f. List and describe a couple primitive methods to light a fire. g. List and describe few modern methods to light a fire. h. Define coniferous. i. Define deciduous. j. List and describe ten methods for laying a fire. k. List some useful firecraft hints. Firecraft Vocabulary

Resinous - Any of numerous clear to translucent yellow or brown solid semisolid sticky substances of plant source.

Petrolatum - A neutral oily, odorless, tasteless substance obtained from petroleum and used in ointments and dressings.

Quartz - A hard crystalline, glassy silicon dioxide, SiQ2, occurring abundantly as a component of granite and sandstone or various pure crystal. Rattan - A climbing palm with very long tough stems.

Deciduous - Falling off or shed seasonally or at a certain stage of development in the life cycle. Koodlik - A fat stove used by the Eskimos to burn fuel.

Coniferous - A predominantly evergreen cone-bearing tree as a pine, spruce, hemlock, or fir. Fire

• Building – Pits and places – Structure • Teepee • Log cabin • Lean-to • Starting – Flint and Steel – Bow – Battery – Glass • Fuel – Softwood – Hardwood Starting Fires What Burns Firecraft

Basic Fire Principles

•Fuel (in a nongaseous state) does not burn directly. •When you apply heat to a fuel, it produces a gas. This gas, combined with oxygen in the air, burns. •By limiting fuel, only a small fire is produced. If the fire is not fed properly there is too much or too little fire. •If you remove any of these, the fire will go out. Fire Material

A. Tinder 1. Tinder is any type of small material having a low flash point. It is easily ignited with a minimum of heat, even a spark. 2. The tinder must be absolutely dry to be sure just a spark will ignite it. 3. Tinder must be arranged to allow air (oxygen) between the hair- like, bone-dry fibers. The preparation of tinder for fire is one of the most important parts of firecraft. 4. Dry tinder is so critical that pioneers used extreme care to have some in a waterproof “tinder box” at all times. Fire Material

B. Kindling 1. Kindling is the next larger stage of fuel material. It should also have a high combustible point. 2. It is added to, or arranged over, the tinder in such a way that it ignites when the flame from the tinder reaches it. 3. Kindling is used to bring the burning temperature up to the point where larger and less combustible fuel material can be used. Fire Material

C. Fuel 1. Fuel is less combustible material that burns slowly and steadily once ignited. 2. Unlike tinder and kindling, fuel does not have to be kept completely dry as long as there is enough kindling to raise the fuel to a combustible temperature. 3. It is recommended that all fine materials be protected from moisture to prevent excessive smoke production. 4. The type of fuel used will determine the amount of heat and light the fire will produce. 5. Trial and error is sometimes the best method to determine which fuel is best. 6. After identifying the burning properties of available fuel, a selection can be made of the type needed. Firecraft

Fire Site Preparation • Clean site – Scrape 3 to 10 foot diameter area down to bare soil • Wet - Build a platform of green logs or rocks • Warmth - Built against a rock or log reflector • Cooking - fires can be walled-in by logs or stones with platform

Arrange - Tinder, kindling, and fuel

As a rule of thumb, survivors should have 3 Xs the amount of tinder than is necessary for one fire. Better more than less 

1782, Judge Sir Francis Buller Firecraft

Preparation, practice, and patience in the use of primitive fire-building techniques cannot be over emphasized.

Flint and Steel Bow and Drill Magnifying Glass Fire-Plow Building a Firewall

If time allows, you can construct a fire wall using logs or rocks. A fire wall will help to reflector the heat to where you want it. It will also reduce flying sparks and cut down on the amount of wind blowing into the fire. If you decide to use rocks, stay away from wet or porous. Such rocks when heated rapidly, may explode. Fire Plow

A ”friction method” of ignition You need a hard wood shaft and a wood base that is softer than the shaft. 1st Cut a straight groove in the base. 2nd At the end of the groove place some tinder on which the ignited particles will fall. 3rd Plow the blunt tip of the shaft up and down the groove. 4th While plowing apply more pressure on each stroke and the friction will ignite the wood particles. Once the tinder begins to smolder, blow or fan it into a flame Fire Bow

Socket - Stone or a piece of hard wood with a slight depression on one side. Fire Bow

Drill - Drill should also be made of. It should be hard wood about 25 centimeters in length and 2 centimeters in diameter. Most importantly though, the drill needs to be straight, otherwise you will not be able to turn it with sufficient speed. Top end of the drill should be blunt and round as than in creates the best friction. Fire Bow

Fireboard - Cut a small depression about 2cm from the edge of the board - this will be your top-side. On the other side, prepare a v-shaped cut from the air of the board to the depression, so that a little hole to the other side is created in the depression on the top-side (see the picture). Fireboard must be made of soft wood Fire Bow

Bow - to make a bow use a resilient green stick about 2.5cm in diameter and a string. Tie the string to both end of the bow without any slack. Fire Bow

Start sawing with the bow back and forth. When you establish a smooth motion, gradually increase pressure from the top with the socket and work the bow faster. After a while, hot black powder will start falling through the hole into the tinder, causing a spark to catch. Once the tinder begins to smolder, blow it into flame. Firecraft

Modern Methods

Matches Burning Glass Flashlight Reflector Metal Matches Batteries Gunpowder Flares Aircraft Fuel Extra Credit 100 pts

Make one of the primitive fire tools below then bring it in Wednesday, February 21st, and create an amber that would start a fire. OR Make a video of you using one of the primitive tools below to create an amber that would start a fire. Email or show me.

Fire Plow Fire Bow Drill Fire in a Hole

In some situations, like very windy conditions with rain, you may find that an underground fireplace will be best for your needs. It conceals the fire and is very convenient for cooking food.

•Dig a hole in the ground •On the upwind side of this hole, poke or dig a large connecting hole for ventilation. •Be careful only not to dig it to shallow as that can cause the whole construction to collapse. •Build your fire as illustrated. Firecraft

Fire Facts • During wildfires it’s amazing that trees can explode if water deep inside the tree quickly turns to steam.

• Walt Disney World is the largest consumer of fireworks in the United States. Primary Fuels

Burns slowly - Hardwoods (hickory, oak, ash, birch) • Identified often by broad leaves

Burns quicker – Softwoods (Pine, cedar, juniper, and rotten wood smolder and burn too fast. Tree Fuel Socrative Check Stone Fire

Simplest cooking lay Log Cabin / Tee Pee Fire

Light and Heat Good starter fire

Good Signal fire Kindling Long Fire

Trench Good group fire

Airflow Pyramid Fire

Starts at top Overnight fire

Green logs at base Burns down to coals Self Feeding Fire

Overnight fire Star Fire

Small fire

Constant attention “T” / Ditch Fire

Fire lay

Group cooking coals Lean-To Fire

Starter fire

Green stick

Kindling Tinder Cross-Ditch Signal Fire

Kindling Tinder

Airflow in all quadrants Dakota Fire Hole

Concealed fire Airflow

Easily buried Fire Reflector Ground Smoke Generator

Tinder Raised Smoke Generator Platform

Wet ground Five Fires to Remember

• Classic Tee-Pee Pro – Burns Hot / Con – goes through wood quick • Log Cabin Style Pro – Great for cooking / Con - less hot than Tee-Pee • Upside Down Pro – Burns long time little attention / Con – not much fun • Lean To Pro – Good for windy weather / Con – not good for cooking • Dakota Fire Pro – Easy to conceal / Con – Not much light Socrative Check Fire What Have We Done With It?