There are many different reasons you may want to start a fire, such as for cooking purposes, warmth, or even just for fun. However, what do you do if it is raining outside? How about snowing? Or windy conditions? These are when most people would resort to starting their fire inside or calling someone else who can help them out. But there is no shame in wanting to learn how to do it yourself! This post will go over all the steps needed to start a fire, no matter the weather conditions.
Contents
Wood
The size and type of wood you use will depend on what materials are available. You want dry, not green or wet wood as they won’t burn easily and could cause your fire to go out quickly after starting it. If possible, try to find pieces with a lot of cracks in them as those can be easier to break up into smaller sizes, making getting your fire going much faster. It is also good if you happen upon some pine needles since many people don’t realize these make great tinder for starting fires too!
Matches/Lighter
You will need some way to start your fire. Matches are a classic choice, but lighters work just as well and can be easier if your hands are wet or cold. If you don’t have either of these, you can use flint and steel.
Tinder
What you use for tinder will depend on the climate conditions. If it is rainy or snowy outside, dried-out leaves, grass, bark, or paper works best. However, if it is windy, you want something that will catch easily, like cotton balls, char cloths (which we will go over later), or even petroleum jelly-coated cotton balls.
Build A-Frame
Before you start piling your tinder upon the fire, make sure you have created something that will contain it. You can use rocks or bricks or even just dig down into the dirt to surround where your fire is going to be. If there are no flat surfaces around, try finding some larger logs and stacking them in an “A” frame shape, creating a barrier for smaller pieces of wood from getting blown away by wind gusts.
Light Your Tinder
Once everything is ready, light your tinder with either matches or a lighter (or both if possible). Check around for any other spots that might catch easily, like dried grasses nearby, and add those into the mix once lit. Once it has a good flame going, you should have enough heat to start adding larger pieces of wood and can stop worrying about the weather conditions outside as your fire will be successfully lit! If it is windy, keep adding more sticks while ensuring all flammable materials stay contained where they won’t blow away.
How To Use Flint And Steel To Light A Fire
If you do not have matches or a lighter, the only way to start your fire is by using flint and steel. The first step is finding some hard metal that can create sparks, such as a piece of broken glass or a sharp rock that should scrape against flint quickly enough. This will work even in windy conditions, so it’s best to practice this when you are calm outside before needing to use it for real if possible. Once you have one of these materials with you, hold the tip up near kindling about two inches above where the flame needs to go. Then hold onto another stick at an angle from your body. Angle yourself where the stone scraps along with some tinder underneath. Once you have all of this in place, run the stick back and forth quickly across the edge of the stone to create sparks that should ignite your tinder. If it doesn’t catch right away, then try again after blowing on what you’ve already lit to make sure there is a flame going before adding more kindling as needed.
Conclusion
Now that everything is ready to go, all you need to do is sit back and relax. You’ve done something many people would never even try because they don’t think they could do it themselves or simply aren’t willing to give trying a chance. But if you follow these steps, there’s nothing stopping anyone who wants their fire tonight, no matter what type of climate conditions are happening outside. If anything, it just makes starting a fire that much more of an accomplishment!
