Family Fire Preparedness! How To Start A Fire

With all the chaos and uncertainty going on in our country.  It is now so essential that we prepare our homes and family for any emergency.  A wise woman would be prepared and "smile at the days to come".  At our home, we have taken aside one day a week to plan, brainstorm, learn and add something more to our emergency preparedness.  Our hearts go ut for the families who have lost loved ones and the thousands who were stranded as a result.  What if that happened here?  Are we ready?

So, this weekend, we are spending sometime starting a fire.  What child doesn't like that.  Be careful when you instruct this to your children that you mention strictly and seriously the boundaries about starting a fire.  Along the way give a powerful lesson about the tongue being like a small fire that can devour a forest.

Hopefully, in an emergency we are loaded with matches, not wet, or a lighter. We also carry with us in our emergency back pack a flint and steel.  Dad, has taught us how to use it.  Here are other ways, just in case, we are trying.

 SCIENCE FRICTION: FIVE FIRE-MAKING METHODS from www.boyslife.com

Most experienced Scouts know how to start a fire without a lighter or matches. Do you? When lost in the wilderness, being able to make a fire can be a lifesaver, both to signal your location and to use for warmth and cooking. Here are five ways to start a small fire in an emergency.

Before you attempt to start a fire, you must have tinder and kindling materials available and understand how to use them. Many people fail to start fires even when they have good matches! A fire is built in stages. You first need to cause a small spark to ignite your tinder, small dry items like tissue paper, dead grass, twigs, leaves, lint or even paper money. Blow on the tinder carefully, so it stays lit and grows into a larger fire. Then carefully add kindling—sticks, branches or thick paper—to keep the fire going. Once the kindling is burning, you can add larger logs or other fuel.

METHOD 1: MAKE A FIRE PLOW

What You’ll Need:

• Hard stick with a blunted tip
• Flat piece of wood
• Tinder
• Kindling
• Knife or sharp-edged rock

What You’ll Do:

Using the knife or sharp rock, scratch a straight indentation in the center of the flat piece of wood about the same width as the blunt stick. Arrange the tinder so air can easily circulate, and set it at the foot of the piece of wood. Then, in a kneeling position, hold the flat piece of wood between your knees at an angle and move the stick rapidly back and forth in the indentation until friction ignites the fibers of tinder at the base. Mix in more tinder material and fan the smoke until a small fire starts. To keep the fire going, carefully add kindling material.

METHOD 2: SPARK GENERATION

What You’ll Need:

• Knife or steel
• Sharp-edged rocks
• Tinder
• Kindling

What You’ll Do:

Use this method with very dry tinder material in a secluded, non-windy environment. Depending on what items are available, strike two rocks together to create a small spark close to tinder material. If a spark catches the tinder, you will see a glow. Carefully blow on it so it turns into a small flame. Fan the material until it starts to smoke and burn. If you have an item made of steel, like a knife, scrape it against various rocks until a spark appears.

METHOD 3: MAKE FIRE WITH A LENS

If it’s bright and sunny, it’s possible to use a lens to focus the heat of the sun on tinder material and start a fire.

What You’ll Need:

• Lens (from eyeglasses—reading glasses only, a magnifying glass, binoculars or telescope)
• Tinder
• Kindling

What You’ll Do:

With plenty of dry tinder available, aim the lens at it until it starts to smoke. Have other tinder material available to keep the fire going. When the tinder begins to burn, add kindling material.

METHOD 4: MAKE FIRE WITH A REFLECTOR

What You’ll Need:

• A reflector from a flashlight or headlight
• Tinder
• Kindling

What You’ll Do:

Position the tinder material in or in front of the reflector for maximum absorption of the sun’s rays. With plenty of sunshine available overhead, and a little luck, the tinder material will get hot enough to catch fire.

METHOD 5: MAKE FIRE WITH WATER

When positioned properly, water can act as a lens and focus enough of the sun’s heat to ignite tinder.

What You’ll Need:

• Water
• Jar or bottle
• Tinder
• Kindling

What You’ll Do:

Pour about two teaspoons of water into a clear jar or bottle. Tilt the jar so the water rests in a corner at the bottom and position it so the sun’s rays shine through the water onto the tinder and ignite it.