If you find yourself in a situation where you need to know how to start a fire with wet wood, don’t worry about it. You can get the job done with a little effort and the right supplies. Even if you already know how to build a campfire, you might need a few tips to deal with building a fire in wet conditions.
Key Takeaways
- Preparation is Key: Gathering the right materials is crucial when starting a fire with wet wood. This includes tinder, kindling, and firestarter material. Tinder can be dry leaves, paper, bark, or cotton, while kindling is typically sticks, twigs, and bark.
- Choosing the Right Site: Avoid fire pits as they may contain water. Look for a site that is free from overhead trees that could drip water onto your fire. You may need to build your fire on a bed of bark or kindling to keep the tinder off the wet ground.
- Building the Fire Structure: Start by constructing a teepee fire lay with dry kindling around the tinder. Then, build a log cabin fire lay around the kindling teepee. This structure allows the wet wood to be dried out and ignited by the heat of the burning teepee.
- Lighting the Fire: Light the kindling at the bottom of the teepee using a match, lighter, or any ignitor. Once lit, continually add more kindling to the fire as it burns, using smaller sticks and twigs at first, then larger pieces when required to keep your fire going.
- Maintaining the Fire: Good airflow is essential for maintaining a fire started with wet wood. Stir the coals to create air gaps, which helps increase airflow. When you add new logs to the fire, stack them in a log cabin structure to help increase the airflow, which will help the wet wood burn quicker and with less smoke.
- Patience and Skill: Starting a fire with wet wood requires patience and skillful construction of a kindling ‘teepee’ and log cabin structure. Remember to maintain good airflow and continually add more kindling to the fire as it burns.
Here’s the full How To Start A Fire With Wet Wood article.
Table of Contents
- Steps For Starting A Fire With Wet Wood
- FAQs for Starting A Fire With Wet Wood
- What materials are needed to start a fire with wet wood?
- How should I choose a site to start a fire with wet wood?
- What is the best way to structure a fire with wet wood?
- How do I light a fire with wet wood?
- How do I maintain a fire started with wet wood?
- What are some tips for starting a fire in wet conditions?
Steps For Starting A Fire With Wet Wood
Gather your materials
You will need lots of tinder and kindling or firestarter material to burn the wet pieces of firewood.
Tinder is anything that catches fire quickly, like dry leaves, paper, bark, or cotton, or the Uberleben Tinder Wick.
Kindling is halfway between tinder and firewood in terms of how quickly it catches fire — most often it’s sticks, twigs, and bark.
Prepackaged firestarters are a convenient mix of tinder with a fire accelerant, such as wax, pine pitch, or any of various petroleum products.
Pick a Site
You may need to avoid fire pits, as they’ll likely have a puddle of water at the bottom. And look out for trees overhead that can drip water or melted snow on your fire. You may need to build your fire on a bed of bark or kindling to keep the tinder off the wet ground.
Build a Teepee and a Log Cabin
Build a teepee fire lay with the dry kindling around the tinder, with the smaller pieces near the center and the larger pieces at the outside. The idea is to give your fire enough air and space to breathe and not be smothered beneath bigger pieces of wood.
Then you’ll want to use your firewood to build what’s known as a log cabin fire lay (because it looks like a log cabin) around the kindling teepee so that the wet wood is dried out and ignited by being exposed to the heat of the burning teepee after the fire is started. Here again, you want gaps between the wood for airflow.
Building up the wet firewood around the sides and above the kindling and tinder creates a sort of mini ecosystem that helps to get (and keep) your fire going.
When set up correctly, the flame from the kindling will catch onto the wet logs on either side or over the top, drying them out so that they can eventually burn. This technique is beneficial if starting a campfire or bonfire in the rain when dry wood is hard to come by.
Start the Fire
Light the kindling at the bottom of the teepee, using either a match, lighter, or whatever ignitor you have.
Quick Tip: Check out our articles How to Start a Fire Without Matches and How To Refill Butane Lighters
Tend the Fire
Once lit, you’ll need to continually add more kindling to the fire as it burns — using smaller sticks and twigs at first, then larger pieces when required to keep your fire going.
Once the larger logs are burning, you’ll need to add more wet firewood off the sides of the fire to dry it out so it will be ready to burn when the fire starts to get low.
Tip: Building a fire requires the right tools, so be sure to check out our best hatchets for camping and backpacking post.
- Portable Fire Pit – Bring the experience of a roaring campfire to your home with Radiate’s XL Portable Outdoor Campfire; our mini fire pit is sure to get you in the camping spirit
- Take it Anywhere – Use the portable fire pit for beach days, camping trips, tailgates, family outings, picnics, hiking, or lighting in your own backyard for friends and loved ones to gather around the campfire; also safe for roasting marshmallows for smores
- Long-Lasting Fire – Our large reusable bonfire burns for up to 3 to 5 hours and is sure to make a great addition to your camping supplies and accessories; avoid the stress of collecting firewood or the risk of your camping stove running out of propane
- Eco-Friendly Ingredients – The outdoor campfire is made of recycled soy wax and paper briquettes, producing minimal soot and no embers, no need for clean up, and it does not leave behind a smokey smell
- Easy to Use – Light the recycled paper briquettes with a match or lighter until the fire spreads completely; slide the lid back onto the camping fire pit to smother the flame and extinguish it; let the container cool down completely before handling
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Sarles, Shawn (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 305 Pages – 07/17/2018 (Publication Date) – jimmy patterson (Publisher)
![Campfire Tales [DVD]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41dr3XVV6NL._SL160_.jpg)
- Hawthorne James, Ron Livingston, Devon Odessa (Actors)
- Matt Cooper (Director)
- Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
- 🔥 COMPLETE SET – Get ready to make S’mores! Unleash creativity with our kids camping toys that include everything your children would need for a pretend play fake campfire, plus a decorative wood pillow to create an authentic camping experience!
- 📱 SCREEN-FREE PLAY – Encourage curiosity and connect with the natural world through real imaginative play. Our kids campfire playset help your kids to improve their confidence, imagination, social skills, and overall well-being.
- 🎁 GREAT GIFT – Packed in our cute panda packaging box which makes it ideal for Birthdays and Christmas. Educational & fun camping fire to learn about the outdoors & boost your kids creativity. Perfect as camping party decorations or for a camping theme classroom.
- ⭐ SOFT HIGH-QUALITY MATERIALS – Don’t worry about your kids and toddlers breaking the play campfire or hurting themselves on sharp edges. Made of durable felt & soft plush materials together with strong stitching. Outdoor & indoor kids camping play set for daily activities.
- ✔ MOM-APPROVED SAFETY – Non-toxic felt smores play set that is completely safe for your kids and compliant with ASTM & CPSIA standards. ✔ CUSTOMER SATISFACTION GUANRANTEE ✔ – We stand behind our products and will refund if you are not 100% happy with your purchase, NO QUESTIONS ASKED!
Maintain Airflow
Remember that good airflow not only helps the fire burn hotter, which is essential with wet wood, but it also helps reduce the smoke produced by the fire.
So, once the initial log structure burns and collapses, you should stir the coals to create air gaps, which helps increase airflow.
And when you add new logs to the fire, make sure you are stacking them in a log cabin structure to help increase the airflow… which will help the wet wood burn quicker and with less smoke.
With some patience and skillful construction of a kindling ‘teepee’ and log cabin structure, you should have no trouble starting a fire with wet wood.
FAQs for Starting A Fire With Wet Wood
What materials are needed to start a fire with wet wood?
To start a fire with wet wood, you will need lots of tinder and kindling or firestarter material. Tinder can be anything that catches fire quickly, like dry leaves, paper, bark, or cotton. Kindling is usually sticks, twigs, and bark. Prepackaged firestarters are a convenient mix of tinder with a fire accelerant, such as wax, pine pitch, or petroleum products.
How should I choose a site to start a fire with wet wood?
Avoid fire pits as they may have a puddle of water at the bottom. Also, look out for trees overhead that can drip water or melted snow on your fire. You may need to build your fire on a bed of bark or kindling to keep the tinder off the wet ground.
What is the best way to structure a fire with wet wood?
Start by building a teepee fire lay with the dry kindling around the tinder. Then, use your firewood to build a log cabin fire lay around the kindling teepee. This structure allows the wet wood to be dried out and ignited by the heat of the burning teepee.
How do I light a fire with wet wood?
Light the kindling at the bottom of the teepee using a match, lighter, or any ignitor you have. Once lit, you’ll need to continually add more kindling to the fire as it burns, using smaller sticks and twigs at first, then larger pieces when required to keep your fire going.
How do I maintain a fire started with wet wood?
Good airflow is crucial for maintaining a fire started with wet wood. Stir the coals to create air gaps, which helps increase airflow. When you add new logs to the fire, stack them in a log cabin structure to help improve the airflow, which will help the wet wood burn quicker and with less smoke.
What are some tips for starting a fire in wet conditions?
Patience and skillfully constructing a kindling ‘teepee’ and log cabin structure are key. Remember to maintain good airflow and add more kindling to the fire as it burns. Also, be sure to have the right tools for building a fire.
- Portable Fire Pit – Bring the experience of a roaring campfire to your home with Radiate’s XL Portable Outdoor Campfire; our mini fire pit is sure to get you in the camping spirit
- Take it Anywhere – Use the portable fire pit for beach days, camping trips, tailgates, family outings, picnics, hiking, or lighting in your own backyard for friends and loved ones to gather around the campfire; also safe for roasting marshmallows for smores
- Long-Lasting Fire – Our large reusable bonfire burns for up to 3 to 5 hours and is sure to make a great addition to your camping supplies and accessories; avoid the stress of collecting firewood or the risk of your camping stove running out of propane
- Eco-Friendly Ingredients – The outdoor campfire is made of recycled soy wax and paper briquettes, producing minimal soot and no embers, no need for clean up, and it does not leave behind a smokey smell
- Easy to Use – Light the recycled paper briquettes with a match or lighter until the fire spreads completely; slide the lid back onto the camping fire pit to smother the flame and extinguish it; let the container cool down completely before handling
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Sarles, Shawn (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 305 Pages – 07/17/2018 (Publication Date) – jimmy patterson (Publisher)
- Hawthorne James, Ron Livingston, Devon Odessa (Actors)
- Matt Cooper (Director)
- Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
- 🔥 COMPLETE SET – Get ready to make S’mores! Unleash creativity with our kids camping toys that include everything your children would need for a pretend play fake campfire, plus a decorative wood pillow to create an authentic camping experience!
- 📱 SCREEN-FREE PLAY – Encourage curiosity and connect with the natural world through real imaginative play. Our kids campfire playset help your kids to improve their confidence, imagination, social skills, and overall well-being.
- 🎁 GREAT GIFT – Packed in our cute panda packaging box which makes it ideal for Birthdays and Christmas. Educational & fun camping fire to learn about the outdoors & boost your kids creativity. Perfect as camping party decorations or for a camping theme classroom.
- ⭐ SOFT HIGH-QUALITY MATERIALS – Don’t worry about your kids and toddlers breaking the play campfire or hurting themselves on sharp edges. Made of durable felt & soft plush materials together with strong stitching. Outdoor & indoor kids camping play set for daily activities.
- ✔ MOM-APPROVED SAFETY – Non-toxic felt smores play set that is completely safe for your kids and compliant with ASTM & CPSIA standards. ✔ CUSTOMER SATISFACTION GUANRANTEE ✔ – We stand behind our products and will refund if you are not 100% happy with your purchase, NO QUESTIONS ASKED!
Leave a Reply