Fatwood

Just recieved this package yesterday. It sez I can use 2-3 sticks to start a fire for charcoal/grilling. What do ya think about this? I've been told and read that it's not a good idea to do this with the resin/chemicals in the wood for comsuption of food. Should I do this or not?

Pine resin can be toxic, however in the small amounts you will be using in a bbq I would not be concerned.
If truth be told I would bet it is safer then the chemicals used in easy light charcoal or liquid starter
I've had plenty of campfires over the years that had pine in it and I've never thought twice about it.

yeah, as long as your not putting it in "after" the fire is going/while cooking (why would you?!) but for starting it, it's fine <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

What I was thinking is 2-3 pieces of fatwood, put the charcoals on top, then lighting it up. How does that sound?

hmm I use the fatwood to get bigger wood going (twigs and small chunks), then bigger (sticks and chopped up strips of wood/log), then once that is nice and hot, then I add the coals, but try it and let us know how it works!

I'm not sure about toxins, but I would say that using 2-3 sticks is a waste. If you built up a fire from small kindling, you would only need a small pile of fatwood dust. This would take longer, but it would invovle less Resin/chemicals and would allow you to last many years on that bag of fatwood.

Man i've always got loads of Fatwood hanging around and I often use big bits( much bigger than your 3 sticks ) to start my BBQ off.
The only worry is complaints from the neighbours when it makes all the smoke !!!!!

We light our fireplace with one piece. Sometimes, if it gets going good, Nikki pulls the fatwood out, puts it out and uses it the next day.
I figure less toxins in wood than in any other kind of fire 'aid'.
Well, we ain't dead, yet.

I’ve never used it for charcoal fires, but for starting wood fires, I think 2-3 pieces is way too much. Remember, they want you to use it up fast so you’ll buy more. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> I use one piece about the size of my finger, and then I split it up like toothpick size arranged over the cotton. When I strike the cotton and it catches, I add the wood, starting with a handful of smaller then pencil size wood, then when that catches I add a handful of pencil size wood, then a handful of finger size wood, then handful of larger than finger sized wood. If you didn’t know, you can buy fatwood at Walmart and a few other places. Probably save the shipping charge that way. Usually it’s with the firewood stuff. Also, if you shave fatwood into a fine dust, you can (with practice) start it using a firesteel.

Thanks for the help guy's. I'll start with one piece, break it up, and see how that goes. I just what to start the coals without lighter fluid.

Also, I will checkout WalMart to see if they carry fatwood. Besides the package (2 lbs.) plus shipping only cost me $6.80.

at home (and you could do it away too) I use a "stoker" or coal starter, you just put newspaper or any paper on the bottom and the coals on top (built in separator). works great! I haven't used fluid in a decade!

I'll agree with WD. Don't waste your store bought fatwood on charcoal. Get a starter (I've always called it a chimney) like he has pictured. It gets the charcoal going quick and gets them all burning evenly.

I'll look into, thanks.

yeah,i go to home depot and lowes hardware stores and i get giant boxes about 14x12x12in full of fat wood for $5.00 bucks.its probably 10 pounds of it.

the pieces are bigger so i have to cut them down but its totally worth the money.its good resinous fatwood too.

another interesting fire making tip..........

i know some people have tryed magnesium blocks with a ferro rod before and i know that some people complain about scraping off a good pile of magnesium.

it could've changed since last year but i could go on e-bay and but 1 pound bags of magnesium shavings.they are left overs from some milling process.

let me tell you.one pound of mag will last 20 years.you really get a lot since its so light and it comes in a HUGE zip-lock bag.

its only a few bucks.i got too.

i also got cotton balls that came already powdered like a donut in ultra fine mag dust.these things catch a spark better than anything,period.

if you are trying to get a fire going and you have it started but the wood is a bit wet and doesnt really want to burn you can throw a pinch of mag shavings in their and its like throwing gas in a fire,everything goes right up and its easy to cary a small bit of shavings in a pill bottle.

mag can be dangerous.it burns extremely hot and will burn out our retinas if ou watch it burn just like welding.it is also tremendously flamable and their is no putting it out once lit.

Thanks for the info northern1.

I was going to open up this package and put it in a sealable plastic container, will it be ok in there? How long will it keep fresh in the container?

It will be fine once opened. Once I open a bag of fatwood, I leave it open. Smaller pieces I sometimes put in a small ziplock bag. Sometimes I just carry around the loose sticks. Then don’t need to be kept fresh. They will work just fine. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Thanks Andy.

Learn to find your own Fatwood bro and then the cost of using more won't be a concern....also it's good fun looking for the stuff !!!!

Unfortunately, pines don't grow wild all over the US. Like here for instance. So, some of us have to buy our fatwood. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

yeah!

Was out looking for some last weekend, non could be found at this time, in that area. I'm still looking.

I need to go look for some. There are a million pines here in Georgia. Is fatwood mostly found on a dead pine? Is it mostly at the trunk?

It's the best place I believe to find it. Also, I believe that's where the best source is. If you want, do a search on it, on google. Good Luck!

Also, what I've read is that not all Fatwood is the same. It's not suppose to be a generic term.

did a little research and it sounds like the term "fatwood" originated with longleaf pine trees because while logging the stump was used to harvest the resin "fat" kindling, as far as I can tell the term started in the Georgia/Florida area and was not species specific.

yeah, generally coniferous trees are ideal. Sharp and I collected some very nice fatwood from a fir stump once, but most of what we use is ponderosa pine. As I've heard it explained: once the tree dies, gravity pulls all the sap down into the trunk, where it hardens and impregnates the wood

Good stuff, I keep two pieces in my PSK

but remember not all conifer trees/stumps have the right amount
of resin in them, you need the right conditions for the fat wood to
develop.

Shaolin,

I think that the magnesium shaver style fire-starters are really intended for extreme circumstances in a very wet situation. In those conditions it could potentially be a lifesaver. Other than that possible use, your warnings about the ferocity of the magnesium combustion is spot on. Magnesium is a component in solid rocket motors and in powder form is considered to be extremely dangerous. I know, I’ve used it. So don’t use powdered magnesium for a fire starter. Use Fatwood!

One of the biggest magnesium recycling plants in the world is (was) 12 miles from my house. A couple years ago it went up in flames. It burned for days. I could see the sky lit up at night from my house. The fire started on a skid holding 6,000 pounds of magnesium.

Pics of the event:

WOW!

I remember that fire and the news coverage - it was awesome! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif" alt="" />

Waste aside, and possible poison aside, you don’t want to cook over softwoods because they don’t give your food a good flavor. And it’s specifically the resins and pitch—exactly what makes fatwood a great fire starter—that will make your burger taste like turpentine. Use only enough fatwood to get your fire started, and only at the beginning.

This has got me thinking: If fatwood is so fat, why do they also call it lighter wood?

Good question Implume, lol