Fire Starting when the wood is wet.

[FLauthor]

I had a tent collapse on me during a thunderstorm and didn't know it until the wetness soaked into my sleeping bag but by then the outside temperature had plunged to 28 degrees. Fortunately I had a change of clothes but needed to dry the wet ones and the sleeping bag. I went to a downed tree and with a chain saw & cut any branches that were off the ground. Branches were damp but not soaked like the wood that had direct contact with the ground. I gathered enough kindling and with the lighter pine I'd found earlier was able to build a fire to make coffee and keep warm until the sun came up.

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[goldfinder]

Gasoline or kerosine or propane torch. If you really want to get a fire going fast try bottled oxygen and nitromethane.

Goldfinder

[diggemall]

Often, when everything else is wet from rain, you can find dry material to start a fire with on the inside of fallen / hollow logs. Things like old mouse nests & the dry "punky" wood from inside hollow logs work great. Also, the bark from cedar trees & wild grape vines seems to absorb less moisture than other "woodsy" stuff & makes good fire starter material in a pinch.

Keeping a few of the little votive candles along with some waterproof strike anywhere matches in your camping kit can come in real handy at times like that too.

Diggem'

[cheese]

Definitely hard to beat that lighter pine (we call it fat lighter), and it's right there in the woods for you to find. Starts a fire every time, wet or not.

[Tuberale]

For an emergency kit: steel wool pad for a firestarter.

[spartacus53]

What is interesting is that I would use the same method I use to dry wet clothes in the freezing cold

For clothes, you let them freeze and just beat off the ice crystals, clothes are cold, but dry

So I would do the dame thing to branches, the theory should hold

[TheHarleyMan2]

I was at our prospecting club outing a few weeks ago and of course we had nothing but rain, rain, and more rain. The evening before the outing weekend, (before it rained, but days before it rained, rained, you get the idea), we gathered up firewood for the camp fire. That evening it rained, rained, and all the wood was already wet and soaked.

Some of the guys tried using a little gas to get the fire going and it wouldn't go. So I told them I got something that will get a fire going, and went to my trailer and got my can of WD40. I took the can sprayed it and lite the WD40 spray, (be careful doing this and make sure the flame DOES NOT FOLLOW to the nozzel of the can!!!!!) I sprayed the lower part of the wood pile in the pit, within 1-2 minutes the wood caught fire nad was going good!

I used about a 1/8 of a can, but it sucked the water out of the soaked wood! Just another use of WD40!

So you campers out there, make sure you have a can of WD40, you may never know when you might need it!

[TerryC]

The second set of clothes should be made of wool. A good set of wool clothing is warm, wet or dry (wring them out to remove as much moisture as possible). TTC

[spartacus53]

I think you forgot to tell him how to 'dry' his clothes

Just do the exact opposite of what TerryC said, and follow my advise below. With little moisture in the clothes you won't be able to remove the majority of the water already on them.
Like I said, let the clothes freeze, then beat them against a tree to break off the ice crystals.. Voila, your clothes are dry

[TerryC]

True, Spart, you are correct. Your method of getting the water out is a tried and true way, but the drier the clothes, the quicker the ice. My post was directed at temps not quite cold enough to freeze. The original post indicated that the temp was down to 28 degrees. It would take awhile to freeze the clothes at that outdoor temp. I sure would like to wait in a warm set of wool clothes. TTC

[spartacus53]

TerryC, I appreciate your honesty. I may joke around, but I do know my stuff

[TerryC]

TerryC, I appreciate your honesty. I may joke around, but I do know my stuff

In no way am I questioning your abilities or experiences. No way! The comments I make in my posts reflect only my point of view and experiences as I know them. Direct reference to your post or any other is only my hope that I can allicit others to join the thread. Stay thirsty, my friend. TTC

[RGINN]

I like these sort of posts. In over 50 years of camping, this has never happened to me. An ounce of prevention is worth about $12 on the black market, I suppose. I have also decided that my ideal campout would include TerryC and Spartacus. BSA Troop 333 rides again!

[spartacus53]

RGINN, no problem.. Besides, we both have great taste in music too... What a trip that would be..

Harleyman, did you know the main ingredient in WD-40 is fish oil Yup, it's the truth..

[chatmangreer]

RGINN, no problem.. Besides, we both have great taste in music too... What a trip that would be..

Harleyman, did you know the main ingredient in WD-40 is fish oil Yup, it's the truth..

HA! You guys won't go hungry then.........

[TerryC]

I like these sort of posts. In over 50 years of camping, this has never happened to me. An ounce of prevention is worth about $12 on the black market, I suppose. I have also decided that my ideal campout would include TerryC and Spartacus. BSA Troop 333 rides again!

RGINN.... I was a BSA for about 3 months. The dads argued amongst themselves so much it wasn't fun. I was a "survivalist" back in the 70s and 80s (and still, I guess). My girlfriend STILL believes everybody will "get along" and no one will try to kill her for her stuff when society goes down the tubes. Fish oil! Maybe those hippies DID know something afterall! TTC

[jeff of pa]

if your adventurous

kerosine a tire, and a road flair would be fun

[Jimbo]

The best "wet wood" firestarter that I have ever used (and I still do) is petroleum jelly (hearafter known as "pj") and cotton balls. Grab an old prescription bottle and dab in some pj and add a cotton ball...continue adding pj and cotton balls until the prescription bottle is full and then screw locking cap on the bottle. If you carry it with you in your backpack, cargo pocket, etc., I guarantee that you will be able to start a fire in any weather. The great thing about the pj is that as it begins to melt it drips over the rest of the kindling and the flame spreads. Try it at home if you don't believe...bring along your hotdogs and smores for the experience.

[bsloan]

When I was younger, in the early 70's, you could buy fuel tabs, and any surplus store. I don't know if they are still around, but a cheap candle works well also. Sometimes we would melt wax over rolled up cardboard, and carry it with us in a peanut can. We learned early on, the lighter the better. The lake was a little over 20 miles from the house, and it was a long bicycle ride,

Bill

[RGINN]

I still like this thread. FLauthor came up with a good response to a bad situation. I am bugged by, how can anyone not know it's going to come up a storm? In Oklahoma, I would get up early every morning and be able to know what the day would bring. Up here in the mountains, my ability ain't that good. I can guess is gonna snow, maybe light rain, or road construction with some accuracy. Still, since I can't tell the weather up here, I just plan ahead. No problem to throw some dry logs under the truck before goin to bed. Have good equipment. I got this one Coleman tent that has actually blown down flat on top of me, but never leaks. (You're welcome, Coleman, but y'all can't make zippers worth crap.) As to fire, I got matches, one of those magnesium fire starters, a 'strike-a-light', and a nice magnifying lens that works pretty good too. Plus, I can make and use a bow drill, which takes a little practice, but will work.