[Closed] Sigh, OK. Tell me how to start a coal fire please!!

fire lighters.

Hmm...do you have an airflow thingamyjiggy? If that's closed then it won't light...

Yeah, they (firelighters) were in there too...

Vents all a-open...

Aye - firelighters, / more wood You need the kindling to burn for long enough to get the coal going

does it have a drafter? Ie like a door you can shut so it sucks all the air for the fire through the bottom grate?

I would simply say that you need to get a decent flamey fire going with plenty of thinly sliced wood (get it up to about 1" thick?) and roaring then pile loadsa coal on (small pieces! not rocks!) then it should catch.

Nick

You can get hot air blowers that you stick the nozzle of into the pile of coals, it heats the coals and they self-ignite. Works a treat on the old man's open fire - not sure how well it'd work in a stove.
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Ah OK, what sort of timescales are we talking about for the wood fire bit before adding coal then? 10 mins? 20 mins?

Blowtorch. It's cheating obviously but it works.

Clear out all the ash from the pan and the griddle

Add a load of scrunched up newspaper - tear each sheet in half, scrunch it into a ball add one layer of these

Add locads of kindling - a layer at least as thick as the newspaper. Make sure it's very loosely packed so the air can circulate

Open the LOWER vents on your fire. Not sure about top vents, it's 20 years since I lit a coal fire, but open them if you have them

Light the paper, when the kindling is roaring (5 minutes or so) then add half a shovel of coal

when the coal gets coing, add a little more

close the top vents when the coal is burning nicely, then use the lower vents to control the fire. Make sure you empty the ash regularly, and check the griddle for clinker (fused ash)

did you buy cheap crappy coal?

Cheers nbt, I will just have to have faith that the coal will take I guess - I'd got the wood and kindling going well - trouble was where to plonk the coal on, it seemed to want to roll off onto areas where it wasn't particularly hot.

Winston I bought a bag of some stuff recommended by the guy who installed the flue and sweeps the chimney that he thinks is reasonable to just try a bag for now... I am sure I could get better but he knows his stuff.

as nbt says but i add a small shovel (maybe 1.5kgs worth) of coal before lighting. so newspaper, kindling and coal on top. light a few bits of paper, shut doors and away it should go.as long as lower vent is open. you can open the ashpan door too for even better air flow until its well lit. shouldnt need firelighters with a stove.

you dont need to put loads of coal on? Five or six smallish lumps of coal will do the intention is to get the coal burning then you can stoke it up! As nbt said its also important to make sure you clear the griddle out on the bottom, you need a clear path for the air to be sucked through the bottom.

Fire lighters??? 😯

Fire lighters??? 🙄

Fire lighters??? 😆

Fire lighters are for for losers.

Newspaper, rolled into a ball (loosely) in the bottom. Fill the bottom of the grate like this.

Next, sticks. First laid one way, then a layer laid at right angles (criss-cross fashion).

Then coal, a good covering.

Light the paper, open a vent if there is one, or leave the door open a tinchy bit.

Sit back and watch it roar.

Fire lighters indeed. Pish and tiffle.

As nbt and LardLover say, and don't overcrowd the grate allow the air to flow. Only use firelighters when absolutely desperate.

Yeah another vote for nbt's method.

Scrunch up single sheets and fill grate, not too tightly.
Add kindling on top, use folded sheets of newspaper all spun around and tight if no kindling.
Small amount of coal on top. A sprinkle.
For an open fire, a couple of logs might go onto this, but angle them to have air space around them, think teepee shape.
Then make sure lower/underside has air flow and light.

Bobs your aunty!

It seems like I was doing the right thing by the sounds of it; guess I need to refine my approach then... Cheers all, at least I'm not doing things totally wrong. Took me a while to get the hang of lighting a wood/log fire so presume this is no different!

I wouldn't put too much coal on to begin with either, wait for it to glow red before adding more. Is the coal wet or dry?

Is the coal wet or dry?

Really?? 😉

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It depends what stove you have as to what will work best. Ours is better if you leave a layer of ash in the bottom. Lots if newspaper, kindling, lots, so it can burn down to nice hot embers, then put a few lumps of coal on , to much kills the fire and then more kindling. Should get going a treat.

Firstly what sort of coal have you got? if it house coal dont burn it in your MF stove unless you want to bugger your stove and liner.

If you have Smokeless fuell all good.

To light follow I do much the same as the rest but never firelighters ( I dont bother with paper eitherto be honest). Just chop up firewood light it and get a good blase going then add coal but you do need a good few embers first.

Coal/wood need different conditions to burn efficently coal needs air feed from the bottom and the coal on a grate clear or ashes etc.

any questions ?

We light our stove with 2 firelighters and a good sprinkle of coal - its a piece of piss!!

My "official" method is as follows tho 🙂

Newspaper scrunched into balls arranged in a circle in the grid, kindling in a teepee shape over paper. coal built up around the teepee of kindling. (one layer)

Light paper

When ever flames come through a hole in the coal, block up hole with piece of coal, do until bored/satisfied 🙂

as above/below

Newspaper, rolled into a ball (loosely) in the bottom. Fill the bottom of the grate like this.

Next, sticks (*kindling please - we used about .5 to 1" by .5 to 1"). First laid one way, then a layer laid at right angles (criss-cross fashion).

Then coal, a good covering. *I'd start with smaller bits and try and get some small bits in between the kindling so they heat and burn then layering up with saller to bigger but making sure plenty of air flow

wafting - old technical term, can be used to turbo boost, using a cushion (or something else lying about about 1ft square and not too flexible) and use that as a fan to help force air flow once the coal looks like it's caught.

Lardlover has it nbt is a little OTT.

Embers are your friend you need a good amount kindling, firelighters only if kindling is a bit damp.

Vents open wide door about 2 inches ajar let it start to roar close the door. Sit back and wait for the coal to glow and close vents to desired level.

Ours ain't on it's sweltering up here must be 11c

Scrunching paper in to balls?

Pffhh twisting the paper up tightly is better

Bit of a tangent, but the best firelighting assistor I found was when I lived in a place with a generator for the electric. The generator shed had loads of woodchip, sawdust on the floor to soak up fuel and oil. A shovel full of this was enough to have a green oak log up to temperature and burning. Just shovel in on top of what you want to light, sling a match in and shut doors, FAST.

chuck some coal in the bottom of the stove, then almost bury a firelighter in the middle, light it, then put kindling and a small log on. Then put more coal on when this gets going.

What you need, is my nana. She'll have it lit in no time.

Don't you need to rub two boy scouts together, or something?

soak you coal in petrol 1st.................sorted 😉

Fire lighters???

Fire lighters???

Fire lighters???

Fire lighters are for for losers.

Newspaper, rolled into a ball (loosely) in the bottom.

Yes, yes, I can do the newspaper balls thing but I don't get a newspaper. As I've not yet found a way to scrunch up the internet into little flamable balls, I resort to fire-lighters.

Neighbours are friends may supply you with some newspapers. We get ours from the mother in law.

I don't get a newspaper

Hurrah for the local freebie, lasts me just long enough 😉

I'm concerned to read how upset Munkster is. 🙁 I hope things are going better now.

LOL at firelighters.

I lit hundreds as a lad with just twisted newspaper and coal laid straight on top. Full sheet of newspaper over the entire fireplace opening to draw air through and game on. This is a fireplace, though, not a stove - but the principles must be the same.

The newspaper over the front often catches fire, though, so to avoid burning the house down, you need a poker to hand to stuff it under the grate quickly if it's burning.

scrunched up paper, lay the kindling in a lattice as mentioned above, fill burner in this manor, bottom vents open, top vents shut, close doors, light lowest point of paper. when lit, the wood will drop and you can add coal, one lump deep across the bed of wood. control ferocity with bottom vent- you dont want the wood to burn away too fast or the coal will not have enough time to absorb enough heat.

is there a chimney baffle? make sure it is open fully
sounds to me like you dont have enough draw from the chimney so try burning a load of newspaper before you lay the fire- this will heat the chimney and encourage draw.

forget firelighters if desperate put a little cooking oil on the newspaper

Only time I had trouble with firelighters was when they were a bit old or the cellophane was unsealed which allows them to dry out. On our stove, I used to use a couple of small firelighters, light them and then build little pyramids over them. When ever a flame pokes through, block it with another bit of coal. Once the pyramids are lit nicely, just throw a shovel of coal on, shut the door and retreat to the other side of the room to cool down 🙂 We had newspaper, but not enough to start the fire each day.

Diesel, Ton, not petrol - soak the kindling in diesel - works every time (petrol goes BOOM) 😆

Broadsheet newspaper pages rolled up and tied in a knot, kindling on top then coal, set fire to the paper

munkster - Member

Is the coal wet or dry?

Really??

Based on the inability to do something as simple as lighting a fire, it seemed like a valid question. 😉

I'm concerned to read how upset Munkster is. I hope things are going better now.

Many thanks 😉

Things are sort of burning now but there's a grand total of 4 lumps of coal on there trying in vain to stay alight so I'm not considering myself out of the woods just yet!

Biggest issues seems to be the coal ROLLING OFF whatever pyre I've constructed inside the fire, and also embers/kindling falling through the grate...

What a PITA - like I say though, it took me a while to "master" getting a wood fire going so I am not surprised this is testing my patience too.

Based on the inability to do something as simple as lighting a fire, it seemed like a valid question.

You're not helping 👿 😉

I'd suggest the upside down fire method with a layer of coal on the bottom, but you'd all laugh and I'd get upset, but then you'd try it and know I was right after all .....

Munkster- I despair of you!

Go to the Science dept in work tommorrow and ask them to explain the fire triangle to you 😉

You need to provide a good through flow of oxygen
You need to have a good supply of fuel, initially more than one type.
You need heat to start the first fuel (paper) burning (reacting with the oxygen).

This provides hopefully sufficient heat to ignite the next fuel (wood) which being denser will burn in a more sustained way, thus igniting the third (the coal).

light a wood fire and then add the coal once that's burning well

Well, it's going (and pretty hot). Clearly my "technique" needs to improve. I don't think I can spare 2 hours to light a fire every time...

Thank you STW people for not judging me too harshly(!) One day I *will* be a man in your eyes and be able to light a fire by just clicking my fingers next to a match 🙄 😉

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pah- matches are for wimps!

Wot you need to do is rub two sticks together...

Some of you boys need to go back to Boy Scouts...