Building a bonfire...

STx · Dec 31, 2015

I told my wife yesterday that I thought we should build a bonfire for today and she agreed. Then I started building it and it occurred to her that maybe what I was really saying was "I wonder if I can build a fire large enough to attract the attention of the fire department..."

ch1ch2 · Dec 31, 2015

I bet you can NOT. Make it BIGGER.

jerrybob · Dec 31, 2015

Throw a little diesel on it.........:thumbsup:

MinnesotaEric · Dec 31, 2015

No permit needed?

Up here in northern MN, we can burn without a permit as soon as we have 3" of snow on the ground but I still call the county Sherif's department as well as my local fire chief to let them know what I'm doing so they can avoid needless fire calls.

STx · Dec 31, 2015

The only things that require a permit in this county are septic and we'll and those are both state permits. I don't know how you guys do it with the gubmint always involved in everything...

caver · Dec 31, 2015

I use one of those HF weed burners bought on sale and with coupon. Great fire starter.

turnkey4099 · Dec 31, 2015

Started burning myh bush piles last week. Been clear cutting about 1/2 mile long row of old dying willows for a farmer. Last count on how many was Tuesday. Torched 5 piles makning a total of over 30. Biggest was 10' wide, as high as I could throw brush and around 20' long. had the top hamper from some 5 trees on it plus the big tree itself that was down and under the pile.

Limit here is a pile 4'x4'x4' and no construction material. My operation is a 'stealth' one so there is no calling the FD

Still have a few piles left but mostly ones too small to get started or where I will be adding more brush. Do have 2 small piles (too hard to start) that are in the way of the logging road so I will have to move them - fortunately they are near enough to each other I can make one pile out of them.

I've been working on that job for 4 or 5 years and the farmer finally told me to burn the piles.

Harry K

farmer2009 · Dec 31, 2015

How does anybody ever get any clearing done up around ya'll. A 4'x4'x4' pile you'd spend more time trying to keep the pile legal than you would burning.
Here it's nothing to see piles tree length and as big and tall as the dozer would pile it. Once on fire it's going to burn for days but it'll be a low fire after its going. Big flames at first till the tops are burned off then low and slow burning till gone by tightening up with the dozer every couple of hours.

om21braz · Dec 31, 2015

Add a back pack blower from another thread and you can really get the bonfire blazing!

JamesHW · Jan 1, 2016

I always start my burn piles using charcoal chimney starter and place the white hot coals down in the center of the pile on an a board. Even if we are burning a pile of soaked brush and limbs it gets started quickly by drying off everything above the coals. No diesel, old motor oil or trash tires needed which is good because my place is very sandy and has a shallow aquifer under the entire property (my well point is at around 22 feet).

lostcreekranch · Jan 1, 2016

Here's what I use to get brush piles started.

Propane Torch with Push Button Igniter

I put the propane bottle in an old school milk crate for stability in back of my Polaris Ranger. The hose is long enough to use burner without removing the propane bottle from the bed of the Ranger.

Sent from my iPad using TractorByNet

Gary Fowler · Jan 2, 2016

Burning brush piles is no issue around here as long as there is no burn ban in effect. Volunteer FD notice is welcome but not required and I have burned lots of trash piles without notice and no one showed up.
Burning trash piles uses up my used motor oil supply along with a bit of diesel to make it burn more readily. A propane torch sets it off easily.

smstonypoint · Jan 2, 2016

Based on this and other TBN threads, the various locales differ in the permitting of burning.

I have to obtain a burning permit when I burn in either NC or SC, but the process is easy in both states (assuming no burning bans are in effect). In NC, permits can be obtained online and are good for up to one month. In SC, permits are obtained via an automated telephone system, but are good for only one day at a time.

I have read that using a roll of toilet paper soaked in diesel fuel was effective in starting bonfires. I'm going to give it a try the next time I burn.

Steve

om21braz · Jan 2, 2016

smstonypoint said:
I have read that using a roll of toilet paper soaked in diesel fuel was effective in starting bonfires. I'm going to give it a try the next time I burn.

Steve

If it's a large bonfire, a diesel fuel soaked hay bale works great.

dragoneggs · Jan 2, 2016

farmer2009 said:
How does anybody ever get any clearing done up around ya'll. A 4'x4'x4' pile you'd spend more time trying to keep the pile legal than you would burning.
Here it's nothing to see piles tree length and as big and tall as the dozer would pile it. Once on fire it's going to burn for days but it'll be a low fire after its going. Big flames at first till the tops are burned off then low and slow burning till gone by tightening up with the dozer every couple of hours.

I interpret the flame must be less than the 4x4x4. At least that will be my story when the local FD arrives. Just hope they don't know my SIL who is a FF for another district or I will never hear the end of it.

turnkey4099 · Jan 2, 2016

dragoneggs said:
I interpret the flame must be less than the 4x4x4. At least that will be my story when the local FD arrives. Just hope they don't know my SIL who is a FF for another district or I will never hear the end of it.

If they show my attempt will be to show them that the pile is at least 4x4x4 and thus meets the requirement

. I don't think they will laugh though.

Haryr K

gwstang · Jan 2, 2016

Oh, I just had a brilliant idea last summer when I had a giant pile of debris piled up as as high as the front end loader on the Kubota would keep stacking it. It got bigger and bigger and I let it dry out for several months. One day the wife asked me when I was getting rid of it and I said soon. It was out in the middle of a field and it had rained a few days earlier so it was a good day to die...errrhh uhhh burn. I got the brilliant idea of pouring some old gas on the pile where I could reach it. Lots of thorns, big thorns in that stuff that I had cut with a chainsaw and tore my hide up on over several months of clearing. I was about to have my "revenge". I left a little gas to pour back a line out a ways to light...you know like Wiley E Coyote would do. Yep, I lighted up the little line and it went "WOOSH". About took off my eyebrows and the flames were licking up to heaven. Scared the you know what out of me. I didn't know fire could move that fast. :shocked:

ultrarunner · Jan 2, 2016

Reading this because we have been culling the old tree farm and building burn piles... culled about 4 acres.

Never burned and checked to see if allowed and we meet the definition... diseased trees and county AG Zoning and farm business.

What I'm worried about is across the road is a new gated community with million dollar homes inside the city limit... I'm sure sparks will fly when we burn... these folks like the idea of country living but not reality.

May be the first on last time we burn and multiple agencies are involved...

om21braz · Jan 2, 2016

ultrarunner said:
Reading this because we have been culling the old tree farm and building burn piles... culled about 4 acres.

Never burned and checked to see if allowed and we meet the definition... diseased trees and county AG Zoning and farm business.

What I'm worried about is across the road is a new gated community with million dollar homes inside the city limit... I'm sure sparks will fly when we burn... these folks like the idea of country living but not reality.

May be the first on last time we burn and multiple agencies are involved...

Maybe a chipper would be a better option or one of the skid-steer mulchers?