Retain more heat from your fire with a fire wall.
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The reflecting wall is a great structure to build in
semi-permanent camps, and you can even build quick ones at overnight stopping
points. These walls block some of the wind (when positioned correctly) and they
reflect more of the heat of a fire back toward the user. When used in
conjunction with a survival shelter, these walls can create a much more
comfortable micro-climate by literally “fencing in” the heat. The wall can be
any size or shape, and built from many different materials. Of course, bigger
is better. And smoother walls reflect heat better than rough ones. But as long
as you have something in place to reflect back lost heat, each stick you burn
will make you feel warmer than you would feel without the wall.
Wooden Walls
Any wood can be used for a reflecting wall. If you’d like it
to last, cut and stack green wood for your wall. The extra moisture of live
wood will limit its flammability. If you’d like the wall to double as a
firewood drying rack, you can build it from dead wood that is wet. Just pull
out the sticks as they dry, throw them in the fire, and replace them with new
wet pieces as you go. You could even use rotten wood to build your wall, if
that’s all you have available. The bottom logs or poles that are closest to the
fire will dry out and begin to burn first, unless you plaster them with mud,
prop flat stones against them, or build the wall far enough away (about 1 yard)
that it cannot burn. To build your wall, gather a pile of logs or poles, and
drive two stout stakes into the ground. They should be closer together than the
length of your shortest log. Set your thickest log on the ground, butted up
against the two stakes, then drive in another pair of stakes to pin the log in
place. If you plan a low reflecting wall, use stakes about a yard long and
drive one foot into the ground. Go for longer stakes is you want a higher wall.
Stone and Mud Walls
For semi-permanent camps (or when stone is your most
abundant resource), build a stone wall to bounce back the heat of a fire which
would normally be lost. The rocks can be laid “dry” (without any mortar), or
you can use mud or clay as a mortar substitute. Mixing dead grass with the mud
will add additional strength to the mortar. And if enough mud and grass were
available, you could even build your reflecting wall entirely from mud mortar
(also known today as “cob”). Make it wider at the base for stability, insert
sticks here and there for internal support, smooth the surface for heat
reflection, and don’t go too high all at once. Top heavy mud walls tend to flop
over.
A Note on Safety
For any rocks you plan to use near a fire, make sure you get
your rocks from a dry location. It’s also smart to test them in a campfire (while
you’re at a distance) to make sure they don’t explode. NEVER use rocks you
collected by a waterway (high rate of explosion). Ever built a fire reflecting
wall? Please share your results by leaving a comment.
nice one mate
ReplyDeleteThanks mate
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