How do you start a fire in a fireplace?

[MeltedLemonade]

Got a new apartment about a year ago. I want to use it cause it's super cold where I am right now.

How do I start it to where it actually stays lit? I tried burning some cardboard and putting it underneath and it didn't work at all. I tried using my flamethrower but the flames don't stick well enough to the fire.

What am I missing?

[DarkCrystalMethod]

1. Ask your landlord.
2. Find the enclosed instruction booklet.
3. Start a fire outside of the pit and transport it to the pit.
4. Use more gun.

[DOOMGIRL69]

coal and wood

[Enigmatic]

1.Put Styrofoam in your blender or break it into small pieces.
2.Then mix it into some decent higher octane gasoline.
3.Wait for styrofoam to dissolve.
4. Take your mix and pour it around your fire pit and furniture.
5. stand in your fire pit.
6. light match and throw into your mix.

warm <3

[WhiteKnight77]

Are you talking about an outdoor fire pit or an indoor fireplace? If the latter, make sure the damper is open before trying to build a fire in it.

[Electric Cupcake]

There's various kinds of fire starters. You could use the little paper packets filled with sawdust or the brown waxy bricks.

I make my own by collecting dryer lint and getting paraffin bricks from the craft store, carefully melting it with the double boiler, and then pour it over wads of lint in paper muffin wrappers and letting it solidify.

If long matches don't work for igniting them, the kitchen culinary torch works fine.

Anyway, I do the square box of logs method with the starter in the middle and feed kindling on top of it. It works better than the old boyscout-approved upright-logs leaned against each other style. Especially when it's windy. (Do they still call that the "Teepee style?" Rude.)

[DarkCrystalMethod]

^
Tricky firestarter

[Barney, from Black Mesa.]

Check the state laws first if you don't want the government to justify taking a fat bonus out of your earnings. Secondly, there are multiple ways of building a campfire; search it up on the internet (the answers will come much quicker). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzzjVWxSh-g

For 'fire pits' specifically, start with the logs on the bottom and basically make a tee pee out of it. It shouldn't be that difficult to figure out.

[↑↑↓↓←→←→BASelect]

Use dryer lint to start the kindling on fire. Then add logs. make sure the logs are dry as wet logs will not burn and if they do they will spit embers every where.

[lsdninja]

Publicado originalmente por DarkCrystalMethod:

1. Ask your landlord.

What if they're already in the fire pit?

Asking for a friend.

[Uncle Sam]

Publicado originalmente por lsdninja:

Publicado originalmente por DarkCrystalMethod:

1. Ask your landlord.

What if they're already in the fire pit?

Asking for a friend.

[Electric Cupcake]

Fireplace? Psh, any idiot can light a fire in one of those.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BX_ZN2IJ9g

[Irene ❤]

1) Pour kerosene around the house
2) Throw torch with fire
3) Get rid of the bodies

[DarkCrystalMethod]

I see the firepit has become a fireplace. How did you fit your landlord in there?
Anyway, there's usually a starter knob that you have to twist and press in while also lighting the pilot light. Once it catches(usually within a few seconds) stop pressing the knob and finish turning it to the on position. If it doesn't catch, then wait maybe 5 minutes with all settings off so that any latent gas can clear. Whenever you want heat there might be a convenient light switch nearby or a second dial to specify how hot to set it to.
I suspect your landlord will want to give you warm hugs.

[Electric Cupcake]

Publicado originalmente por DarkCrystalMethod:

I see the firepit has become a fireplace. How did you fit your landlord in there?
Anyway, there's usually a starter knob that you have to twist and press in while also lighting the pilot light. Once it catches(usually within a few seconds) stop pressing the knob and finish turning it to the on position. If it doesn't catch, then wait maybe 5 minutes with all settings off so that any latent gas can clear. Whenever you want heat there might be a convenient light switch nearby or a second dial to specify how hot to set it to.
I suspect your landlord will want to give you warm hugs.

Gas fireplaces? Even the most pretentious yuppies won't admit to actually using one of those.

[Morkonan]

Publicado originalmente por MeltedLemonade:

Got a new apartment about a year ago. I want to use it cause it's super cold where I am right now.

How do I start it to where it actually stays lit? I tried burning some cardboard and putting it underneath and it didn't work at all. I tried using my flamethrower but the flames don't stick well enough to the fire.

What am I missing?

As above, "Ask your landlord" first. It may need maintenance or could even no longer be functional.

Be careful about using paper in a fireplace. Bits and pieces can catch fire and be lifted up the chimney to eventually land on something flammable. (Also, resins/glues/kaolin(magazines) cause gunky soot deposits.

You can buy firestarter sticks at a DiY store. Or, use a bit of newspaper, tightly rolled up, and mixed in with kindling to catch a flame and hold it.

Also - If you see holes drilled into a brick base in the fireplace or a brass line inside it OR a brass knob or screw bolt looking thing nearby, the fireplace is set up for natural gas as is either a self-starter or gas fireplace.

Again - Talk to your landlord, first, about using and how to use that fireplace.

PS: If it doesn't have a screen and/or a clean brick area in front of it and around it, don't use it until that's obtained. Sap/water in firewood will expand, causing little explosions that will eject burning wood outside of the fireplace, which is undesirable unless you don't like your housepets... (Don't let pets lay in front of an unscreened/open fireplace.)