"Finnish candle" - a safe long-lasting fire: how to kindle and how to cook on it. Bonfire Finnish candle, options for its manufacture and methods of breeding How to make a fire from a log

The original mini-bonfire is also called the taiga, Indian, Swedish candle. Thanks to the peculiarities of the manufacture of Finnish candles and the use of intense flames, they successfully replace traditional bonfires on hikes, picnics and evening gatherings in the yard. You need a minimum of tools and skills, 5-20 minutes of simple effort, and you will get a source of vertical flame with a burning time of half an hour to 7 hours.

4 ways to make a Finnish candle

With any method, a Finnish candle is made with your own hands from chock, sometimes replace block logs. Permissible to use small stumps if only one piece of log is required. The duration of burning depends on the length and diameter of the workpieces.

Method 1. Candle with a paraffin wick

• Duration of burning: from 30 minutes.
• Production time: 20 minutes.

Tools and materials:

• drill with a drill 20-30 mm;
• saw (manual, with electric or diesel engine);
• goats for sawing;
• lighter;
• block for a candle;
• block of larger diameter for counterweight;
• paraffin or wax;
• paper or newspaper.

To get a fire with vertical burning, it is enough to set fire to the wick. We recommend installing Finnish candles away from trees on paved or concrete platforms, cleared land, fire-resistant tiles, and a metal stand to prevent the surrounding vegetation from catching fire.

Method 2. Log candle

• Burning time: up to 2.5 hours.
• Production time: 7-10 minutes.

Tools and materials:

• axe;
• block or four logs.

Manufacturing sequence

A whole chock is split into four identical parts. The logs are installed vertically in the form of the original chock. When a Finnish candle is made from ready-made firewood, logs of the same length and section are selected, which together form a solid log. The design provides good airflow, but is not sufficiently resistant to wind.

Method 3. Three blocks

• Duration of burning: from 7 hours.
• Making time: 5 minutes.

Necessary materials: 3 chocks of the same height. No tools required.

Manufacturing sequence

Simplest a way to make a long-burning Finnish candle with your own hands. Chumps are installed in a circle with a small gap between them. Then a fire is lit in the inner "well". Unhindered access of oxygen contributes to an intense flame, and due to the large diameter, the burning time is extended.

More heat is released than with other designs of taiga candles. The greatest stability of the disposable oven is also ensured. Disadvantage (the flame can be blown out by the wind. Tip: as it burns out, move the chocks to the center to maintain the intensity of burning.

Method 4. Primus

• Burning time: up to 3 hours.
• Production time: 20 minutes.

Tools and materials:

• axe;
• saw (optional)
• wire;
• chock or several logs.

Manufacturing sequence

This design provides intense hot flame. In the first two hours after ignition on a mini-oven, you can cook, boil water. The optimal size is considered when the length of the chock is twice the diameter. You can create mini-bonfires with a height of 20-30 cm.

Tip: If you plan to cook, then make a Finnish candle with two shorter logs to improve air flow to the flame. Useful use of a disposable stove in the household

The design is a vertical furnace pyrolysis combustion. A feature of this type of flame is the simultaneous combustion of both firewood and the released wood gas. As a result, less soot and ash is formed, and the heat transfer of the flame is higher. Even a two-hour use of a Finnish candle helps to solve many problems of arrangement and relaxation.

Culinary uses of the Finnish candle

In the absence of summer kitchen and on trips, disposable stoves can be easily adapted for the following tasks:

• cooking in cauldrons;
• singeing carcasses of poultry, game;
• boiling water;
• heating food.

Unlike a stationary summer kitchen, a Finnish candle can be used anywhere on the site, taken with you on a picnic or on a trip.

Landscape decoration

Mini-bonfires are useful for temporary illumination of dark areas without landscape lights. They create a warm cozy atmosphere and can complement the decoration of outdoor seating areas for special occasions. Finally, candles will replace outdoor hearths and fireplaces, help you relax by the fire during the evening.

Repair and construction use

Concentrated burning determined the advantage of using a Finnish candle compared to conventional fires in the following works:

• firing, heating of metal;
• melting roofing material or lumpy bitumen;
• firing and drying of various surfaces and blanks.

Easy-to-make disposable ovens are compact, simple device, intense burning and easy transportation. This enhances the appeal of Finnish candles for home or travel use.

Video instructions for making a Finnish candle

Reading time ≈ 3 minutes

Finnish candle- a kind of mini-bonfire, made from a small stump or trimming a log. It is used for cooking in a boiler, heating water. It can be a good substitute for a regular fire during evening gatherings in nature. A Finnish candle is made with your own hands in just 20 minutes, the burning time is about half an hour.

Features of the manufacture and use of Finnish candles

To prepare a Finnish (Swedish, Indian) candle, you need a small stump or block of wood. Easy to manufacture, the device can be used for lighting and even for short-term decoration of open areas. Tourists are most often used as a portable light source or for cooking. It takes a little time to create a candle, but the duration of burning and the resulting heat from it are optimal for making porridge, boiling water on a hike.

Features of harvesting a mini-bonfire

Preliminary preparation will allow you to conveniently cut the block: in its center you need to drill a hole with a diameter of about 2-3 cm.

The same procedure must be carried out with a stump or log. bigger size and weight. A stick is inserted into the hole on the main block (can be replaced with a branch). A log with large parameters is strung on an installed stick. Such a counterweight will allow you to make a candle neatly and safely. After connecting the logs and laying them on a goat for sawing firewood, work is carried out according to the following instructions:

1. The log is cross cut with an electric saw or a petrol saw. The depth of cut should be no more than 2/3 of the height of the entire block.

2. Using an ordinary lit candle, the side parts and the bottom of the cut are covered with paraffin (or wax).

3. A small strip of paper is cut off (you can use newspaper) with a length of 4-5 cm more than the depth of the cut. It folds in half, then unfolds, paraffin shavings are poured at the place of the fold. It is important to consider that the layer should be made large, but so that the paper then easily folds, and the paraffin itself does not spill out.

4. The paraffin paper is wrapped longitudinally. And with the help of a pencil, a thick knitting needle or a screwdriver, it is pushed into a cross-shaped cut. It is important to carry out the procedure carefully so as not to damage the paper and not to scatter the paraffin. 4-5 cm of paraffin paper should remain above the log.

5. The resulting wick is fixed with molten paraffin. To do this, you need to set fire to an ordinary candle and pour a consumable composition into the junction of the wick to the tree. At this stage, the Finnish candle will be completely ready.

To get a burning log, the performer only needs to set fire to the manufactured wick. Due to the presence of paraffin inside, the log will burn through more slowly, and the temperature will be maintained. A Finnish candle is made with your own hands in just 15-20 minutes. If the performer does not have an electric or gasoline saw, then the cuts should be done manually. The made mini-bonfire can be used for hiking (it is important to take into account the weight of the candle) or for home camping.

The attached photo and video materials will help to make sure that the manufactured Finnish candle will burn brightly. But the performer must take into account that the cuts in the log should not be too deep: in this case, it will burn out very quickly. It is equally important to place the block on a tile or metal plate before lighting it. This will eliminate the risk of fire surrounding dry vegetation. In the absence of special stands, you can install a candle on an earthen area previously cleared of grass and leaves.

Anyone who loves outdoor recreation (especially not picnic, but active - hunting, fishing, hiking) knows how relevant a properly lit fire is. If you don’t carry a brazier with you, you need to worry about safety so that you don’t run away from a forest fire later and feel like a criminal. And to kindle a fire in the snow, and so that it does not go out every minute, and at all seems to many to be the pinnacle of fire skill. However, experienced travelers know how to build a hearth in compliance with fire safety, so that it burns for a long time, does not go out even in slush and does not require regular feeding. Everyone calls it differently: Finnish candle, taiga candle, Indian or Swedish, but the essence remains the same. There are even several ways to make it.

Maxi bonfire

The most successful Finnish candle is obtained if you "landed" near sawn logs. No effort is required: pick up three saw cuts of approximately the same height and diameter, put them in a circle close to each other and kindle a fire in the middle. In order for the fire to burn evenly and the burnout to be the same in all directions, it is necessary to correctly select the logs in height. The Finnish candle lasts the longest, the logs should be two of their diameters long. The power of such a fire is enough for a five-liter boiler to boil in a third of an hour, and it does not even need to be hung up - it will rely on the logs themselves. As the logs burn out, they seem to fold into a hut. If you need a “Finnish candle” fire for a long time, at this stage you can maintain it as the most common one by adding firewood.

If you have a chainsaw

In the absence of the need for such a large hearth and the presence of an appropriate tool on hand, you can do otherwise. A piece of a thick log half a meter long is taken and sawn through (not completely, about three-quarters of a segment). If the diameter of the saw cut is large, you can work with a chainsaw a little more to get eight "lobes". You should not make more cuts, because the narrower the sector, the faster your Finnish candle will burn out. The log is firmly fixed on the ground (you can dig or support it with stones), kindling is laid inside (from its own sawdust, or just liquid ignition) - and a fire is at your service for several hours.

field method

Suppose there is no saw, but do you need a Finnish one in this case? Well, there is an ax in nature anyway. A block of wood, looked after for this purpose, is split as for ordinary firewood, only a little more diligently so that the logs do not differ too much in thickness. Then they gather in the original log, only around a thick branch - this will be the hearth. Below, closer to the ground, and approximately in the middle, the Finnish candle is pulled, preferably with wire - it definitely will not burn out. But if it is not there, twine, fishing line, and flexible rods will do. It is especially necessary to tighten it down below, because in the middle the logs will burn out faster, and without good fixation near the ground, your fire will fall apart. The central branch is pulled out three quarters from below and sawn off, after which the Finnish candle is placed on the ground. By the way, if the original log is not too massive, you can use this branch as a leg and just stick it into the ground.

hand candle

If there is no nearby (or a suitable dry object for cutting, or a saw and even a normal ax), then the Finnish is done a little differently. Quite thick poles are collected around the district, at least five centimeters in diameter, and are collected in a bundle again around the center branch. The side of the poles that will be inside needs to be cut a little with a knife - it’s better to do it. The rest of the manipulations are the same as when creating a “finca” from logs.

Primus candle

It is used as an oven for cooking. The main points are as in the manufacture of a fire-candle in the field. Two nuances:

1. The original log must be partially hollowed out from the inside. Alternatively, you can not cut out the core, but split it into poles and clean them already. Such a fire is assembled on the snow in the same way, around a branch, but the cavity inside must be made artificially, and the outer walls are closed as far as possible without cracks.
2. From two opposite sides, the logs are either cut less, or pushed up more strongly, by five to six centimeters. Due to this design, in the center, the fire will be inflated with air, and its tongues will be directed mainly upwards.

Such a Finnish candle is not suitable for heating - the fire is all concentrated inside. But the food is cooked much faster.

What can a Finnish candle be used for?

In addition to cooking and heating (except for the "primus stove"), such a fire is simply indispensable as a lighthouse. Experienced fishermen who go to the evening dawn leave it on the shore as a signal for latecomers - in the dark it can be seen from afar.

It is very convenient when using Finnish candles and the fact that almost until they burn out completely, they can be moved from place to place without difficulty and burns. A considerable plus can be considered a long-term fire: a medium-sized block of wood gives light and heat for four hours. A maxi-fire without additional fuel can perform its functions all night long.

If you are not a fan of "wild" tourism and fishing, but you like to meet New Year in the country, Finnish candles placed along the paths will bring romance and decorate the garden no worse than garlands and Chinese lanterns.

Hello dear users of this site. It's summer outside. The most convenient and good time for hiking, picnics, fishing. In general, the most best time for an active holiday.

Every time, leaving for nature, many people take with them a bunch of firewood or coals, on which food will be cooked. It is not always possible to find dead wood at the place of recreation to use it as combustible material. Therefore, I want to tell you how you can make the so-called Finnish candle. It is good because it does not take much time to make it and it burns for a long time. To make such a device, you only need a piece of log, a drill with a drill and a chainsaw.

The author of this master class initially took a small log and got confused about making it convenient to cut it. To do this, he drills a hole in a shorter log, drives a stick into it, and also makes a hole in a second, longer log. He puts on a small log and a longer one and is already sawing. Here's how it happens and what comes out of it.

Further, he takes an ordinary paraffin candle and dips the cuts with paraffin from the inside.

Then he takes a newspaper a few centimeters longer than the depth of the cut in the log and crumbles candle shavings into it. The edges are also melted with molten paraffin. The resulting part is inserted into the slot of the block.

Then this wick is lit and the candle flares up.

It's just one of the options. Usually in nature, I and my friends, having prepared a candle blank in advance, a thicker log and no candles with a wick. Extra waste of time. In our slot, already in nature, small wood chips, dry grass are poured and set on fire. Much faster and more convenient. The author, according to him, this candle burns no more than half an hour. And the production time is twenty minutes. In our case, the manufacturing time is not more than five minutes. And it burns longer. But it depends on the thickness of the log. It is easy to install - either it stands on its own, if the lower part of the log is wide enough, or it is dug into the ground. It is enough to prepare an ear and boil tea. So like this. But in general - quite convenient and useful thing. Saves time and effort!

Many tourists, hunters and fishermen, in order to boil water at a halt, had to decide how to light a fire in windy weather. More than once or twice they thought about how to make sure that they do not have to constantly adapt to the changing wind, putting firewood on the right side, or moving a stick with a bowler hanging on it. And the way out of this situation is easy. It is enough to kindle the "Finnish candle".

This memorable name hides a whole group of wood structures that allow you to warm up and cook food in camping conditions with sufficient comfort. The ability to make a Finnish candle, both among tourists and among hunters, fishermen and just lovers of outdoor recreation, is not common. Let's try to fix this. So, we started.

To date, there are a lot of names for this method of making a fire:

• Finnish candle;
• Swedish candle;
• Indian candle;
• hunting candle;
• wooden primus.

Hidden under them are bonfires that are fundamentally similar in design, bred inside a specially prepared chock or between several combined chocks standing vertically.

Application area

Similar options are suitable for cooking and for heating.

Moreover, a full-fledged fire can be kindled even with a lack of fuel, sometimes with just one log.

This long-lasting bonfire tolerates windy weather well, it is quite compact, economical, does not require the installation of additional appliances for cooking and tolerates precipitation quite tolerably. Since even heavy rain, with a kettle on fire, will not be able to extinguish it.

During its use, many changes were made to the design, depending on the conditions of use. The classic “Finnish Candle” bonfire originally consisted of a log split into two halves, then fastened together in places of chipping with wire, rope or other improvised materials. Over time, for better burning, the chock was no longer split into two halves, but into more parts. Then, instead of splitting, they began to make cuts and even collect a fire from several logs vertically pressed against each other.

How to make a Finnish candle

First of all, you need to decide on the design. It depends on several factors:

• the presence of thick logs in the place of rest and good tools;
• the presence of a wire for tying thin logs and split chocks;
• soil composition;
• the number of people in the group;
• the need to dry things.

Almost all options are divided into two groups according to the method of manufacture:

• from one, rather thick chock;
• from several logs with a smaller diameter.

Now let's get down to manufacturing.

Whole chock with cuts

To do this, we take a chock with a diameter of 20 cm or more. We make cuts in it in such a way that we get several shares. Usually their number ranges from two to eight. Then, in the center of the chock, a fire is kindled with the help of wood chips and improvised materials. To do this, you can slightly chop off the central parts of the lobes.

Gradually, the fire spreads down the cuts. The fewer cuts, the longer the burning, the more of them, the hotter the fire. Cuts are made to a depth of 3/4 of the height. Oxygen penetrates through the cuts to the combustion site. Over time, in this version of the Finnish candle, the upper part of the middle burns out, and the open fire turns into smoldering. After that, it will be quite difficult to cook food, but it is quite suitable for heating.

split chock

This option is very similar to the first one. In it, all parts of the initially chopped chock are tightly connected with wire to each other. Previously, the central parts of the lobes are slightly chipped. This will allow you to get enough wood chips for lighting and create channels for air draft. After that, the parts of the chock are tightly pulled together by wire, starting from the middle.

It is especially necessary to carefully tighten the bottom, otherwise, as your fire burns out, it will fall apart. Rope can also be used instead of wire, but this option is less reliable. Keep in mind one caveat: unlike sawn chocks, chips are pressed very tightly. The fire on the sides practically does not break through, so this option cannot be used as a heater. But it burns longer without disintegrating, it can be quite easily moved from place to place if necessary, and it has a fairly strongly directed flame.

Chock with two holes

As the name implies, a couple of holes are made in a vertically standing chock. One from top to bottom, for the same length as the cuts in the first version, 3/4 of the height. Another - at a right angle to the first at a height of 1/4 from the bottom of the chock, so that the holes are connected.

You can kindle both through the upper hole and through the lower one. This method is the most effective for cooking, but also the most difficult to manufacture due to the need to use an additional tool.

Assembly of thin logs

This option is suitable in the absence of a tool. In this case, three to five logs are placed on the ends and tied upright.

Such a stove is easier to manufacture and kindles much easier, which is important with insufficient experience.

The first three options require a chock with a diameter of 20 to 30 centimeters. Larger diameters are not recommended. The height should be about twice the diameter. With this ratio of diameter and height, your hearth will be the most stable.

And now let's take a closer look at, perhaps, the most important issue. How to kindle a fire, which is described above. Even for experienced tourists, such a problem will arise at the first attempts. How to make a Finnish candle burn faster? Yes, very simple. It is enough to recall the elementary laws of nature:

• the flame burns only if there is a sufficient supply of oxygen;
• hot air always tends to rise.

Therefore, for successful combustion, these two conditions must be met. Namely, there must be at least a small gap between the parts of the chopped chock so that the flame moves freely upwards, and there must be a free flow of air from below. This can be achieved in the following ways:

• a little with a knife or an ax, the central parts of the chopped chocks;
• using improvised means (for example, stones or a pair of thin sticks), raise the fire above the ground;
• chop off the lower parts of at least two parts adjacent to each other in such a way that a small channel of air flow into the center of the fire is formed.

The second option is not very successful, since a fire kindled in this way will not be stable enough.

Cooking

Finally, let's move on to the most "delicious" part. How to cook on a Finnish candle? It turns out, too, nothing complicated. Any cookware that can withstand cooking over a campfire will do.

But we must not forget that the fire needs to provide an exit. If you put a pot or kettle directly on a chock, the fire will stop burning normally and the water will not boil. This issue can be resolved as follows:

• put a stand on top of the chock in the form of two freshly cut sticks up to 5 cm thick;
• two or three parts of your candle, when assembled, should be higher than the rest by the same distance.

In the second case, this can be achieved different ways. If we collect a candle from several thin logs, then in advance, when cutting, two of them are made longer than the others. When placed vertically, they will provide the necessary clearance between the dishes and the surface. Or, directly during assembly, two logs can be pushed a little up compared to the rest. The same can be done in the case of chopped logs. This method allows you to simultaneously provide two channels of air supply from below. And the fire will burn more stable and hotter.

Happy travels!