Brush and debris pile burning in cold weather?

[Joseph Acquisto]

Cut down bunch of White Pine this summer and cleared out a mess of saplings as well. Lots of branches, and smaller trunk sections that I could not find anyone to chip up for me. One guy suggested I just burn them.

So I dug a shallow pit with my backhoe and lined the rim with some of the many rocks around here. Then filled the pit with a pile of (some of) the debris.

It's in the 30's now and snow is predicted, so figured to get a good early start and burn much of it before the forecast storm shows up.

But . . . I could not get the pile to stay burning. Tried kindling, old chain saw mix, and even "fat wood" fireplace fire starters. It would get going and just peter out after a bit. Is there such a thing as it being "too cold" out?

If the snow hits like they say, it will be Spring time before I try again.

 

[TheJollyLogger]

Once you get it going use a leaf blower to blow it into the center of the pile.

 

[Joseph Acquisto]

Once you get it going use a leaf blower to blow it into the center of the pile.

That's what the one guy said, but only to the extent that it would speed things up alot. Figured I had all day, so, not needed.

He said to rig up a rain drain pipe to the end of it and strap down the throttle trigger.

 

[TheJollyLogger]

That's what the one guy said, but only to the extent that it would speed things up alot. Figured I had all day, so, not needed.

He said to rig up a rain drain pipe to the end of it and strap down the throttle trigger.

You don't necessarily need.to go to that extreme. Just use it until you've hit critical mass.

 

[ATpro]

You need a burn fuel, for winter we used a mix of 3 parts diesel 2 parts Gasoline in a drip torch. If you don't have a drip torch you can use a common sprayer and spray the under side of the pile good then light it. A few old tires in the mix will help, fill the tire with the burn fuel it will help maintain the heat till the pile gets going.

Placing the pile in a hole sometimes cuts off the air flow, best to start the fire on one end of the pile so oxygen can be drawn in, the fire will then proceed to consume any combustible fuel. Once the pile gets going it will progress to the other parts of the pile that you already sprayed.

The way to start a fire when starting it with a drip torch or sprayer is to start a small fire and light the torch or with a sprayer is spray a trail to the main burn start a small fire outside the main burn, that will start the main burn and will keep you a safe distance away, The burn fuel mix doesn't have the fuel flash point that you would have with using with gas.

Best to burn a pile when the cut down material has been cut down about 15 or 20 days because the sap in the wood has fermented which creates alcohol and will help accelerate the burn.

 

[OM617YOTA]

Best thing I've found is normal everyday firewood. Couple armloads of dry seasoned firewood from your wood pile will get the burn pile going better than gallons of liquid accelerant or a leaf blower.

No one wants to burn $0.25 of firewood to get the burn pile going, but they'll burn $10 in diesel without a second thought. I don't get it.

 

[Mad Professor]

I've got a big pile going, two years worth and still growing. Lots from last winter's heavy wet snowstorm.

Stale gasoline with some used motor oil be careful lighting it, and don't forget Greta!

 

[kyle1!]

Alot of newspaper or cardboard in a small pile covered by dry sticks is what gets my piles going. Propane torch to light it off. I burned 6 piles of brush over xmas break and did not start the corn field on fire which is a plus. And use the wind to your advantage to push the fire into the pile.

 

[oldbuzzard]

You need a burn fuel, for winter we used a mix of 3 parts diesel 2 parts Gasoline in a drip torch. If you don't have a drip torch you can use a common sprayer and spray the under side of the pile good then light it. A few old tires in the mix will help, fill the tire with the burn fuel it will help maintain the heat till the pile gets going.

Placing the pile in a hole sometimes cuts off the air flow, best to start the fire on one end of the pile so oxygen can be drawn in, the fire will then proceed to consume any combustible fuel. Once the pile gets going it will progress to the other parts of the pile that you already sprayed.

The way to start a fire when starting it with a drip torch or sprayer is to start a small fire and light the torch or with a sprayer is spray a trail to the main burn start a small fire outside the main burn, that will start the main burn and will keep you a safe distance away, The burn fuel mix doesn't have the fuel flash point that you would have with using with gas.

Best to burn a pile when the cut down material has been cut down about 15 or 20 days because the sap in the wood has fermented which creates alcohol and will help accelerate the burn.

Burning after 15-20 days … after sap has fermented.
Never heard that before? We always planned to wait at least a year for the pile to dry out. We do a lot of pile burning in CO. Slash is going to be Pondos, Doug Fir, Juniper. We us drip torches, and propane flame throwers for hard to start piles. If we could burn piles quicker it would save us a lot of time.
If you are in AL you are probably burning pine slash too?

 

[N8Dawg]

We also let logging slash season in Idaho. It burns much better if left for a year, then burned when burning season opens in Oct.
I don't think the outside temp matters near as much as how wet the fuel is.
If the piles are too small, piled poorly, full of dirt, wet, and it's raining out problems occur. If done properly, all needed is a propane torch, and it doesn't take long.

 

[pdqdl]

Best to burn a pile when the cut down material has been cut down about 15 or 20 days because the sap in the wood has fermented which creates alcohol and will help accelerate the burn.

I think there is better evidence that the brush has been drying out in the sun for 15 or 20 days. I'm not arguing that the sap doesn't ferment, nor that alcohol doesn't burn.

Beer and wine don't burn. Even the fumes coming off a boiling pot of beer won't ignite, so fermented sap isn't going to make much difference.

 

[Del_]

Watch for 'No burn' warnings in the winter.

Low humidity can lead to fires spreading rapidly by surprise.

I like to get a small concentrated hot fire going first and then add to it. Once the hot fire is going good I lay long branches across this 'core' and burn them in half. Then do the same again with the halves.

No digging of holes needed. Large chunks over 20 inches in diameter I will often use to form a ring around this core as close as possible. As they dry and burn away on the side facing the fire I roll them closer to the center and back them up with the next large pieces. Repete.

I've cut and burnt whole large just cut living trees in this fashion. It's important to get the large chunk circle going early in the fire.

You've got to have a little pyro in you, and I do!

 

[Lightning Performance]

Pallets soaked in diesel fuel. Never fails.

 

[oldbuzzard]

Tannerite for ignition ….

 

[ATpro]

If you are in AL you are probably burning pine slash too?

Yep, burn hardwoods also. Back when we cleared land and wind rowed after a clearcut to prepare for planting a pine plantation we would sometimes use aerial drip torch hung from a helicopter. The fuel used was like napalm, a jelled fuel, and the pod hung from the copter on a cable. We used a dozier with root rake to windrow and forks on a loader to shake the piles to remove any dirt left.

It's important when burning piles to check the humidity, to high and the pile may not combust properly. We always liked it around 30% or 35% for a good burn, to low and you risk an uncontrollable fire if it get away from you.

 

[ATpro]

Beer and wine don't burn. Even the fumes coming off a boiling pot of beer won't ignite, so fermented sap isn't going to make much difference.

That's not our experience, as wood drys and is exposed to the elements the sap is often replaced by water which has no burn value. Green wood may have less BTU value than dry wood but water wet wood has even less.

 

[pdqdl]

I'm not sure what your point is. I think we all know that burn piles don't light as easily when they've been rained on. If your point is that alcohol from fermented sap is going to make that pile of green wood burn up, I suggest you soak a stick of firewood in the strongest wine you can find, then toss it in your fireplace.

Let us all know how it turns out.

 

[oldbuzzard]

Yep, burn hardwoods also. Back when we cleared land and wind rowed after a clearcut to prepare for planting a pine plantation we would sometimes use aerial drip torch hung from a helicopter. The fuel used was like napalm, a jelled fuel, and the pod hung from the copter on a cable. We used a dozier with root rake to windrow and forks on a loader to shake the piles to remove any dirt left.

It's important when burning piles to check the humidity, to high and the pile may not combust properly. We always liked it around 30% or 35% for a good burn, to low and you risk an uncontrollable fire if it get away from you.

So I lived in the Atlanta area most of my adult life. Had an aviation business. Whoever flew those helicopters was one of my customers.
Around about 2005 my business partner and I wanted to buy land to hunt on. First piece was 490 acres southwest of Macon. We have grown it to 1500 acres, few hundred acres at a time. We grow pines on the property to pay for it so I know about burning windrows.
In 2017 I retired to Loveland, CO where I live today. When I got out here I got involved with fuel thinning (chainsaw work) and prescribed burning, most of which is done by the wildland firefighting community. All fire work is very regulated. Not unusual for humidity out here to be less than 10%. Basic requirement for pile burning out here.is low wind and at least 3 inches of snow on the ground. Three inch minimum snow usually means you are wading in snow 6-12 inches deep and you are burning 7500‘-10000‘ ASL Real hard work.

 

[jblnut]

No such thing as too cold to burn. I’ve burnt lots of brush piles in -20f weather here in January.

 

[ATpro]

Three inch minimum snow usually means you are wading in snow 6-12 inches deep and you are burning 7500‘-10000‘ ASL Real hard work.

Oxygen isn't the problem here, that is why we can burn at 30% humidity and as most of the land is less than 1000' ASL don't have to worry about oxygen depletion from elevation. Summer burn offers a little less concentrated Oxygen, the difference in atmospheric heat (say 85, 95 or even 100 degrees) can make a huge difference. At humidity less than 30% you take a chance of a run away fire if you haven't prepared well.

When doing Prescribed Burns we often did pre-burns in places where we may have problems with runaways a precaution.

As a Prescribe Burn Manager it was my responsibility to acquire proper permitting on the numbers of acres, location and insurance and environment impact. Often when burning large tracts like over a 1000 acres we would ask the forestry department to review the burn plain, inspect the ground, and be present at the burn. We also had to take note of the wind and the environment impact from smoke.