2 December 2021

The Upside Down Fire

Last year we shared the Teepee fire lighting method in our post “How to Keep Your Fire Burning“. Since then we have been shown another method – The Upside Down Fire, which we think is worth sharing. Whilst the teepee method is the traditional way to light a fire, the upside down fire helps to get the flue up to temperature faster and decreases the times you need to open the woodburner door to add more fuel. Each time you open the door the fire loses heat.

Upside Down Fire Lighting Method

(Video showing the method is at the end of this blog post)

1. Lay 2 logs in the bottom of your fireplace, ideally on a bed of ash.
2. Place 2 smaller logs on top at a 90 degree angle to the ones below, starting a ‘Jenga’ effect.
3. Place 3 sticks of kindling on top in the same direction as the bottom logs.
4. Add a firelighter to the middle stick of kindling and then place another 2 sticks of kindling, 1 either side of the firelighter.
5. Light the firelighter and then place 3 more sticks of kindling above the lighter. At this stage the fire requires a lot of air. To achieve this make sure the air vents are fully open and if you can, leave the door(s) ajar.
6. Once the fire collapses in on itself, you can add more logs. The fire will now have enough heat for you to be able to close the door(s) and adjust the air vents as required.
7. Enjoy your fire!

It is always best to be around when your fire is burning and let it die down before you go to bed. For longer lasting heat, coal is great to use if you have a multi-fuel burner or an open fire.

Log storage is key to keeping your logs dry and burning well. For more information on how to store your firewood, visit our “Log Storage” page.

Click below to watch our video tutorial on lighting a fire.