Cannot get fire to burn.

[Space cat]

The only heat you'll get from logs is when you're sawing them, chopping them, carrying them to the house and endlessly throwing them onto the fire.

To burn logs effectively in an open fire, you have to support them above the grate so that they burn from underneath. (I did this for quite a few years until my supply of scrap wood dried up. )

You need some old, inch-thick(ish) iron bar and access to a welder. The idea is to construct something with two bars that rise from the back of the grate at about 45°. About half-way up, weld on short pieces running downwards and outwards to sit in the front of the grate then add a horizontal at the back to link the two halves together. (I put another horizontal at the front just for good measure.)

You light your fire in the grate as others have described then pile your logs on top of the bars. Split them lengthways with an axe if they're too thick for this (come to think of it, maybe that's why yours keep going out ) and don't be afraid to put plenty on. I started out on the side of caution with just a triple layer of old fence wood but I soon found that I could put on as much as would fit. They'll burn from below, putting out lots of heat, until they break up and fall into the grate as red hot embers. You probably won't have to add any more wood to the grate itself; just keep putting more on top.

PS: I think you can still buy gadgets for making logs out of old newspaper. All they do is squeeze a mass of wet, pulped paper which you then put aside to dry. I had a home-made one. For making logs, it wasn't worth the effort but they did make excellent fire-lighters. With the addition of some waste white spirit they would light easily and burn for a long time.

 

[peaps]

Open a windows is sound advice, your house needs some" draft" if you are to burn an open fire or closed unit for that matter. You should ALWAYS have it swept and don't reply on what someone else says.

I burn logs and fire them up with newspaper and only use coal alittle to keep the fire in at night, it's a boiler stove, closed unit. I had the same problem in the east wing study and it was due to not air flow, or not enough.

Take care to make sure you get it sorted correctly.