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I've lightly wet kindling with gasoline, to use to start a fire ...... However I wait 10 to 15 minutes and let it dry / air out before lighting it .... I've never had anything like what they experienced ..... It's the gas FUMES that caused it to violently explode ..... Mike :thumbup:
 
Well, I suppose stupidity is supposed to hurt. Growing up as a kid, we sat all types of fires (under the supervision of my dad). But we never used gas. We would use something like kerosene. Not nearly as explosive, but still something to be careful with. But never gas.
 
I've set many a fire in my day on wildland clearing operations. 1/4 gasoline mixed with 3/4 used motor oil. This eliminates the explosion factor, and you get a hotter, longer burning starter fire. This mix also adheres to the material better. Put the accelerant at the base of the pile on the leeward side. Never on top, never on the windward side. A quart of this mix is more than enough for most any burn pile. Setting the fire at the base on the leeward side will consume much more of the material without any effort on your part. If you do like most and start on the windward side, the wind will push the fire through the middle and go out. Leaving a lot of unburned material that you'll have to move to the center by hand.

People get it wrong nearly 100% of the time.
 
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I've lightly wet kindling with gasoline, to use to start a fire ...... However I wait 10 to 15 minutes and let it dry / air out before lighting it .... I've never had anything like what they experienced ..... It's the gas FUMES that caused it to violently explode ..... Mike :thumbup:

True, most people don't realize that it is only the fumes, or vapor, that burns. Liquid fuel will not burn. If the vapor burns fast enough, it's called an explosion.
 
We always used kerosene or used motor oil. I have seen idiots light brush piles with gasoline and I would always get away as fast as I could. Hopefully they learned a lesson.
 
True, most people don't realize that it is only the fumes, or vapor, that burns. Liquid fuel will not burn. If the vapor burns fast enough, it's called an explosion.

Is it true Ron that firemen are actually arsonists at heart but with the ability to control their urges? I've done a lot of burning over the years (blackberry control), and my go to tools are simply a weed sprayer filled with diesel backed up with a leaf blower. Big fire with little effort.
 
Is it true Ron that firemen are actually arsonists at heart but with the ability to control their urges? I've done a lot of burning over the years (blackberry control), and my go to tools are simply a weed sprayer filled with diesel backed up with a leaf blower. Big fire with little effort.

This is what we used most of the time. Called a 'Drip Torch'. For bigger jobs we used the AIDS machine. Airborne Incendiary Device System. I think they've changed the name because 'AIDS Machine' was somewhat unpopular after awhile.

Mounted to a helicopter, it was ping pong balls filled with napalm, then injected automatically with a chemical agent that ignited after they rolled out and dropped.

We also had small cans of napalm (they were small PVC glue cans). There was a blasting cap attached to a 2nd lid that you swapped out when you wanted to use it. The blasting cap went down into the napalm and had a zip cord out the top with a small, wooden T for pulling it. You swapped the caps, pulled the zip cord, an you had some seconds before the blasting cap went off and spewed lit napalm for about 20 feet.

I really enjoyed the fire department. Starting them is a lot more fun than putting them out! ;-)

Drip Torch.jpg
 
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