Ways to reduce fire pit smoke
How to reduce fire pit smoke?
One of the most common problems with fire pits is the excessive amount of smoke. Every fire will create some smoke, but there are ways to reduce fire pit smoke. You certainly can avoid the unpleasant experience of sitting around a smokey fire pit. Making a smokeless fire or fire pit with minimal smoke is worth learning not only because of convenience but also has environmental and health benefits. Before we look into the ways to reduce fire pit smoke, let’s see why your fire is smokey.
Why is my fire pit smokey?
The amount of smoke your fire pit produces depends on several things such as:
- type of fire wood you burn
- the way you place the wood logs
- moisture content in the wood
- how you clean the fire bowl
Smoke is created when there is not enough oxygen to burn the fuel. The lack of oxygen causes incomplete combustion which produces hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen – this is smoke. part from that, burning wet wood or moldy wood will create a lot of smoke.
So how do you make fire with minimal smoke? Can you make a smokeless fire?
Ways to reduce fire pit smoke
Smokeless fire tips
Choose the right type of firewood
As a rule of thumb, hard and dense wood will be less smokey, while softwoods, especially those containing a lot of sap are more smokey. We will talk more about the types of wood which produce least and most smoke later in this article.
Use well dried wood
You can buy kiln-dried or seasoned wood in which the moisture content should be below 20%. If you have your own wood, then season it for at least a few months or even a couple of years, the longer the better.
Here you will find tips on how to season wood.
Allow air flow between wood logs
Build a structure from your wood logs with enough space in between so the wood gets oxygen needed for combustion. When there isn’t enough oxygen, the fire gets very smokey. To ensure that oxygen flows all around your fire you can put a fire pit grate under the fire to elevate your flames over the ground or burner pan.
Don’t build too large pile
This refers to the previous point and the air flow. If you add too much wood into your fire pit, it will have a more difficult time burning it, you will block oxygen from accessing the logs and it will produce more smoke.
Don’t let the fire die
Letting the fire die down and then adding wood will increase the smoke produced. You need to keep the temperature high enough to allow complete burning of the fuel without lots of smoke.
Don’t burn debris
If you burn leaves, twigs, grass clippings or other garden waste in your fire pit, you will have a lot of smoke. Needles to say, there are other things you should never burn in a fire pit.
Clean your fire pit
Remove any debris and ash from your fire pit bowl. All the leftover bits create extra smoke and block the air flow.
What to burn in a fire pit without smoke?
What can you burn in a fire pit that doesn’t smoke? Although you won’t eliminate smoke completely, you can make a fire with very little smoke.
How do you make a fire with little smoke?
What burns with minimum smoke
The best fuels to burn without smoke are anthracite (a type of coal with over 90% content of carbon) and coke (also made from coal and has 90% carbon content). Other low smoke fuels are charcoal and dry wood as they combust really well.
Which firewood produces the least smoke?
As we mentioned before, generally speaking, hardwoods produce less smoke than softwoods. Good firewood which won’t produce too much smoke should contain no more than 20% of moisture.
What firewood smokes least?
Well seasoned hardwood produces the least smoke. These are the least smokey types of wood:
- Oak
- Apple
- Maple
- Cherry
- Beech
- Ash
- Hickory
- Pear
What type of wood produces the most smoke?
Green wood (meaning wood recently chopped down) produces the most smoke.
What firewood smokes most?
- Poplar
- Pine
- Fir
- Elm
- Eucalyptus
How to divert smoke from fire pit
Here we have two tips on how to manage fire pit smoke.
Use an above ground fire pit
With an above ground fire pit, even when the wind is blowing in your direction, much of the smoke that would have hit you directly in the face will instead billow over your head.
Use a fire pit hood
To drive the smoke higher above your head, you can also use a fire pit hood with a chimney. This will stop the smoke from getting blown into your face and provide a spark screen.
What else can you do to burn fires with minimal smoke? One other thing you can consider is using a smokeless fire pit.
Frequently asked questions
Why do I get white smoke from firewood?
White smoke usually indicates high water content – it’s white from the steam.
Why does wood burn black smoke?
Black smoke is a sign that the combustion is not complete and CO is produced instead of CO2. This happens when the temperature of burning is too low.
Is it bad to breathe in fire pit smoke? Is campfire smoke bad for your lungs?
Occasional exposure to wood fire smoke isn’t dangerous for most people. However, if you have any respiratory disease such as asthma, inhaling smoke from a bonfire or fire pit can cause irritation or even more serious problems. While sitting near the fire, pay attention to which way the wind is blowing and try to avoid inhaling it.
Does wet wood smoke more?
Yes, wet wood produces more smoke.
How do I get more oxygen in my fire pit?
To get more oxygen into a fire pit you can put a fire pit grate under the fire to elevate your flames over the ground or burner pan. You can also use fireplace bellows.
What are the best smokeless logs for fire pits?
Every fire will create some smoke, but there are ways to reduce fire pit smoke. You certainly can avoid the unpleasant experience of sitting around a smokey fire pit. Making a smokeless fire or fire pit with minimal smoke is worth learning not only because of convenience but also has environmental and health benefits. Before we look into the ways to reduce fire pit smoke, let’s see why your fire is smokey.
Why is my fire pit smokey?
The amount of smoke your fire pit produces depends on several things such as:
- type of fire wood you burn
- the way you place the wood logs
- moisture content in the wood
- how you clean the fire bowl
Smoke is created when there is not enough oxygen to burn the fuel. The lack of oxygen causes incomplete combustion which produces hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen – this is smoke. part from that, burning wet wood or moldy wood will create a lot of smoke.
So how do you make fire with minimal smoke? Can you make a smokeless fire?
Ways to reduce fire pit smoke
Smokeless fire tips
Choose the right type of firewood
As a rule of thumb, hard and dense wood will be less smokey, while softwoods, especially those containing a lot of sap are more smokey. We will talk more about the types of wood which produce least and most smoke later in this article.
Use well dried wood
You can buy kiln-dried or seasoned wood in which the moisture content should be below 20%. If you have your own wood, then season it for at least a few months or even a couple of years, the longer the better.
Allow air flow between wood logs
Build a structure from your wood logs with enough space in between so the wood gets oxygen needed for combustion. When there isn’t enough oxygen, the fire gets very smokey. To ensure that oxygen flows all around your fire you can put a fire pit grate under the fire to elevate your flames over the ground or burner pan.
Don’t build too large pile
This refers to the previous point and the air flow. If you add too much wood into your fire pit, it will have a more difficult time burning it, you will block oxygen from accessing the logs and it will produce more smoke.
Don’t let the fire die
Letting the fire die down and then adding wood will increase the smoke produced. You need to keep the temperature high enough to allow complete burning of the fuel without lots of smoke.
Don’t burn debris
If you burn leaves, twigs, grass clippings or other garden waste in your fire pit, you will have a lot of smoke. Needles to say, there are other things you should never burn in a fire pit.
Clean your fire pit
Remove any debris and ash from your fire pit bowl. All the leftover bits create extra smoke and block the air flow.
What to burn in a fire pit without smoke?
What can you burn in a fire pit that doesn’t smoke? Although you won’t eliminate smoke completely, you can make a fire with very little smoke.
How do you make a fire with little smoke?
What burns with minimum smoke
The best fuels to burn without smoke are anthracite (a type of coal with over 90% content of carbon) and coke (also made from coal and has 90% carbon content). Other low smoke fuels are charcoal and dry wood as they combust really well.
Which firewood produces the least smoke?
As we mentioned before, generally speaking, hardwoods produce less smoke than softwoods. Good firewood which won’t produce too much smoke should contain no more than 20% of moisture.
What firewood smokes least?
Well seasoned hardwood produces the least smoke. These are the least smokey types of wood:
- Oak
- Apple
- Maple
- Cherry
- Beech
- Ash
- Hickory
- Pear
What type of wood produces the most smoke?
Green wood (meaning wood recently chopped down) produces the most smoke.
What firewood smokes most?
- Poplar
- Pine
- Fir
- Elm
- Eucalyptus
How to divert smoke from fire pit
Here we have two tips on how to manage fire pit smoke.
Use an above ground fire pit
With an above ground fire pit, even when the wind is blowing in your direction, much of the smoke that would have hit you directly in the face will instead billow over your head.
Use a fire pit hood
To drive the smoke higher above your head, you can also use a fire pit hood with a chimney. This will stop the smoke from getting blown into your face and provide a spark screen.
Fire Pit with Hood and Chimney
What else can you do to burn fires with minimal smoke?
One other thing you can consider is using a smokeless fire pit like the one below:
Frequently asked questions
Why do I get white smoke from firewood?
White smoke usually indicates high water content – it’s white from the steam.
Why does wood burn black smoke?
Black smoke is a sign that the combustion is not complete and CO is produced instead of CO2. This happens when the temperature of burning is too low.
Is it bad to breathe in fire pit smoke? Is campfire smoke bad for your lungs?
Occasional exposure to wood fire smoke isn’t dangerous for most people. However, if you have any respiratory disease such as asthma, inhaling smoke from a bonfire or fire pit can cause irritation or even more serious problems. While sitting near the fire, pay attention to which way the wind is blowing and try to avoid inhaling it.
Does wet wood smoke more?
Yes, wet wood produces more smoke.
How do I get more oxygen in my fire pit?
To get more oxygen into a fire pit you can put a fire pit grate under the fire to elevate your flames over the ground or burner pan. You can also use fireplace bellows.
What are the best smokeless logs for fire pits?
Kiln Dried Premium Oak Firewood
Split Firewood – Natural Kiln Dried Firewood – Birch, Maple, Oak, Apple or Cherry
