Dakota Fire Hole

[rwc1969]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rIiTWrPmbE

I can't really explain in typed words how this thing was constructed or used. But, with a little refinement, in the proper environment it's an excellent way to build and use fire conservatively.

[Rick]

Good concealment fire.

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[Alec_end]

Forgive me if i am wrong bu how will this help conceal you won't the smoke just rise 18" to the left?

[Rick]

It's the fire that is concealed. You can keep it burning almost entirely in the hole. With a fire on the ground surface you have light that is visable 360°. With the Dakota Fire Hole you can keep the flames below the surface of the ground which makes it harder to see.

You can also keep your fire as coals and squat over the edge of it with a blanket wrapped around you or a poncho and let the heat rise up inside your cover to stay warm.

[rwc1969]

The things I liked most about this setup was the minimal amount of fuel needed and ease of cooking over it. A small pot can be dangled right down in the hole so it's surrounded on all sides. I boiled 24 oz. or so of water in 2-3 minutes.

It produced heat for over 5 hours with just 3 small cottonwood branches 2" or so in diameter at max and roughly 5-6' long. Cottonwood is a poor source for fuel, but with this setup it worked great.

I buried the holes in when finished and you couldn't even tell there had been a fire.

Since this was my first time doing this it was kind of smoky and took more maintenance than I'm used to, but the heat produced and ease of re-igniting it from coals was worth it IMO.

I think small sticks would be best as anything larger than your finger would just make it smoke.

It's an awesome setup where fuel is a concern and where the ground is easy to dig.

[rwc1969]

There are three other vids that go along with this one, making chaga tea, making soup, and making charcloth. All were done on the same day using the same fuel and such. I still had 3 of the biggest chunks of wood left when finished, about 5' worth.

[SARKY]

OK, here is the rest of the story. First, the simplist way to describe a dakota hole fire construction is this. dig 2 verticle holes about 12 inches deep, one of them 9-12 inches in diameter the other 4 inches in diameter. the 2 holes should be about 10-12 inches apart.
Next, dig a horizontal hole at the bottom of the holes, connecting them.
Your fire will be in the larger hole drawing it's air from the smaller. As to smoke, first use only small dry wood and second dig your dakota hole fire under a thick foilaged tree. the foilage will break up the smoke. You only want a fire large enough so that the flames don't rise above ground level.

[your_comforting_company]

That is how many hides are smoked. A "skirt" is sewn around the hide-sack and hung with sticks (tripod-style) over the hole. No fire when smoking hides, and it makes it really easy to regulate the air flow.

[canid]

they are great for fires in windy settings. you can even widen the air inlet in addition to orienting it into the prevailing wind for very hot fires.

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[rwc1969]

THanks for the input!

[Glockster]

The Dakota Stove has a lot of the same benefits as a rocket stove... Less wood needed, less smoke (higher heat) more complete combustion and better efficiency all around from what I have seen while using them Vs. regular camp type fires. Even with out assistance from wind the Dakota stove creates a higher velocity updraft of heat and flame via input from side draft. I have even used a rocket stove shelve style fuel (wood) input system on a Dakota stove rather than top feeding it... Then I made a wood feeding system using 550 paracord and spring loaded the long branch to tug in the wood as it burned. A bungee would have been a bit easier in hind sight but it looked cool!

[rwc1969]

I was trying to think of a self feeding way to do this, interesting. It reminds me of the coffee can stoves as far as size and efficiency.

[Batch]

The Dakota Stove has a lot of the same benefits as a rocket stove... Less wood needed, less smoke (higher heat) more complete combustion and better efficiency all around from what I have seen while using them Vs. regular camp type fires. Even with out assistance from wind the Dakota stove creates a higher velocity updraft of heat and flame via input from side draft. I have even used a rocket stove shelve style fuel (wood) input system on a Dakota stove rather than top feeding it... Then I made a wood feeding system using 550 paracord and spring loaded the long branch to tug in the wood as it burned. A bungee would have been a bit easier in hind sight but it looked cool!

I can't picture this method with out the 550 burning. Can you put a sketch or picture?

[Glockster]

Hey Batch!
Here is kind of what it looked like, It did not feed the entire piece of the wood in but it did burn most of the night.Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

[hunter63]

Hey Batch!
Here is kind of what it looked like, It did not feed the entire piece of the wood in but it did burn most of the night.Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

I don't see a thermostat LOL, sorry got carried away.....

Cool set up, thanks.

[Rick]

It's set up just like his avatar.

[Glockster]

I did put a mylar reflective car solar sun shade (bent in a convex shape) on back side of the fire pit to reflect the heat toward our hammocks.

Hunter63: Great Idea! I'll work on an thermostat triggered auto feeder next...

[Batch]

Hey Batch!
Here is kind of what it looked like, It did not feed the entire piece of the wood in but it did burn most of the night.Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

Got it, thanks! Pretty cool idea.

[EdD270]

The Dakota fire hole is a great technique for using fire with minimal wood and light signature. However, don't forget the smell of the smoke, and the cooking food, will carry much farther than the light would in woods or open country either.

[paracordist]

here is a pic of our little dfh out back; works great.