Pocket fire bellows

Sitting round a fire is one of the great pleasures of being outdoors, and managing your fire is a critical part of making the most of the experience (I like to call it ‘natures TV'). Despite being such a simple thing, the knowledge around the creation and management of fire can fill entire books.

This summer has been exceptionally dry in the UK and in general fires were actively discouraged by both authorities and the online communities; a wise precaution given alternatives are generally available and the impact of a wild fire is devastating too both the countryside, its wildlife and also the reputation of wild campers, bushcrafters and other outdoors folk.
 

Managing a fire takes time and while you’re busy around camp, sometimes the fire can become neglected; one minute the fire is fine and the next it’s a pile of glowing embers. One of the key skills is ensuring you have enough of the various types of wood sizes ready and prepared before you light the fire; I know I’m guilty of not following this advice and then having to gather wood with a dying fire. When faced with a dying fire or a fire struggling to get going, the addition of more oxygen to the fire will get the heat up and get the flames going. So one useful tool you can carry are some fire bellows. 

To make a natural bellows, you can use Elder, it's fairly common in the UK and the branches have a soft pith that is easily removed by pushing the pith out of the twig with a tent peg. 
To make one, you'll need a cheap round metal tent peg or some wire and this will dictate the length of the elder you need (the tent peg needs to go all the way through). Find and cut a straight piece of elder and using the peg, push the pith of the wood out the other side leaving a hollow tube. Use a knife to chamfer the edges and scrape off any bark and you're good to go. Other options are to buy a branded fire bellows (like the one at the bottom of the picture) or to buy something similar and repurpose it, after all, it’s just a telescopic tube.

Elder
Back scratcher with handle
Back scratcher
V3 Pocket Bellows

 

You can buy cheap fire bellows online for a few pounds, but the delivery time is usually long and if you want something fairly quickly looking at repurposed items is an viable and fun alternative.  I have tried a few different repurposed items and back scratchers from budget stores like poundland seem to be a fairly solid option.  To make them, just pull off the scratcher part with some pliers and open up the other end to blow down. However, not all telescopic back scratchers are created equal so here’s a few tips on what to look for:

 

The handle – try and see what’s under the handle. Some have plastic plugs to stop the tubes going too far back, if you get one of these you’ll need to drill out the plastic but not too much that the whole thing falls apart. The better ones have small pins and don’t require drilling, simply cut the back of the rubber off and this has the added benefit of protecting your lips from a hot tube.

 

The ends – look for smoothed edges, again a few rubs with some wet and dry will take the edges off but some are more protected than others where the ends are rolled slightly. At the tip end the best ones  have a metal support piece for the back scratcher part to fit in. A sharp pull with some pliers and the scratcher part is off. The added advantage is a reinforced tip that protects the end from bending.

 

Overall size -  generally repurposed types tend to be thinner and longer than some of the purpose bought ones, but they still work just as well and having a few about is always handy.
Lengths for the ones in the photos are:

Elder- 6.5" (16.5cm) - doesn't extend
Back scratcher with handle - 5.5" (14cm) - extended:  18" (45.6 cm)
Back scratcher - 4.84" (12.3cm) - extended : 18.70" (47.5cm)
V3 Packet bellows - 3.74" (9.5cm) - extended: 19" (48.26cm)

 

These are functional and cheap tool and a quick project, great for keeping your fire going or just heating up some embers.

Enjoy, leave no trace and make sure any fire you make is fully out when you leave.