CAMP STOVES AND FIREPLACES

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS

The areas used for campgrounds and for picnic areas range from the heavy timber with a very great fire hazard to the open mountain country of the east where oftentimes there is little or no hazard. In all of these areas the camp stove or fireplace should be designed, first, for practical use and, second, appropriate design in keeping with the natural forest surroundings. Sometimes it is imperative that the high chimney type (pl. XII) be used in order to avoid abnormal fire hazard. These massive stoves with high chimneys are strongly discouraged because of their unattractive appearance when placed in the natural forest landscape.

The opinion prevails that there is no such thing as an attractive and an appropriate camp stove or fireplace, especially when introduced into the natural forest. Many persons feel that such features are entirely artificial and must be accepted as a part of the practical solution of the recreation problem. They insist that the design should be for maximum utility, and no effort should be made to develop a design which might be appropriate to the natural forest surroundings, inasmuch as no design can overcome the artificial character of this feature. Careful study of this problem of design leads to the conclusion that very much more appropriate and attractive results can be produced if the camp stove or fireplace is designed to be appropriate to the surrounding natural forest landscape.

The general practice is that of adopting only one type of design for the units on an individual forest camp or picnic area. It seems to the author that such a procedure, literally followed, tends toward monotony and a lack of interest, which otherwise might be avoided through the adoption of more than one type of camp stove or fireplace on a single area—especially the larger areas. It seems advisable in some instances to introduce an occasional camp stove type together with the very definite fireplace type.

The design of any camp stove or fireplace should embody the elements of simplicity. It must be remembered that if the more elaborate types of designs are used, then the resulting details of construction will be proportionately more complicated and the relative expense and work of constructing these units will be increased. These units should be simple in design and primarily for utilitarian purposes.

In some instances, a variety of mass design can be produced by introducing a "batter" in the side walls to overcome a contrast between the horizontal ground level and the more or less vertical surface of the side walls. This result is seldom successfully accomplished in an effective way because the fireplace is normally low, and unless the "battering" of the side walls is exceedingly well done, the effect is not apt to be pleasing. There is always the danger of attempting to procure an informal effect by increasing the "batter" on the side wall, sometimes to the extent that the base of the stone work, especially on the higher types of camp stoves, causes inconvenience in the use of the stove because the person doing the cooking cannot get sufficiently close to the stove. No one standard of design is the most practical or the most desirable. There are a number of ways to design these units, both in mass proportion and in detail, and it is the variety of design which creates interest and avoids monotony.

In order to reduce the height of the camp stove or fireplace, especially the chimney type, and the type with the raised hearth, it is sometimes desirable to do some grading around the sides and back of the stove or fireplace unit as shown in plate VI and plate X. If there is available a location on a slight slope, the fireplace or stove may be set into the slope.

FACTORS WHICH AFFECT DESIGN AND METHODS OF CONSTRUCTION

There are important factors which directly affect the design and methods of construction for camp stoves and fireplaces.

The natural topography of the area will determine to some extent the type of design for camp stove or fireplace most appropriate to the area. On areas similar to the recreation areas of the national forests of northern New England, where the forest camp and picnic area is usually developed on open ground to take maximum advantage of the sun, the camp stove and fireplace must be as inconspicuous as it is practical to make this feature. On other areas, amongst the large timber of the northwest, it is entirely practical to adopt a type of design which is of larger scale and has much in common with the surrounding landscape.

If the topography of any specific recreation area is rugged and has considerable outcrop of rock, then the design of camp stove and fireplace should be governed accordingly, both as to the texture of the stonework and the kind of stone used for construction.

The number of camp stoves and fireplaces which should be constructed on any recreation area is determined by the intensity of use on any particular area and also by the type of vegetation which exists upon that area. If the recreation area is covered with a thick growth of trees under which considerable undergrowth and ground cover vegetation exists, the number of units is determined by the number of individual camp sites which it seems advisable to develop and yet preserve the necessary seclusion and privacy which is so essential to camp units. It is estimated that the average number of persons per camp stove will approximate five to seven during any one time. So far as practical, the units should be so separated that each family or each group may have adequate space and may have its own individual camp stove or fireplace. This is particularly true with reference to camp stoves. The mixed use of any individual unit by more than one group leads to confusion and results in unsatisfactory conditions. On campgrounds, it is usually necessary to provide one stove for each camp site, and on picnic areas to provide one fireplace for the occupants of each three cars.

Climatic conditions will govern to some extent the kind of construction. In areas where severe climatic conditions are experienced, and where there are extreme changes of temperature, the most thorough kind of construction should be adopted in order to prevent disintegration of the masonry and other damage by frost conditions.

If the recreation area has an established use which will continue for a considerable period, stoves and fireplaces should be of the most permanent types, which require a minimum of maintenance and which will endure through a number of years.

In some localities, there seems to be a prevailing inclination toward vandalism. In these locations, the picnickers, in particular, rather enjoy the satisfaction of seeing how much damage can be done to camp stoves, fireplaces, and picnic tables. Under such conditions, where these facilities are not used with consideration, an unusually strong and simple construction should be adopted. Whether or not vandalism prevails in any locality, the movable parts should be securely anchored, or attached with a chain, in order that these parts may be kept in proper relation to the camp stove and fireplace. Signs placed in a conspicuous location near the fireplace, and containing instructions as to the proper use of these facilities might avoid some of the damage which is now caused to camp stoves and fireplaces partly because of lack of this information.

In locations where the fire hazard is great and where it is necessary to douse the fire with water, a type of construction must be adopted which will withstand these extreme changes of temperature.

Larger and more massive types of camp units are adapted only to those locations where large timber prevails and where there is adequate opportunity to screen the individual camp sites from each other. An unfortunate effect will be produced in the general landscape composition if massive types of camp stoves and fireplaces are used in areas which are generally open and unprotected.

The question of fire hazard is also an important factor which makes it necessary to use a type of design and construction which produces the minimum danger of fire. In these locations of high fire hazard the use of the solid plate and the use of dampers and spark arresters in the chimneys may be essential.

The availability of different kinds of materials to be used in construction is an important factor in determining the type of stonework in any fireplace. The types of stone and the ease with which the stone may be cut to the desired shapes for any desired texture of stone masonry should be considered before the final design is adopted.

PRACTICAL USEFULNESS VERSUS APPROPRIATE DESIGN

The camp stove and the picnic fireplace must combine convenience of practical use with appropriateness of design. It is much more important in the camp stove than in the picnic area fireplace to provide a design which recognizes as an important requirement the convenience of everyday use. Many campers and picnickers will accept any type of design (even the "oil-drum" and the "ice-box" (pl. XXVI, figs. 9, 10, and 11)) however unattractive and inappropriate in appearance, so long as it is of practical use. Such sacrifice of design is unwarranted. The natural pleasing landscape deserves more consideration. There are ways in which to combine practical use and good design so that such encroachments may be avoided.

The height of the cooking surface of a camp stove should approximate from 15 to 24 inches. A height of 30 inches more nearly conforms to the height of the cooking surface in the kitchen range at home. Such a height is to be discouraged in the forests, because of the resulting massiveness of the camp stove.

With a hearth raised approximately 6 to 8 inches above the surrounding ground and with a depth of firebox approximating 8 to 10 inches the resulting height of the cooking surface (adding the thickness of the grate or plate) is approximately 15 to 18 inches above the ground level. Unless it is practicable to easily screen these cooking units from each other the higher cooking surfaces should be avoided, even though more convenient for everyday use by campers.

Campers and picnickers seek the forests and other areas for recreation and exercise; thus squatting beside the low (15 inches) fireplace, or bending over the slightly higher (18 to 24 inches) camp stove is one of the forms of physical exercise which is a part of the life out-of-doors. Convenience in camp life is a very relative term which to most recreation seekers may involve some expenditure of physical energy not enjoyed in the everyday life at home, and unfortunately to a very few it means the comforts and inactivity of home transferred to the natural landscape setting.

In the use of the camp stove it is essential to have convenient access to the cooking surface from the sides as well as from the front. For this reason, the height of the walls above the top of the cooking surface should be kept at a minimum. Sometimes it is advisable to raise the top of the wall above the cooking surface, in order to secure a more permanent type of construction. The fire-clay brick lining in the camp stove should extend to the underside of the top grate or plate, and this additional height of the side walls may be necessary in order to provide an anchor or suitable attachment for the bars or grate and to provide a cap which will properly protect the joint between the fire-clay brick and the surface of the stone wall. By keeping the top of the side walls level with the top of the plate or grate, it is possible to set pots and pans partly off the stove and partly on the wall to obtain varying degrees of heat (pls. III and V).

The thickness of the masonry walls, outside of the fire-clay brick, may approximate from 6 to 10 inches. Because of the height of the cooking surface, any greater thickness of the walls is likely to make the top of the stove not convenient to use.

It is often desirable to construct a stove or fireplace with an area of gravel or sandy loam (approximating 5 feet in width) entirely surrounding the front and sides of the unit. If this area is not provided, then the natural vegetation will be worn unnecessarily and the area will become dusty, inasmuch as it will be generally dry. If the natural soil is clay, then the convenience of using the fireplace will be very much reduced unless coarse sand or gravel is spread. If flagstone is available, a very few broken flagstones may be laid at the sides of the unit and immediately in front.

LOCATION ON CAMPGROUND OR PICNIC AREA

The actual site selected for the camp stove or fireplace should have natural surface drainage so that muddy conditions may be avoided during wet weather. The fireplace can sometimes be built into a slope which will produce a more natural effect, especially if some small amount of grading is done immediately around the unit (pls. VI, VII, and X).

Locations for stoves and fireplaces on forest camp and picnic areas should be selected to meet the following requirements:

A. Easy accessibility to tables, cooking utensils, and parking spurs (especially true in camp units) (pl. XXVII).

B. These units should not be nearer than 10 or 15 feet from trees, and should under no conditions be under any overhanging branches which might be injured by smoke or heat.

C. Adequate provision for a convenient working space around the cooking unit, and an adequate storage space for wood and other supplies close by the cooking unit.

D. The cooking unit should be so located that during the heat of the day the necessary shade may be procured, if the recreation area is in a section of the country where shade is desirable. In sections of the country where the sun is desirable, then the cooking unit should be located accordingly.

E. The cooking units should be so located that, under conditions of normal prevailing winds, the smoke, casual sparks or heat will not be blown into the tent or across the table. It should be noted that in some of the mountainous country the prevailing morning breeze is apt to be in a different direction from the prevailing evening breeze.

F. The unit should also be so located that in the higher altitudes and more open exposures where excessive wind may be expected at certain times of the year, the unit can be so protected that excessive draft will be avoided and the fuel consumption reduced accordingly.

Extreme precaution should be taken in order not to damage the roots of existing trees, especially the more shallow rooted types. Unless the fireplace is properly located, considerable damage may be done to the roots of existing trees by the concentrated lye which leaches from the ashes. Injury may be done to the roots by the intense traffic over any root areas. It is very desirable that the unit be located so that the prevailing wind will not carry the intense heat into the foliage.

On some campgrounds in parts of the country similar to those of northern Montana and northern New England (in the White Mountains) the necessity for sunlight is equally as important as for shade in the southerly areas which experience intense heat. Sunlight is important in some areas in the early morning and, therefore, the ideal location for the camp stove and table is one which receives sunlight during the morning hours.

On recreation areas which are close to the lake shore, the stove or fireplace should be so oriented that the opening will be toward the lake, from which direction the prevailing breeze usually comes. In locations protected from the wind at all times, such as in heavy timber, the question of orientation is not important. This is likewise the case with camp stoves of the high-chimney type, where the chimney provides the natural draft.

In the fireplace type, especially those types which have a chimney-notch effect, and in those types without a chimney but with one end closed, it is most essential that the opening to the firebox be directed toward the prevailing wind. A very careful study should be made of the prevailing wind and the extent to which it is constant in any one direction during any definite time of the year, in order to orient the fireplace accordingly.

On most campgrounds, the automobile is the family larder, and for this reason there is considerable traffic between the camp stove and the automobile. The distance between the camp stove and the parking spur should, therefore, not be so great that inconvenience will be experienced in going from the stove to the car (pl. XXVII).

The cooking unit should not be located where there is excessive wind exposure, and this is particularly true in areas which have a considerable fire hazard.

On some picnic areas designed for group picnics, it may be desirable to have the stove or fireplace in multiple units as shown on plates XIII and III—A. The multiple units may be located at one or at both ends of the picnic area.

FIRE HAZARD

Whenever one seeks the forest as a source of recreation and has occasion to build a fire for cooking or for warming purposes, he immediately creates a fire hazard. This fire hazard may be very small upon the more open areas where the types of vegetation are not dense or of a kind not readily inflammable. On other areas the fire hazard may be very great, especially in the large types of evergreen timber and in arid sections where extremely dry weather prevails during the hot summer months, which include the period of heaviest recreational use. In the forest areas where duff and humus are on the ground in any amount, it is very important that sand or gravel be spread over the surface of the ground to a distance of at least 5 feet from the fireplace at the front and on the sides. This duff is highly inflammable and in general it should be entirely removed or else well covered with sand or gravel. In some instances an area approximating 6 to 8 feet in width and of equal length is sometimes paved with flagging immediately in front of camp stove or fireplace. An area of paving of this size is not necessary and usually detracts very much from the appearance of the camp stove or fireplace.

There are a number of methods which are adopted for controlling the fire hazard. Among the more effective of these methods are the following:

A. Use of water or earth to extinguish fires before leaving them (Earth is preferred where fireplace is not lined with fire-clay brick.)

B. Construction of chimneys with dampers and spark arresters.

C. Construction of fire lane around the recreation area.

D. Use of a type of fuel which produces a minimum quantity of sparks.

E. Use of plates instead of grates for fireplaces.

Since fire is the worst enemy of the forest, it is important that all stoves and fireplaces be located and designed to create a minimum fire hazard.

FUEL PROBLEMS

When the campground or picnic area is located where there is an ample supply of fuel, the fuel problem is not an important factor. Difficulty is encountered where the supply of wood for fuel is limited. In some of the suburban, municipal, and metropolitan park areas near large centers of population, the fuel problem is very serious. In such areas, it is almost necessary to confine the use of fuel to charcoal.

It is advisable, whether or not fuel is scarce, to have some method of controlling the use of fuel and, especially, of discouraging its excessive use. On some campgrounds and picnic areas, the occupants cut their own wood from a designated area, and the trees which may be removed are definitely marked or designated. In hardwood forests, this procedure is not practical because the green wood is difficult to burn.

Wherever a supply of wood for stove and fireplace use is placed in piles near the camp stove or fireplace, and the occupants are allowed to use it freely and without charge, there is apt to be a great waste of fuel and an increased cost of maintenance. On the other hand, if suitable fuel is stored in a stock pile within a reasonable distance of any group of fireplaces or stoves, the occupants of the area will be less inclined to waste wood, because of the additional labor required to carry the extra wood from the stock pile to the fireplace. In general, wood is more apt to be wasted on picnic areas than upon campgrounds.

The most effective procedure for controlling the consumption of fuel is to authorize someone to maintain, for the benefit of any intensively used campground or picnic area, a "wood yard" from which wood may be purchased. Through such a concession the campers and picnickers are not inclined to waste fuel, and the maintenance cost otherwise incurred for providing fuel is avoided. In some recreation areas wood is supplied in bundles and a small charge is made for each bundle as it is taken from the "wood yard."

On intensively used campgrounds and picnic areas the Forest Service will probably find it advisable to furnish firewood through a concessionaire for a service charge sufficient to cover this item and other items of service essential for the proper administration of the area.

In densely wooded areas where fireplaces are situated in such locations that the sparks from the burning wood may set fire to the surrounding trees, the picnickers should be requested to use charcoal, which they bring or may buy on the site.