Do you know what wood is not safe to burn?
As a camphost, I am amazed at what campers bring to the campground to burn. Unless you were in a scouting program as a child, there probably will be no way of knowing what firewood is. Of course, you can make do a Google search to learn about firewood, but most people believe that all wood is burnable so they do not get the education they need. Let’s take a look at unsafe wood and why you should not burn it:
1) Painted wood- When paint is burned, it releases chemicals that are toxic to breath
2) Stained wood- Just like with painted wood, there are chemicals that are used to manufacture stain, when burned they are carcinogenic If you use painted or stained wood to cook your meal over, the food will absorb these toxins.
3) Creosoted wood- creosote is a wood preservative made with coal tar and is carcinogenic, an example of which is a telephone pole, the barriers that line US Forest campground, or pressure treated wood. There is a build up in your fireplace at home that is called creosote, this residue is soot and it is a not chemical, so it is not carcinogenic.
4) Manufactured wood- Plywood and particle board are manufactured using glues that are chemical based, smoke from burning these products are toxic to breath, imagine cooking your dinner over them.
5) Colored paper and Pizza Boxes- We see this in the campground all the time. Any thing with colored ink or made using dyes, can be toxic when burned. Also, campers should notice that when paper burns in a fire pit, the embers waft up in the air, can be caught by the wind, and blow into dry brush nearby.
6) Styrofoam cups, bowls, plates, plastic wrap, plastic dinnerware, and plastic water bottles are petroleum products, these too are toxic and carcinogenic when burned. Do not put them in your firepit.
7) Pallet wood- Pallets are made with softwood that ordinarily would be burnable but they are treated with a wood preservative called Methyl Bromide, a nasty chemical when burned. Plus, pallets often are used to haul barrels with other chemicals in them, like formaldehyde. Imagine burning that. And the nails are hazardous to the campground host that has to clean out the fire pit after pallets have been burned in them.
8) Plant life- I actually saw a camper put dried poison ivy in his firepit as a fire starter, handling this plant can result in a severe rash. Burning this plant can release the oils in the plant, so breathing it can be dangerous to your lungs. Know what is in your environment and avoid what can bring harm to you. All campers should Google the flora and fauna, or plants and animals that are in the area they plan to camp at.
A camphosts job is to educate and inform. I have had to tell people the dangers of painted, stained, and manufactured wood, I have cleaned out many firepits that have plastic residue in them, and I have warned people about poison ivy. Know your surroundings, Read the Information board at the front of the campground. Do a Google search on plants in the area you are camping at. Please feel free to ask your camphost or the RV park owner about the safety of plant and animal life in the campground.
All of the articles on my blog come from being a camper from the time I was eight years old. I bought my first RV when I was 30, a tent trailer. I traded the tent trailer for a 26′ bumper pull trailer, then a 5th wheel, and I now have a 38′ Newmar Mountainare Class A motorhome. Once I retired from the Motion Picture Industry after a 39 year career, my wife and I sold the house, and moved into the motorhome. We have been traveling, managed an RV Park in Washington, worked at a lake in Southern California (I was the Maintenance Manager), and are planning our seventh season as the campground hosts at a campground in the Los Padres National Forest, in Southern California. We love the Full Time RV Lifestyle. See my course on https://howtofulltimerv.com
