Triox is my #1 Overboard Vest fire starter.i wrap the foil packs in a zip lock and replace them every spring.in a "real life" test some years ago i made a fire from wet pine wood..at the end of a day of that cold drizzle we get in canoe country i pulled onto a point and set up camp..while a Peak stove was heating water for tea..heavy on the sugar--i got the top of a downed Black Spruce dripping with water and stomped it into as many bits as i could in about 30 seconds and fired up a Triox..these Spruce are all over and while not very good for a long term fire the tops of dead ones are thick with small branches--toothpick to chopstick size..the fire tab dried out the wood and lit it with lots of tab still burning to catch bigger bits of wood untill i had a good strong fire going..i let the blazing tree top burn out and went back to my tea but it was clear that the Triox was burning hot enough to get a fire going from the sort of wet wood i could find in a survival situation..the packs are easy to rip open and light at the touch of a match--or lighter--i never tried a sparker but they fire up much easier than the new gel packs--and yes they turn to dust and are worthless if air gets in the pack, that is the only downside..