What do you guys think of trioxane fuel from the military. From what I have read it works very well to start a campfire. Do you think it burns hot enough to light damp wood? Does anyone here have any experience with this stuff and what do you guys and gals think of it. thanks.

Triox has two drawbacks. First, it will rapidly degrade once exposed. You open it, you light it. The fumes prduced are also toxic, so use in a well ventilated shelter. Fortunately, most survival shelters are 'well ventilated.' That it will work with wet wood is a matter of degree and patience. If you are working through the stages of tinder, kindling, squaw fire, bonfire yes. It is dependable fire in foil. If your looking at green logs pulled from a 19th century lumbercamp river- forget it.

Well, do you think this is a good choice for backpacking? It is cheap and seems to burn very hot from what I have read. I would just use one bar and light it and then put some wood ontop. The heat would catch larger pieces on fire then kindling right?

Like you state, the stuff's cheap. Buy some and have fun finding out what works. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

The tinder and kindling would catch before the larger pieces. I take Trioxane when I got camping and when I've had trouble getting a fire going it was able to do the job. It probably wouldn't even take an entire bar - I've never needed a whole one. OTOH - I use it alone to cook (well - if you consider boiling water cooking) and depending on the temperature and whether you/'re using a windscreen - it may take more than one bar to boil water. Overall, as long as you keep in mind the toxicity, it's not bad stuff. Take some outside and experiment before you decide to take it - be familer with your equipment.

What kind of toxicity are we talking about? Why would the army use this stuff if it is toxic? I'm confused about this.

Uhmm... Does anyone have a spare gig of server space? Let's face it, the job of a military force is to be hazardous to someone's health. If it wasn't, it wouldn't be taken seriously. Don't sweat the triox, I know people who've used it for years.

The fumes of trioxe are toxic. So are those of heximine, which is what the Esbits use. The MRE heater emits a level of hydrogen that is impressive- put one and a cup of water into a 3 liter soda bottle, shoot it ten minutes later. Sterno and candles put out carbon monoxide. The fumes of any kind of fuel are toxic, some more so than others, big deal. They need air, you need air, get more than enough for both of you.

Just remember that fuel and food are rarely interchangable, unless we are talking corn chips. Keep the fuel and it's residue out of the food, and don't let the fumes build up under, say, the lid of your pot where they would contaminate your food. Don't cook over the bare flame, either.

You might consider Esbit cubes. They serve the same function, but they are not toxic like hex/triox is. That being said, triox works just fine, just use them as per recommendations you should be good to go.

Now i am really confused. I wanted to use the trioxane to makes starting fires in damp conditions easier. Now, I am fearing for the health of my family! How toxis is this stuff and what kind of ill effects are we talking about. the ESbit stuff looks great, but it is more expensive, not a problem if they are going no have health effects.
I dont mean to beat a dead horse if this has been discussed before. Thanks for the help guys.

Uh, Burn, Esbits are hexamine with a binding agent to make them a little less crumbly than the ancient USGI hexi tabs were. In a tannish package with UK MoD markings on it, they are simply listed as such, rather than the Esbit brand name. The binding agent might make them a little less toxic, but hexamine is hexamine is one VERY irritated urinary tract and heart burn so bad you are curled up wanting to die. .