A Swedish torch (also Swedish candle, Finn candle, Swedish fire, Siberian tree torch or Russian tree torch; ) is a source of

heat In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is ...

and

light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 te ...

from a vertically set

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

trunk, incised and

burning Combustion, or burning, is a high-temperature exothermic redox chemical reaction between a fuel (the reductant) and an oxidant, usually atmospheric oxygen, that produces oxidized, often gaseous products, in a mixture termed as smoke. Combust ...

in the middle. It became known in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

during the 1600s and is now used by forest workers, and for leisure activities (especially in southern Germany). Due to its flat surface and good embers, it can also be used for cooking. Compared to a

campfire A campfire is a fire at a campsite that provides light and warmth, and heat for cooking. It can also serve as a beacon, and an insect and predator deterrent. Established campgrounds often provide a stone or steel fire ring for safety. Cam ...

, it is more compact, and therefore several small heat sources can be distributed over an area. Oral tradition attributes the development of the torch to the Swedish military during the Thirty Years' War; using a saw or hacksaw or an

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

, the Swedes are said to have made burning and glowing logs to warm their soldiers. This method of providing heat meant that their troops did not have to carry their own

firewood Firewood is any wooden material that is gathered and used for fuel. Generally, firewood is not highly processed and is in some sort of recognizable log or branch form, compared to other forms of wood fuel like pellets or chips. Firewood c ...

with them but were able to get supplies on site, as the freshly cut,

green wood Green wood is wood that has been recently cut and therefore has not had an opportunity to season (dry) by evaporation of the internal moisture. Green wood contains more moisture than seasoned wood, which has been dried through passage of time o ...

can burn due to the

chimney effect The stack effect or chimney effect is the movement of air into and out of buildings through unsealed openings, chimneys, flue-gas stacks, or other containers, resulting from air buoyancy. Buoyancy occurs due to a difference in indoor-to-outdoor a ...

Manufacture and use

A delimbed trunk, of a diameter of and a length of is required to make the torch. The

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of ligni ...

should not be too dry, otherwise it would burn too quickly. The best types of wood for light and heat are resinous

softwood Scots Pine, a typical and well-known softwood Softwood is wood from gymnosperm trees such as conifers. The term is opposed to hardwood, which is the wood from angiosperm trees. The main differences between hardwoods and softwoods is that the s ...

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal ( taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the sub ...

fir Firs (''Abies'') are a genus of 48–56 species of evergreen coniferous trees in the family Pinaceae. They are found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The genus is most closely related to ...

and

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family (biology), family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanic ...

. The best types for cooking are hardwoods like

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engl ...

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ances ...

ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus '' Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet '' Prunus avium'' and the sour '' Prunus cerasus''. The ...

, as they are less

soot Soot ( ) is a mass of impure carbon particles resulting from the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons. It is more properly restricted to the product of the gas-phase combustion process but is commonly extended to include the residual pyrolyse ...

y and would not taint the meat. A

chainsaw A chainsaw (or chain saw) is a portable gasoline-, electric-, or battery-powered saw that cuts with a set of teeth attached to a rotating chain driven along a guide bar. It is used in activities such as tree felling, limbing, Log bucking, bucki ...

is used to cut the trunk with two vertical cuts

perpendicular In elementary geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at a right angle (90 degrees or π/2 radians). The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the ''perpendicular symbol'', ⟂. It can ...

to each other downwards while the trunk is standing. The cuts stop from the base so that the torch does not break apart. Normally, the trunk is divided into quarters by two cuts, or, in the case of larger trunks, in sixths (like a six-pointed

asterisk The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vo ...

) or eighths. The cuts aid in air circulation, which helps the log burn. As the log burns, embers and coals fall from the top and into the cut slots. This ignites the log from within and keeps the fire going. The log is easiest to ignite with paraffin (or lighter fluid), which is inserted into the side slots and also at the top at the saw cut point of the trunk. Rags soaked in

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...

are also suitable. Lumberjacks pour a little bit of their chainsaw fuel into the center of the torch. If a campfire is already burning, some embers placed on top of the log can make a Swedish torch. Choosing a safe place to set the torch is important due to flying sparks and possibility of it falling apart. To ignite the trunk evenly, add some paraffin at the top. Depending on the size and length, the trunk burns between two and five hours and glows with intense heat. The glow in the middle of the trunk has a temperature between . After the torch has started burning, it is possible to place a pan on top. Before lighting, hammer three nails around the borehole or place three stones around the borehole, creating an improvised cooking surface. Baumfackel01

Other styles

Blast furnace style

Another design has a drill hole (approximately ) along the axis of the trunk for the exhaust gases and a second hole radially at the desired level for the air supply. It is ignited by pouring a few embers or by loading it with an easily flammable material such as

kerosene Kerosene, paraffin, or lamp oil is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in aviation as well as households. Its name derives from el, κηρός (''keros'') meaning " wax", and was reg ...

, fuel tablets, or fire starters. Some hardware stores sell "Russian tree torches" with candle wax and

candle wick A candle wick is usually a braided cotton that holds the flame of an oil lamp or candle. A candle wick works by capillary action, conveying ("wicking") the fuel to the flame. When the liquid fuel, typically melted candle wax, reaches the flame ...

lighters.

Survival skills version

Even without a drill, a tree torch can be quickly produced in the outdoors. To do this, use a saw to cut the log approximately two-thirds of the way up the log, and cut the base at the desired height . As in the picture above (marked A or B), split off the sections on the blue line and remove the core on the red line. Saw in the ventilation hole, or lift the smaller section of variant B up for the ventilation distance. Finally put the three parts together and B, fix with wire, cord or nails.

Gallery

File:Schwedenfackel (brennend, Nachtaufnahme).jpg, Night shot of a Swedish torch in the advanced stage of combustion File:Schwedenfeuer.JPG, Tree trunk with saw cuts File:Bigger_swedish_torch.jpg, A bigger swedish torch.

References

External links

* * * * {{YouTube, MAFV0LRs1Hk , (burning) Swedish Torch - "Blast furnace" style 17th-century inventions Fire in culture Light sources Heaters Stoves Swedish inventions Wood products