Information Booklet 6

Transcription

1 wider area and could pass muster on most campsites. The argument in favour of battery lamps is that there is no fire risk, they are cool, so no risk of burns, and they are safe for kids to use. This is fine, except they eat batteries as anyone who has taken kids on camp with battery lamps will tell you. As for the safety argument, that depends on your ethos. We want our surroundings to be safe, but we also want them to be practical. Flame derived light is going to create two main hazards, fire and contact burns. The way round this is to educate campers to use the equipment in the proper way not to exclude them from using the equipment. Information Booklet 6 Camp Ovens, Lamps & Stoves Cook good food and light camp safely, but at all times have FUN Compiled For Cambridgeshire Scouts August 2013

2 Types of Oven, Lamps & Stoves There is so much more you can cook using a camp oven over using a camp fire - and there are no blackened billies to clean afterwards! An oven is also useful for keeping food warm when there is not enough room on the fire to cook everything at once. In the construction do not forget to include some form of chimney, so that air will be drawn through the oven. One idea is to use an old oil drum with one end removable. Fix it firmly at one end of the fire and then cover it with a thick layer of mud. A strong metal biscuit tin can also be made into a small oven. If an oil drum is to be used, make sure that all residue of oil is burnt off before using it for cooking food. An oil drum can also be used as a hot water boiler, even then, the water should only be used for washing, never for drinking. Biscuit Tin Oven ( Note the trench fire) Biscuit Tin First Stage Final Stage Gas lamps are where its at for most of us, and the range has varied little in 20 years. It is only recently that we have seen flint ignition and latterly peizo ignition introduced into lighting. The commonest gas lamp is the Camping Gaz in either a screw fit on a small cylinder or a larger lamp on top of a standard Gaz cylinder. These give out good white light, and have that familiar friendly gas hiss as they burn. The light is warm and many a night we have sat drinking wine or cocoa till all hours round the light of one of these trusty lamps. Go Gas have a widely available range of gas lamps and in particular we like their smaller lamps which not only give out a reasonable amount of light, but have rounded less fragile diffusers. The older lamps required a taper, or a match and a quick hand to light and those of a nervous disposition tend not to like the pop as the gas ignites, a slightly safer version has a flint lighter built in. In our experience with these has not been good and the flints either fail to ignite the gas, or in one case the flint holder jammed up against the mantle and melted! l to r: battery lantern, gas lantern, shielded candle, petrol lantern. Battery powered lamps, well some people who don t use a lot of light on camp There are many variations on this theme, why not try a dustbin oven? (Not the wheelie bin type but a metal one) How to build and what we can do with this oven Firstly build or put it on to a alter fire or dig a ditch so that the oven has space under it to light and feed a fire, also space to allow the flames to lick around the sides and rear. See picture of the more advanced four-oven version note that the lids are held in place by sticks. In side you need ideally two shelves which will allow you to cook more interesting and various foods at the same time. can find a use for them. They can give sufficient light to get into bed bye, but they are hardly ideal for those late nights round the campfire. There are various types about and they all give a cold white light, unless the battery is flat when they, for a short while give a warm glow. Rechargeable Ni-Cad batter lamps are great for so long as you remember to recharge the battery, buy when they go flat and you haven t recharged the battery they become dead weight. The design of the diffuser on a battery lamp can have a great effect on the spread of light, and the type of bulb can make a difference too. White strip lamps can give a clean white light, and others cast a bright light in the spot they are directed at, much like torches, but there are a few which cast their light over a

3 Never fuel, ignite or operate a stove, heater or lantern in or near a tent. Spreading all the Light For many of us campers the two most enjoyable moments on camp are rising early to the birdsong; the dew laden grass and the cool fresh air driving home the proximity of nature and the distance from the hubbub of the daily grind, and later in the evening under the stars in the still of the night as the bustle of camp dies down. Perhaps the evening is the time we most enjoy, possibly some deep inherited memory of sitting round campfires past in convivial company, the flames flickering, the cookpot on the boil and the shelters lit by tallow lamps. In spite of all the mod cons available for today s campers there are times when a warm fire, a couple of hurricane lamps and a canvas draped over a frame are all we really need. The modern compromise tends to be the use of artificial lights, most people are too frightened of hot embers melting their modern tents to build their campfire, if allowed, near enough their tent to be effective. The most basic lamp is the old "Roman" oil lamp we are all familiar with from our history lessons. Travel to north Africa and you can still buy them in the markets, genuine 2000 year old lamps they cry from their stalls as they see a pasty faced tourist go by. In fact they are churned out in their thousands by local potters still. If you buy one and use it with a wick in animal or vegetable oil it smokes and smells, so although perhaps original, hardly what we want on camp. The next logical step is the pressurised liquid fuel lamp. These have been around for a long time and like pressurised stoves require pressurising, priming, pre-heating and lighting. They issue quite a bright white light, but can be smoky if not kept serviced and the heat is always a danger when there are kids around. Many people also don t like playing with liquid fuel. You can still buy Coleman and Tilley liquid fuel lamps but they are less popular today than they used to be. The older lamps required that you pressurised the lamp, took a pre-heater wick and soaked it in meth s, clamped it round the supply pipe to the mantle and burnt the meth s off to preheat the lamp, then as the meth s was about to burn off, turned on the fuel supply to light the lamp. Removing the wick which you ensured was extinguished before returning it to its jar. The modern Coleman Northstar has electronic ignition, whilst the smaller lamp needs no pre-heating - operating just like a gas lamp. As stated the pictures show a 4 oven complex for a large camp but you can build the supporting frame or dig the ditch for one oven Light your fire so that you have a nice even heat and allow the oven to get hot. (just like home) Place your food onto a baking tray ensuring that it does not touch the sides of the oven (if it should it is very possible that the food will burn). As when cooking in a normal kitchen some food take longer to cook than others so workout your timings. Cooking times are difficult to predict as the heat of the fire will vary each time, so treat the oven with respect. During the cooking you will have to check the oven and rotate the food to ensure even cooking. Whilst doing this be VARY CAREFUL as the oven and trays will be extremely HOT! With care and practice you can successfully cooking meals such as, Meat (roasted), Beef, Leg of Lamb and Chicken Fish, trout etc. Vegetables (Roasted), Potatoes, Sweet Corn, Onions, Mushrooms, Carrots and Tomatoes( a fruit not a vegetable) You can also cook Pizzas, Fairy Cakes and Sponges, you might like to try some Bread Once you have practised and become proficient with the use of ovens at camp it opens up a new and wonderful choice of menus more healthier than just frying or boiling all your food and a lot more fun

4 Some results can be seen below sticking them to a wall or display board. They can then move to other teams walls or displays to pick out the rules they agree with/think are important. SUMMARISE What? This exercise checks understanding of the skills taught in the previous activity. How? Display the safety post-it notes that were chosen together on a wall or display board. Remove any duplicates to come up with a master set of rules. Ask the teams to explain/justify why they made that rule. There is always a requirement for hot water, you might try an Oil Drum Boiler. Water Boiler Oil Drum variation Note the oil drum above is mounted across a trench fire. If you are really adventurous, try your hand at a Polynesian style oven, and think of golden sands and blue seas. Fuels and Safety 1. Operate and maintain equipment according to manufacturer's instructions. 2. Petrol, Paraffin and Methylated Spirit shall be kept in well-marked, approved containers (never in a glass bottle or plastic container) and stored in a ventilated, preferably locked box at a safe distance tents. Keep all chemical fuel containers away from hot stoves and campfires. 3. Let hot stoves and lanterns cool before changing gas cylinders or refilling with liquid fuels. 4. Refill stoves and lanterns a safe distance from any flames, including other stoves and campfires. 5. Never refuel a stove, heater, or lantern inside; always do this outdoors. This include changing a gas cartridge or screw on bottle. 6. Place the stove on a level, secure surface before operating. On snow, place insulated support under the stove to prevent melting and tipping. 7. Periodically check fittings on gas stoves and on pressurised liquid stoves for leakage. 8. To avoid possible fires, locate gas tanks, stoves, etc., below any tents since heavy leaking gas will flow downhill and disperse. 9. When lighting a stove, keep fuel bottles and extra canisters well away. Do not hover over the stove when lighting it. Keep your head and body to one side. Open the stove valve quickly a full turn and light carefully, with you head, fingers and hands to the side of the burner. Then adjust the flame down. 10. Do not leave a lit stove or lantern unattended. 11. Do not overload the stovetop with heavy dixies or large frying pans. If large pans are necessary, set up a separate supports hold the pot, and then place the stove under the supported pan. 12. Bring empty fuel containers home for disposal. Do not place in or near fires. Empty fuel containers will explode if heated and must never be put in fireplaces or with burnable litter. 13. Do not operate a stove or lantern in an unventilated room. Ventilation is required to provide oxygen and exhaust for lethal gases.

5 bers to cool. Follow up with questions about why you extinguished the fire in this way. EXPLAIN What? How to return a site to its original state and the standards you expect. How? Explain the principle of leave no trace or take nothing but photographs, leave nothing but footprints. Give the group some expectations of what you would like this area to look like when you have finished. APPLY What? This activity consolidates the learning from earlier in the lesson. How? Teams now extinguish their fires and return the fire area to its original condition, ensuring that they leave no trace. LESSON 4 Safety Rules (15 Minutes) INTRODUCE What? The topic of Camp Ovens, Lamps, stoves and fires and the need to use them safely. How? Ask the group about any experiences they have these in the past. Where have they seen fire before? Ask them what fire might be used for and create a list these could be good and bad things. DEMONSTRATE What? Some of the dangers of fire, lamps, stoves and ovens. How? This section requires a careful balance of material to develop a healthy respect for fire, without instilling fear or anxiety. Appropriate ways to cover this topic might be anecdotal evidence or YouTube videos showing a mixture of safe and unsafe fire use possibly with news articles too. Polynesian Oven. This style of oven needs practice and experimentation before you get it right first time. Above all Remember where you located it, or your dinner will be lost forever, so mark it well!! Dig a hole in the ground and build a fire in the bottom. Get it going well and put several large stones (not Flints) on top. When the stones are really hot, lay some large leaves (such as cabbage leaves) on them. Next pile in the food - sausages, chops, potatoes and other vegetables - then cover with another layer of leaves. Finally cover well with earth and leave to cook for about six hours. Be careful when opening the oven not to break the leaves or earth may spoil your master piece. Experiment with all different types of food, you will be amazed at the results. If you are out to impress why not include pudding - treacle sponge, baked a p p l e s, c h o c o l a t e oranges etc., only your mind limits you - be a d v e n t u r o u s a n d creative, so who needs open fires to cook, move over Master Chef the PL s are about. EXPLAIN What? How to use fire safely. How? Explain that with some basic rules we can use fire safely, effectively and as a tool to help us around camp. Introduce some of the basic safety rules (e.g. never leave a fire unattended). APPLY What? This activity consolidates the skills learned earlier in the session. How? Ask the group to come up with their own set of safety rules, perhaps by asking small teams of participants to write rules on post-it notes before

6 Dutch Ovens Cooking is a social and enjoyable activity, and you don't need gas or electricity. Dutch ovens may be used on an already existing wood stove or over an open fire, which is popular when camping. Various types of Dutch ovens exist, most made of heavy cast iron. Capacities vary from two quarts all the way to 49. Almost any type of food can be cooked in a Dutch oven, including vegetables, roasts, desserts, potatoes, bread, fish and turkey Check the Temperature Dutch ovens are incredibly sensitive to heat. They are compared to pressure cookers, using steam to cook food much more tender than conventional ovens. Keep an eye out for too much steam coming from the oven. This means the oven is too hot. You can lift the oven's lid to check on the food, but be careful not to let out too much heat or steam; this may cause the food to burn on the top or bottom. Managing the Heat Managing the heat of the Dutch oven is one of the biggest challenges when cooking over coals. You can use wood coals, but charcoal may be more efficient. Burn the coals down so there is no flame left and they are white, as a high flame is usually too hot for most types of food. Place your hand around 6 inches over the coals on the lid and start counting--one thousand one, one thousand two and so on. Pull your hand away when it becomes too uncomfortable. A count of one is hot, two is medium, three is low and anything more probably isn't hot enough for cooking. Avoid Hot Spots Hot spots cause browning and burned food. Avoid that by rotating the oven 90 degrees every 15 minutes and rotate the lid 90 degrees in the opposite direction. The best way to do this is to lift the lid, rotate the oven 90 degrees clockwise, then put the lid back on facing the same direction it was before the rotation. Notice the number on the lid, it should remain in the same place for the entire cook time. Season Your Dutch Oven Preheat your gas barbecue to 375 degrees F. Place it on the rack with the door open and allow it to warm until it's just hot enough where it would hurt to touch. Remove from grill and apply vegetable oil with a paper towel to every inch of the oven's inside and outside. Replace it on the grill upside down and leave for an hour. Allow the oven to cool slightly and repeat the oiling process. Return the oven to the grill and heat for another hour. Allow to cool. EXPLAIN What? What is needed to construct the oven bed, construct and light the fire and how it should be prepared for cooking. How? Explain that some items are needed before you can build the oven and light the fire, which of course includes having something to burn ( fuel ). Show the group examples of kindling and small fuel, and explain that it is important to make sure that the size of the fuel is appropriate for your fire. Show the group different types of oven styles and there uses. APPLY What? This activity consolidates the learning from earlier in the lesson. How? Split the group into small teams and give each team 30 minutes to set up their own oven, fire area and collect fuel. This can be a race, with prizes for the team that makes the fastest progress or collects the best wood pile. SUMMARISE What? This activity checks understanding of the skills taught in the lesson. How? As a group, move around each team s fire area and ask them to explain what they have done, with the other teams giving feedback. A good method for this would be two stars and a wish, where each group comes up with two positive things to comment on, and one thing that they would improve. LESSON 3 Clearing the oven site and extinguishing the fire (20 Minutes) INTRODUCE What? That fires need to be extinguished properly and carefully, and oven sites need to be returned to their original state. How? Ask the group what they think needs to happen when you are leaving the fire and why. What should happen at the end of the camp? It is useful to have some photos of forest fires, and/or picturesque locations scarred by camp fires. DEMONSTRATE What? How a fire is extinguished correctly and dismantle the oven. How? Using your demonstration fire and oven, show the group how to extinguish a fire either by dousing or smothering, then spreading the em-

7 EXPLAIN What? How to use oven fire safely. How? Explain that with some basic rules we can use fire safely, effectively and as a tool to help us around camp. Introduce some of the basic safety rules (e.g. never leave a fire unattended). Types of Dutch Ovens APPLY What? This activity consolidates the skills learned earlier in the session. How? Ask the group to come up with their own set of safety rules for oven fires, perhaps by asking small teams of participants to write rules on post-it notes before sticking them to a wall or display board. They can then move to other teams walls or displays to pick out the rules they agree with/think are important. SUMMARISE What? This exercise checks understanding of the skills taught in the previous activity. How? Display the safety post-it notes that were chosen together on a wall or display board. Remove any duplicates to come up with a master set of rules. Ask the teams to explain/justify why they made that rule. LESSON 2 Preparing the Ground (30 Minutes) INTRODUCE What? Good Ovens & fires need good preparation. How? If possible draw on personal experience. This could be a short story or anecdote about the trials and tribulations of trying to light a fire with damp wood, or building the oven in the wrong site. DEMONSTRATE What? How to build and site the oven, construct the correct fire and what it should include. How? In an appropriate location show the group your preparations for sighting the oven and lighting a fire. This should be a visual demonstration, so make a big show of clearing potential fuel from the floor, marking your fire area with logs, having a fire bucket etc. You could turn this into an observation game, asking small groups to note everything you do and report on their observations at the end of the demonstration. Score their responses. This feedback section is also an opportunity for you to explain why you did certain things. Lamps & Stoves. Your Scout Troop will have different types of stoves and lamps, each will have its own correct method of use. You may have heard of some or all of the following - Primus Stoves, Coleman, Tilly Lamps, Davey Lamps, Trangias, Gaz lamps. Most of these names are the trade names of the people that invented or manufacture them, but the names are commonly used to describe different types of stove or lamp. The one thing that all stoves and lamps have in common is that to create heat or light they need to burn fuel and, as with anything that burns, this makes it potentially dangerous - so look to your Senior Patrol Leader and Scout Leader for advice and training, so that you can pass on the knowledge and skill to your Patrol with confidence, after all you do not want to use First Aid because of any small mistake. So remember, learn the skill, Safety Rules and Maintenance requirements - get it wrong and disaster waits in the wings for the unwary. Gas Lamps

8 Training Others One thing you have to do is to instruct someone how to use Ovens, Stoves and Lamps. This doesn t mean showing them once and leaving them to get on with it! Having shown them, you will need to watch them while they demonstrate what they have to do. So master your knowledge well, and above all NEVER mess around, be Professional, be PROUD of your skill. OBJECTIVES By the end of this session, participants will be able to: 1. Prepare an area for lighting a fire 2. Construct the oven support/structure 3. Lay and light a fire 4. Put out a fire and clear the area correctly. 2 Burner Duel Fuel Stove Coleman Old Primus Stove Paraffin SAFETY The requirement for all this type of equipment is the safe use and this should always be YOUR first priority. Stoves and Lamps use different fuels such as petrol, methylated spirits, paraffin, gas or solid fuel tablets and you will need to know how to look after each one properly and its particular dangers. Here are some general Safety Rules to remember :- Always follow the Manufacture s instructions carefully. If there are no instructions, ask for help or DO NOT use the equipment - NEVER GUESS NEVER try to refill a hot Lamp or Stove. It may suddenly light or even Explode. NEVER refuel a Stove or change a gas cylinder in an enclosed space - take it outside. NEVER throw a gas or fuel container on a Fire - even if you think it is empty it still might explode. Always keep fuels in clearly marked containers well away from the sources of heat and light. NEVER play with Fuels, liquid fuel by itself presents hazards, but Fuel Vapour is Lethal. EQUIPMENT Tinder, kindling & fuel Matches, flints or other suitable ignition source Tools as appropriate e.g. spades Bucket of water, sand or fine soil Resources for running training activities as required. LESSON 1 Basic Elements (20Minutes) INTRODUCE What? The topic of fires and the need to use them safely. How? Ask the group about any experiences building oven fires in the past. Where have they seen oven fires before? Ask them what fire might be used for and create a list these could be good and bad things. DEMONSTRATE What? Some of the dangers of fire and using ovens. How? This section requires a careful balance of material to develop a healthy respect for fire, without instilling fear or anxiety. Appropriate ways to cover this topic might be anecdotal evidence or YouTube videos showing a mixture of safe and unsafe fire use possibly with news articles too.