| Technique | Where Used | How Done | Advantages | Disadvantages | |||
| Head fire | Large areas, brush fields, clearcuts, under stands with light fuels | (1) Backfire
downwind line until safe line created (2) Light head fire |
Rapid, inexpensive, good smoke dispersal | High intensity, high spotting potential | |||
| Backfire | Under tree canopy, in heavy fuels near firelines | (1) Backfire from downwind line; may build additional lines and backfire from each line | Slow, low intensity, low scorch, low spotting potential | Expensive, smoke stays near ground, the long time required may allow wind shift | |||
| Strip head fire | Large areas, brush fields, clearcuts, partial cuts with light slash under tree canopies | (1) Backfire from
downwind line until safe line created (2) Start head fire at given distance upwind (3) Continue with successive strips of width to give desired flames |
Relatively rapid, intensity adjusted by strip widths, flexible, moderate cost | Need access within area; under stands having 3 or more strips burning at one time may cause high intensity fire interaction | |||
| Spot head fire | Large areas, brush fields, clearcuts, partial cuts with light slash, under tree canopies; fixed-wing aircraft or helicopter may be used | (1) Backfire from
downwindline until safe line is created (2) Start spots at given distances upwind (3) Adjust spot to give desired flames |
Relatively rapid, intensity adjusted by spot spacing, can get variable effects from head and flank fires, moderate cost | Need access within area if not done aerially | |||
| Flank fire | Clearcuts, brush fields, light fuels under canopy | (1) Backfire
downwind line until safe line created (2) Several burners progress into wind and adjust their speed to give desired flame |
Flame size between that of backfire and head fire, moderate cost, can modify from near backfire to flank fire | Susceptible to wind veering need good coordination among crew | |||
| Center or Ring fire | Clearcuts, brush fields | (1) For center
firing, center is lighted first (2) Ring is then lighted to draw to center, often done electrically or aerially |
Very rapid, best smoke dispersal, very high intensity fire drawn to center away from surrounding vegetation and fuels | May develop dangerous convection currents; may develop long distance spotting; may require fire crew |
Name: Mark C. Wallace
Email: c7wmc@ttacs.ttu.edu