The Gardeco Swedish Torch (Review) [AD]
There’s something quite exciting about lighting your own fire. Not in a burn-your-house-down kind of way, but a sitting-around-a-campfire-toasting-marshmallows kind of way. We’ve always enjoyed being around a fire. From our previous chimneas and fire pits, to bonfires and the occasional wood burning ritual when I couldn’t be bothered to take tree cuttings to the tip!
I don’t know what it is, but being around a camp fire with a few ciders after a BBQ is just the best. If you time it well; it means you don’t have to get changed out of your shorts once the fire is fully ablaze – keeping you nice and toasty. It also often means the s’mores will be on their way!
But the trouble with building your own fire is that the novelty wears off quickly, and if you have trouble getting it started you often forget why you started it in the first place after the 20th match and half a bottle of lighter fluid!
THE GARDECO SWEDISH TORCH
Before I was sent the Gardeco Swedish Torch by The Chimnea Shop I had absolutely no idea what a Swedish Torch was. After a quick google, I found that they’re an old tool used by the swedish army for heat, light, and cooking! But now a days they’re used for a quick fire in the garden, beach, or camp site (as long as they accept camp fires, mind you).
Features
The Swedish Torch allows the users a clean and easy way to have a fire, without the fuss of having to build one. As well as it being portable, the small torch burns for over an hour and holds it shape whilst burning; thanks to the design that encourages the fire to burn from the inside out! The clever criss cross pattern in the wood means the oxygen enters the torch one way and keeps the fire burning in one place.
We were really excited to the get the fire going, but after a few windy evenings we knew this was going to be easier said than done. Although the torch has organic firelighters within the core – making the torch apparently easy to light – you really do need the weather to be breeze free as little starting flames were easy to blow out.
When we finally found an evening that was less breezy than the others we decided to give it another try. And after a lot of hard work (and maybe a little lighter gel to help against the wind) we eventually got it going and the fire was actually really impressive.
Fire!
Once in full swing, the heat really emanated and we stayed out until it was T’s bedtime. By this point it was quite windy but we couldn’t feel it due to the heat. Sharon then put T to bed, whilst I stayed out a bit longer looking at our handy work.
The fire lasted for at least another 2-3 hours after lighting and by the time it died to a point of being safe to leave it, it was well and truly dark (and late!). Once the toddler was in bed we decided move the fire closer to where we were seated using the handy string handle and to cook some s’mores on the fire.
Once the fire was going, I really enjoyed having it lit. It kept everyone nice and toasty and I felt safe around it. I particularly enjoyed not having to feed it or really watch it – again, something down to it’s design. Thinking ahead, I’d definitely give another one a go and see if the delay in lighting was us or the torch. Even if it is the torch, the delay isn’t something that a little lighting fluid couldn’t help with.
Thanks to the fact that it’s easily portable, I’d definitely take it to the beach one day, on holiday, and (rules allowing) take it to a festival or camping! It was so pretty to watch and would be the perfect end to a day.
We were sent a Gardeco Swedish Torch by The Chimnea Shop for the purpose of a review, however as always all thoughts and options are our own.
