Moldy fire pit

September 22, 2013 11:10 PM

So we have a fire pit (like this). It came with a cover, which we naturally assumed was waterproof, and left the cover on unused for about a month. We went outside tonight to start a fire and uh, the logs and bottom of the pit were completely covered with orange mold. We threw the logs away in plastic bags without touching them, and then threw some new logs on and started a fire, thinking it would kill the mold that was left. We also tried not to breathe in any of the smoke and pretty much stayed at a far away distance. Are we going to get sick? My paranoid mind is already feeling a sore throat coming on. Tomorrow we plan on cleaning it with vinegar or bleach. I assume leaving it uncovered is the best option for the future?
posted by kerri13 to Home & Garden (8 answers total)

I don't know how sensitive you are to mold/fungus, but as a Boy Scout, I've stood in the path of heavy smokey fires just because they were warm and ignoring what had been growing on the wood because I was happy that it was burning at all.

Since most campsites leave the fire pits more-or-less as is for the season, exposed to elements, your best bet would be to clean it of ashes, make sure water doesn't accumulate, and don't keep wood in it (where it will rot and maybe damage the firepit.
posted by plinth at 11:20 PM on September 22, 2013

Best answer: My gut, since it is natural materials (wood, ashes) decomposing in the semi-natural environment of an outdoor firepit, is that you don't need to worry much about this mold and you may be overreacting. Wood decomposes in nature, fungus is all around us all the time, etc. Sore throat may just be from sitting by a fire (plus overactive imagination).

If you already had a fire in the pit, the vinegar and bleach are not necessary. You could give it a good rinse and scrub with the hose and a brush, or vinegar if it soothes your worries. Leave it to dry in bright sun, UV radiation is a good disinfectant. I would avoid unnecessary use of harsher chemicals and especially avoid pouring any soap or bleach on the ground outdoors.

Leaving the cover off and making sure there is no water or moist organic material accumulating in the pit due to rain or what have you should discourage mold in the future.
posted by dahliachewswell at 11:42 PM on September 22, 2013 [4 favorites]

You're fine. Drill a big (1/2") hole in the bottom of the pit to drain, and don't cover it.
posted by notsnot at 5:26 AM on September 23, 2013 [1 favorite]

Best answer: You'll be fine. People burn moldy wood all the time (I've done it myself more times thaan I can count) and I've never heard of anyone having a problem from it. The mold was almost certainly not toxic even to begin with (not that I'd eat it or anything) let alone toxic enough that a little residue might harm you even after going through a fire. The smoke from the fire itself is probably worse for you on its own, though of course that's no big deal either.

There are much more important things to worry about in this life. You can safely not worry about this one.
posted by Scientist at 5:29 AM on September 23, 2013 [1 favorite]

Best answer: The cover may well be "waterproof" in the sense that rain doesn't seep in, but it is not airtight. So what happens is, in damp weather moist air flows in under the cover, the moisture is absorbed by the logs, mold spores (which indeed are everywhere) also flow in with the air, and presto, you have moldy logs. Leaving the cover off is not the solution. Rather, don't leave logs under the cover, just ashes. In other words, when you make a fire, let it burn down to just coals or ashes before you cover it. (If it's just coals, you can safely leave the screen cover on overnight, then put the PVC rain cover on in the morning.) You want to keep a little layer of ashes in there to build your next fire on.

As for smoke carrying mold and poisoning you — no, that doesn't happen.
posted by beagle at 5:51 AM on September 23, 2013

There are lots of things that grown on wet wood, but I've not heard of any concerns. I use a wood stove for supplemental heat, and visit forums devoted to wood-burning(yeah, sorry, that's geeky).
posted by theora55 at 7:09 AM on September 23, 2013

Nthing that you are fine. I have inhaled smoke from fires with punky wood many times and am totally fine.
posted by Aizkolari at 11:10 AM on September 23, 2013

Some wood varieties have toxic smoke, and there are other woods which some people have allergies to but don't affect everyone.

It's possible that you burned one of the woods in those categories. If so, you probably won't get sicker feeling than you are now, but don't burn woods that are toxic or that you are allergic to in an open fire in the future.
posted by yohko at 1:52 PM on September 23, 2013