Trying to not set my raft on fire....

[Ivan]

As far as the small fires, if its in a light enough vessel you could slide it around so that no one part of the raft gets too hot. A water jacket would probably be the most practical though.

It's true that a very thin vessel full of water can be directly exposed to fire, but unless you can make your rafts out of giant very strong doritos this isn't going to help.

(sorry- that was supposed to be an edit, not another post.)

 

[Melissa G. McPhail]

I think all of your ideas have merit. A campfire cooled in a water bath would definitely work. You don't say where this is happening, but it seems the easiest solution is that the natives have developed a tar or resin type coating from a local tree to protect the raft from heat. If this is a fantasy world, you can do anything you want.

 

[Penpilot]

I wonder if it would make sense to cut a hole in the center of the raft and have the fire pot suspended in that hole in such a way that the bottom of the pot is actually touching the water. I think I'd still be stuck with having to use metal for that, but safety needs to trump ease of obtaining materials.

I was going to replay with an answer like this. I think it would work. Suspend the pot over the hole with a leather harness of some sort. In case of emergency untie a strap and tilt the pot to dump the fire into the water without losing the pot.

Hate to introduce another problem but even a little campfire burns through a couple pounds of wood per hour. Big fires go through a lot more. Where is that wood going to come from?

Do they maybe have access to a natural source of coal?

I'm all for getting facts right, but don't let facts get in the way of a good story. A rule of thumb I go by is I'm allowed to BS one maybe two small facts in a story so long as it doesn't violate the internal logic of the story. My two cents.

 

[Saigonnus]

Depending on the resources available, you could perhaps have them use tallow candles (which is made from animal fat) in a clay containers for transporting fire from one place to another without a large expenditure of fuel since the candle IS the fuel. If it is somewhat protected from the elements it could be used even in the worst weather (like on a flat boat). As a heat source it would be a bit limited compared to other things but even a little heat combined with body heat can help.

History: It is unknown when candles first came about, but generally they are thought to have been around for at least 5000 years.

If the story is set anywhere in the last 5000 years or the equivalent, it could work for the story.

As for a substance, pine makes creosote, the prime ingredient for PITCH, availability of these trees in the culture could make it easy to create a substance to protect from water as it was used on ships for centuries by pretty much every major naval power. Depending on resources, you could also go with whale fat or blubber from other sea animals, perhaps even the skin could be used.

 

[Ivan]

I'm all for getting facts right, but don't let facts get in the way of a good story. A rule of thumb I go by is I'm allowed to BS one maybe two small facts in a story so long as it doesn't violate the internal logic of the story. My two cents.

I agree with this. But you have to try to save your get out of jail free card if you can.

 

[BWFoster78]

As long as you have enough insulation, the wood of the raft will not get hot enough to ignite.

A good, thick stone or brick won't allow all the heat to be transmitted to the wood. Your race of people are probably experienced enough with using this system that they'd put out the fire long before it became a danger.