We all love a good bon fire, but there are times where we can’t have a raging fire going in our favorite fire pit. Those that live in apartments are the most impacted, as there are rules to restrict the use of fire on site. This is the idea that inspired City BonFires to create a unique alternative for those that live for a good fire. Now let’s get into the City BonFires Review.
Fires have always been something that I’ve loved from an early age. When the cool air starts to set in a fire takes a good evening and makes it great. I’ve learned this past year in being in a burn ban for most of the year, (Colorado Wildfires) that you can’t take having a fire for granted. Many that live in apartments have restrictions that don’t allow them to light a raging fire on their patio and this is one of the reasons that City BonFires was invented.
Features
- OUTDOOR use ONLY
- FDA food grade nontoxic soy wax makes it SAFE to roast marshmallows!
- Environmentally friendly
- Safe and easy to use
- A bonfire that’s all contained within a tin
- 3-4 hours of burn time
- Size: 4 in x 2 in
Testing of City BonFires
We got 2 City BonFires in and wanted to start testing them as soon as possible. The idea of a mini fire pit that was safe and portable was very intriguing. We brought our City BonFires to the top of our favorite mountain and quickly learned the challenge was going to be lighting them. We attempted to light with a regular lighter with no success. To be fair they do say that matches and regular lighters may struggle, but this is something I believe should be worked on as these City BonFires should be easier to light.
When we got back home I decided I would attempt to light the City BonFires in the most awesome way possible: FlameThrower! We placed the City BonFires on a stable, fireproof surface and then let the flame thrower do it’s thing. You can see in the below video that while we did get it lit, it took A FLAMETHROWER multiple attempts to light the City BonFire.
One edit that is not shown in the video is we then tried our Bison Torch Airlighter and this was the easiest way to light the City BonFire. It still look almost 10 seconds to get one of the 4 lighting surfaces going.
As we had two of the City BonFires we decided to hit the second one with the FlameThrower to see if we had a similar result. We did. Lighting was still a challenge.
There was very little smoke that came from the City Bonfires and this was a plus, as some people in my household have a strong aversion to smelling like smoke after a fun night.
There is an option to add a 4 pack of s’mores that can really impress your guests. There are four GIANT marshmallows, a hershey’s bar and some graham crackers that will make 4 individual s’mores for your fire pit guests.
When we were done with our evening I just put the lid back on the top to extinguish the fire. Do not use water to put out the flames.
We did confirm that one of these City BonFires will last 3-4 hours.
EDIT 1/29/21 We shared our experience with the City Bonfires team who shared they are now ‘scoring’ each City BonFires to make sure every can more easily light these. We got to try one of the new and improved City Bonfires and created a new video, below, to show the improvements in ease of lighting.
FAQ
Can I use my City Bonfires Indoors?
City Bonfires is for OUTDOOR use ONLY!
How do I light my City Bonfires?
- Only use your City Bonfires outside.
- The City Bonfires tin gets VERY hot and should be placed on a safe non-burnable surface like a trivet.
- Light your City Bonfires with a torch lighter or a candlestick lighter. It will be very difficult to light with matches.
- Start at the corner of each briquette and hold the flame to it until it lights. Please hold the flame to each briquette for at least 30 seconds or until lit.
- If the briquettes have a slight wax layer making it difficult to light, you can use scissors to cut them to release the fibers.
- City Bonfires will be extremely hot when in use. Never attempt to touch or move your City Bonfires during use or before it has completely cooled down.
- To extinguish your City Bonfires please slide the lid over the flame.
- You can relight your City Bonfires for a total burn-time of 3 to 4 hours.
How do I extinguish my City Bonfires?
To extinguish your City Bonfires please cover the flame with the lid. You can relight your City Bonfires for a total burn-time of 3 to 4 hours.
Is City Bonfires reusable or refillable?
Our City Bonfire is not refillable, however it is reusable. You can light your City Bonfires, extinguish the flame with the lid and then relight it. It has a total burn time of 3 to 4 hours. Once the wax and briquettes are gone you may recycle the tin.
Is this a candle?
Our City Bonfires is far from a candle! The entire surface becomes the flame and you can roast marshmallows over it! It also creates a large flame as a heat source. Our City Bonfire is handmade with American-made materials in Maryland by 2 Dads whose jobs were impacted by COVID-19.
Is this made in the USA?
YES! Our City Bonfires are handmade in Maryland with American materials by 2 Dads whose jobs were impacted by Covid-19.
Can you eat over the flame?
Yes, it is safe to cook over our City Bonfire. The soy wax used in the City Bonfires is FDA food grade recycled soy wax. There is no fragrance to the City Bonfires and it is great for making s’mores. Please burn your City Bonfires for 20 minutes or until the smoke stops, then you can start roasting your marshmallows. You can roast them to the side for ambient heat.
Can I bring City Bonfires on a plane?
You can either put your City Bonfires in your carry-on bag (security may examine it but will let you carry it on) or you can put it in your checked luggage.
Conclusion
PROS: portable, able to roast marshmallows over it, low smoke
CONS: harder to light than it should be (As noted in the edit above City Bonfires has made updates to their product to improve the ease of lighting)
Overall, this product has big potential, but they need to find a way to make lighting of their City BonFires easier.
If there is a question that we didn’t answer in our City BonFires Review leave your question below and we will get back to you.
Learn more and get your own by visiting CITY BONFIRES
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We NEVER get paid for our reviews! This way you can always trust what we share is our honest opinion. We were sent a sample to test out with the understanding we’d give our truthful thoughts.
Written By: Luke Lorick 1/4/21
I had no issue lighting with a Scripto candle lighter. My issue was roasting marshmallows, after an hour it still had black soot, turning the marshmallows black and unedible.
Wondering if it smells like an actual bonfire or is it a Smokey smell. I’ve purchased candles that were bonfire scented but didn’t smell the same at all- it just smelt like a forest fire and I ended up with a headache after an hour of burning it.