Forums > Technical Discussion > Looking for fuel in Switzerland

Posted: 23rd Oct 2012
I personally use white gasoline (coleman camping fuel) for performances because it lights up immediately and produces little smoke. When I practice or do shows on the street I use regular gasoline because it is cheaper, but I always wear an airfilter because it produces lots of soot. In general, it is recommended that beginners start with an oily, slower lighting fuel because it is safer. You will have less accidental ignitions/explosions. The advantages of the faster lighting fuels is that you can do tricks like touching one end of the staff and carrying the fire over with your hand to light the other side, or making a big flame burst by spinning the staff quickly.

For slower burning fuels you can use lamp oils, such as citronella, or pure lamp oil. It takes a while to light up because you have to warm it up. Oily fuels burn for longer than more volatile fuels like gasoline, but they also have the downside of making the floor very slippery if you are spinning on tile, or wooden floors. Oily fuels also tend to produce more smoke than cleaner fuels like white gas. I think the cleanest oily fuel is probably liquid paraffin. It's what fire breathers use, since it is less toxic than everything else.

Posted: 4th Nov 2012
Dear Pyrodanza,

Thank you for your reply, it helped a me a great deal.
I was trying and spinning now for 2 weeks and I used "medical fuel" which I bought at the drug store. I made very good experiences with that ... it's not really cheap but ... well I don't care. I don't spin fire that often, that's why.

Thank you for your time replying my message, I will definitely try other fuels which you recommended me.