Playing with Fire
Dec. 22nd, 2008 12:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hafoc
Today I retreated to my private, primitive cabin in the woods-- also known as the workshop room that was built onto the opposite side of Ugly House's attached garage. Went out to do some reading and writing away from distractions. I got some done, too.
I also got the propane heater and fuel tank that belonged to my dad hooked up and running. Had to. It was cold out there, ice on the windows and all of that.
ANYWAY, in the absence of distractions I will manufacture my own. I took my pocket match safe with me, to light the propane heater. Forgetting that I had one of my NEW boxes of matches out there, sealed safely in a plastic bag.
So, as a follow-up to my Danger Matches entry, I decided to try a little experiment.
Hypothesis: New strike-anywhere matches perform far better than the old ones that have been soaking up summer humidity for several years.
Experimental apparatus: One Marble's pocket matchbox, with roughened surface on the outside which is supposed to be for striking matches upon. 19 old wooden matches, the capacity of the matchbox. Ten new wooden matches, because ten is a nice round number.
Procedure: Strike each match on the roughened surface of the Marble's match safe. Repeat until the match lights, or breaks, or the head crumbles, or you have tried to strike it 30 times, whichever comes first.
Results:
New matches: 7 lit, two match heads fizzled but the wood didn't catch fire, one match broke, for a 70% success rate.
Old matches: 2 broke, 17 failed to light at all.
Hypothesis proven, I think.
I also got the propane heater and fuel tank that belonged to my dad hooked up and running. Had to. It was cold out there, ice on the windows and all of that.
ANYWAY, in the absence of distractions I will manufacture my own. I took my pocket match safe with me, to light the propane heater. Forgetting that I had one of my NEW boxes of matches out there, sealed safely in a plastic bag.
So, as a follow-up to my Danger Matches entry, I decided to try a little experiment.
Hypothesis: New strike-anywhere matches perform far better than the old ones that have been soaking up summer humidity for several years.
Experimental apparatus: One Marble's pocket matchbox, with roughened surface on the outside which is supposed to be for striking matches upon. 19 old wooden matches, the capacity of the matchbox. Ten new wooden matches, because ten is a nice round number.
Procedure: Strike each match on the roughened surface of the Marble's match safe. Repeat until the match lights, or breaks, or the head crumbles, or you have tried to strike it 30 times, whichever comes first.
Results:
New matches: 7 lit, two match heads fizzled but the wood didn't catch fire, one match broke, for a 70% success rate.
Old matches: 2 broke, 17 failed to light at all.
Hypothesis proven, I think.
