I use smoke on the hives only when I’m doing a complete inspection. Seems like it’d be easy to light paper on fire, but starting fire at the bottom of a can is actually a little tricky. I have it down finally. Here is my stuff that I love with the steps enumerated:

1. Paper: Shredded/dry paper: fill to ~ 1/2 full
2. Torch: light the paper with this amazing tool (benzomatic)
3. Wood from old frames (split into kindling right-sized for your smoker). Add in a couple sticks that have bits of wax, which is super-flammable.
4. Wood Pellets: once flaming starts, add in a couple handfuls to help extend the length of smoke. For my 4 hives, I need about 1 hour to inspect during summer.

• Kwik start: I have these around in case all else fails. Very helpful on wet mornings.