Make Your Own Homemade Firestarters
March 23, 2008
Homemade Fire Starters
Use these homemade fire starters the next time you want to make a campfire. And you will definitely want a campfire, because they’re warm, inviting, and just plain fun. And a fire could also save your life, so it is vitally important that you are prepared.
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Whether you want to start a fire for cooking, for telling stories, or for survival, the first thing you will need is a flame source (matches, lighter, etc.) followed by some sort of tinder or fire starter. A fire starter should light easily and burn well, and you should always keep them in a watertight container. Below are some ideas for homemade fire starters.
Cotton Balls Saturated with Petroleum Jelly
You need to really work the petroleum jelly into the cotton with your fingers. Store them in an empty film container or a ziplock back. An interesting test is to light a plain cotton ball and a saturated cotton ball side by side to see the difference. The plain cotton ball only burns for a few seconds and then it just smolders. The cotton balls with petroleum jelly hold a flame for several minutes. This is one of our favorite homemade fire starters.
Birthday Cake Candles
A few of the small, thin birthday candles work great. Just put them in a ziplock bag, and you’re ready to go.
Dryer Lint Eggs
Take balls of Dryer Lint and place them in an empty egg carton. Cover with melted wax. Use old candles or paraffin wax, let cool, and store in ziplock bag. Be careful when melting wax because it can ignite. Use a double boiler to be safe. Sawdust or shredded paper works in place of lint, too.
Wax-Coated Cardboard
Take any old wax-coated cereal box, milk carton, etc., and cut them into small strips. Check at your local grocery store for leftovers. Or make your own by placing a few small strips on aluminum foil, making the foil into a cup, and covering with wax. Once it dries, wrap it up in the foil to waterproof it or store in ziplock bags. This is a fun homemade fire starter project to do with kids as long as you are very careful with the melted wax.
Waxed Matches
Put matches in the holes of corrugated cardboard cut into strips and cover with wax. You can cut off the amount that you will need for each fire.
Natural Fire Starters
In a pinch, sap from trees, dried pine needles, and dried leaves will work.
Soaked Twigs
If you carry liquid fuel (i.e. white gas) in a fuel bottle, place a few small twigs inside. Take them out ONLY in an emergency to carefully start a fire. Pick the cleanest twigs you can find, and you should filter the fuel before using it.
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Bonus Tip: Fire Starter/Candle/Fuel
You’ll need some candle wax (from old candles or wax from a craft store), and some cotton balls. Directions:
Melt wax in a double boiler
Drop a cotton ball into the melted wax
Take a fork and squeeze the submerged cotton ball onto bottom or side of the boiler, then allow it to expand, soaking up the wax
Fish the wax coated cotton ball out with a fork and set aside to cool (onto newspaper or wax paper, etc.)
Once dry, you can pack them in a zipper lock bag and they’re ready to use
This type of fire starter works along the same lines as the petroleum jelly cotton ball above, but it’s far less messy.
This type of homemade fire starter ball will not simply start with an open flame by itself. The wax needs to melt and vaporize first. Just pull a bit of the top of the ball out so you have a wick. The thin strands of wax coated cotton will then light easily with a match or open flame, and it will not blow out easily. tThin strands are the key to lighting it. I find that the can opener from my pocket knife works well, just puncture the hard shell of wax that forms on the outside and hook a few strands
Once lit, the wax will begin to melt, the flame will get hotter and bigger. It will burn for 10-15 minutes, and it will hold up to a strong breeze and the occasional gust of wind. It will be a large flame, encompassing about half the ball, and it will not melt and leave wax all over the place.
The wax coated cotton ball will not, however, start with just a spark. You will need some tinder if you don’t have a match or your lighter is empty. Get some tinder going. (you know how to do this right?) Use the tinder to light the wax coated cotton ball. My favorite way to do this is with dryer lint, a spark from an empty lighter, and dry grass or paper. Dryer lint lights easily from a spark, but it doesn’t burn very long. So use it to light the longer burning wax/cotton ball firestarter.
These wax/cotton balls have several uses:
As previously noted, it makes a great fire starter - it burns long enough to get larger tinder going even if it’s damp.
Use it for emergency light - it gives off more light than a candle or match, and it won’t blow out easily.
And finally, it makes a good alternative to those expensive fuel tablets. Use them in your folding fuel tab stove to boil water.
Remember to experiment at home before you entrust your life to any toy or technique. Just don’t burn the house down.
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