Scam alert!! Please be aware we are not holding a contest or giveaway. Several individuals have emailed that they have received information that they have won a giveaway. This is not us and it is a scam please report this if it happens. Thanks. Dan.
This has been happening to a lot of channels out there. If the reply comes from the channel "via" someone else, it's a scam. Don't go to any link! Just click on the message and report it, marking that it is spam.
It's a new scam going around that's getting old quick. They use Coinbase, Lowe's, Home Depot and a lot others saying you won something and all you have to do is pay shipping/handling . . . using your credit card info of course.
Almost step by step as grandpa showed over 40 years ago. The difference is he used dryer lent, kerosene (or starter fluid) and the same Gulf wax. We did them in egg cartons, then put them in a used bread bag, then in a tin can in the smokehouse til you were going hunting, fishing, etc. I miss Pop. Glad there's someone to teach these things.
I just recently made those type of fire starters using dryer lent and without lighter fluid. We never used lighter fluid for starting fires many years ago. And it still works fine and burns well. After I have lit a candle for it to scent a room I will drain the melted wax onto the dryer lent that I have placed in a egg carton (not the plastic ones...lol) and let dry. I keep them in the carton until ready to use. I might try some with lighter fluid before my hunting trip this week. Thank you for commenting; always nice to know others that learned from their parents outdoor crafts.
Dryer lint used to be a go-to tinder. These days, clothes are treated with pretty effective fire retardants. It’s amazing how often my dryer lint doesn’t want to catch a spark. It’s a good thing to have less flammable clothing, though!
When I was 11 in 1963 the Boy Scouts taught us how to make fire starters.Gulf wax, cardboard . We'd cut the cardboard into equal sized squares,tied them with string.Melt the Gulf wax ,dip the cardboard into the melted paraffin let it sit in the wax for just a second then pull them out.They always worked really well.Made enough to last for years .Still worked after ten years.Dont need the lighter fluid.
I forgot ,stack the pieces of cardboard four or five together,then tie them together and dip them.Cardboard boxes work the best because they are corrugated.They will truly last forever..
I was taught to soak the cotton wipes in rubbing alcohol, then put it in melted wax. Been making them that way for about 4 years now. Good video for those that did not know about this.
Doing it with the alcohol mean's your sealing it in with the wax...mixing the wax with the fuel make's sense because they actually combine together to make 1 fuel, very cool idea!
@@robertjenkins5440 When you think about it the stater fluid would evaporate on it's own, although it is sealed in the cotton covered in wax.But when you tear it to expose fibers you will have the insides exposed. I like both ways. I have been using the cardboard egg cartons for a decade or more, I fill then with drier lint which is very flammable, then use the candles I have had that were to short after the woman uses them I melt them down and pour over the lint sealing them to the section of the egg carton and tear off a section when need for a fire, cheap also
@@robertjenkins5440 sealing it is preferred. As you light the wax it melts and the alcohol becomes exposed and ignites. They are also waterproof. This lighter fluid version has got to stink also.
Either one works. Naptha (lighter fluid) is a bit easier to light, with an ignition temp of 44C (as opopsed to 53C for isopropyl). If you're lighting with a ferrorod, that's a non-issue, but if you're trying to use an alternate method (emergencies can be unpredictable) that extra ease of ignition might come in handy. Once lit, both will wick and burn efficiently though and neither is really driving the length of the burn, that would be the parafin. Basically, it's six of one, half a dozen of the other.
For decades I have been making mine from the cotton cosmetic rounds saturated in PJ. I get close to ten minutes of usable flame from a disc. I have used these in adverse conditions throughout the Rockies, Sierra Nevada, Cascades and the Great Basin. I store them in chew pucks and ziplock bags depending on where they are being carried. All of my clothing for the outdoors has a ziplock with several discs in a pocket. All of my packs have a puck as do my vehicles. God bless
Thought for a minute that you meant peanut butter and just hit the wrong letter.... Then I read your answer of petroleum jelly. Then I realized I wanted to combine the peanut butter with some grape jelly, so I made a sandwich while I looked for my petroleum jelly to make some firestarters. Call me a happy camper now.
After dipping pds in the wax mixture, I lay the. Out on sheet of wax paper. Then I cut between the pads and wrap them in the wax paper. The wax paper is just another version of the pads. It protects the starter pads, and also adds to the flame. Also very easy to light.
Made these yesterday after watching this video, and it was a 100 percent success!! I bought a pack of tea light candles and a pack of pads from the dollar tree, I already had lighter fluid. $2.50 investment, and it didn't take 25 minutes from melting the candles, to cooling and storing them! Fastest I've ever started my fireplace fire! Thank you, sir!!
I have used, since 1970 (I was 15 years old then), cotton balls, dipped in melted paraffin, and flattened out into Nickle or Quarter-sized wafers. I have simply ripped them open to expose the frayed fibres (I am Canadian, eh) of the cotton, struck a ferro rod spark . We had something called a 'Metal Match' back in the day, which was a tiny 5/32" diameter x 1-1/2" long ferrocerium rod attached to a little box with a striker that screwed into the bottom. You were supposed to put lighter fluid inside the box that had cotton in it, and when you removed the striker, it was infused with lighter fluid. I never did use it as a Zippo, and never used lighter fluid, because the spark was all I needed. Besides, things run out of gas, but that little tiny ferro rod lasted for hundreds of strikes.. These cotton ball wafers have worked well for me all these 50+ years, without any accelerant inside. I carry a couple in my pocket, always, and forget they are there, but, two or three years later, I can whip one out, fray it, strike a spark, and there is a sustainable flame that last about 3 or 4 four minutes, long enough to ignite finer kindling easily. Yes, I agree, a sure method to get a sustainable flame is necessary in emergencies. Thanks for the video.
Yep: I make mine laying out cotton balls on foil and dripping the wax from a lit utility candle onto them. Don’t need any other fuel, and they don’t need to be saturated with wax, either. Just fill an empty pill bottle with them.
If you want to be safe with paraffin, use the "double boiler" method. Set a bigger pot of water on the stove/campfire and bring it to a boil. Immerse the can with wax into the boiling water, but don't let water flow into the can. This controls the temperature of the paraffin to 212 deg F or 100 deg C. It will melt safely, quickly, and there is no risk of a fireball on your stove or campfire.
Man, what an awesome firestarter. Of course be safe using lighter fluid around heat and flames. But I went to dollar tree, bought the round cotton pads, then found a torch fuel at dollar tree as well, so I figured let's try it. Again, at dollar tree bought the 5 hour emergency candle pack and an aluminum foil bread pan. Melted the pack of candles over a fire in the foil pan, removed the pan from the heat, dumped in the torch fuel and started dipping the round cotton pads. They work perfect! Thanks Dan!
I use liquid paraffin lamp oil as my liquid to mix in with the Gulf Wax. So far several years in it isn’t evaporating out of the mix! I mix in just enough to soften the wax so it doesn’t crumble or flake off during it’s time riding around in my pack! I too put a crayon in my mix to make my batches different colors so I can track when I made it and what mix I used. I carried cotton balls and petroleum jelly for years, but this is superior in my experience!
I like your idea and that you have tried and tested these excellent components over time to see how well they stood the test of time. Thanks for sharing your findings with us. I too have been carrying/using Paraffin Lamp Oil and really like it a lot. Although I have never tried Gulf Wax, I think I will, as my current choice of emergency firestarter is cotton ball halves soaked in a 50/50 blend of Paraffin Lamp Oil and Coleman Fuel (White Gas) and I think that yours and Dan's idea of using the solidifying Gulf Paraffin wax might actually be an improvement over my messy Lamp Oil blend for the convenience of not having to keep/carry it in a leakproof lab grade, sealed Nalgene container (75 ml/1 fl oz. bottle). Also glad to finally read someone else acknowledging the fact that those ever popular Vaseline soaked cotton balls, as good as they may be, are simply not the superior choice available. But with all that said, and I certainly mean no disrespect or malice in saying/asking this, it seems that you have combined two of the very best sources of fire starter BASE ingredients for fire longevity but have chosen to leave out the equally important other half of the equation - the fire ACCELLERANT (I.E.- Lighter Fluid, K1, Turpentine, Alcohol or White Gas, etc.) which, IMO, is crucial to quickly taking a Ferro Rod spark in the worst possible weather conditions one may encounter, especially if wind is present. In a true life or death hypothermia emergency situation deep in the woods, especially one involving a fall through the ice for exteme example, I'm not sure I would want to rely on anything less than a 100% instantly ignitable (with a Ferro Rod) firestarter mix with only the base ingredients in it, as good as those are. Perhaps not everyone needs/wants my extreme level of fire starter reliability, but in my mind, if I can't be carrying the very best and most reliably failproof firestarter in the backcountry, or even in the back 40, then it just seems like an unnecessarily incomplete yet easily remediable attempt at fire starting preparedness. Just my opinion though. I would certainly be open to hearing your reasoning for choosing the mix you did. I am not here to start an endless and combative on-line argument with you or anyone about this stuff, and I assure you, I won't - there's already way too much of that going on elsewhere on the Tube, lol. That's one of the things I appreciate most about the YT Bushcraft/Survival community; most folks here are civil and here to learn and share lots of cool and useful info. Thanks for reading my rather lengthy comment, and I trust that you viewed it as the respectfully written one that it was intended to be. Wishing you ATVB. 🔥
So far nothing else has been needed! I was looking for something that worked well, wasn’t messy, was weather resistant etc which was basically a DIY of the fire-starters commercially available. So far the liquid paraffin oil/paraffin wax mix is enough to easily catch a fero rod spark! As a demo 2 Thanksgivings ago I went out into the wet yard I was visiting threw the purple dragon (my kids may be missing a purple crayon) into their pond and then pulled it out and lit it with my fero rod! 2X strike I think, but first one wasn’t a good strike! Ripped in half with the edge fluffed just a bit it burned like crazy for several 4-6 minutes (can’t remember the exact time on this example). If more is ever needed I’ll do more research/experimenting, but so far I have a stable, non messy, easy to use fire starter that is also cheap & easy to make! Another less important factor is they either don’t smell or don’t smell much depending on exactly what you used. I’ve flown with cotton/PJ and like that this really doesn’t smell so I could probably fly with them as well since they’re unlikely to raise anyone’s eyebrows! Smelling isn’t important unless it’s all over your gear! I tend to have a couple wrapped in foil with a fero rod in coat pockets, ditty bags and any day bag I carry. Smelly fuel on several K’s worth of electronics might make a bad day!
@@SheepDoggy68 Sounds awesome! Yeah, I don't think your electronics would be liking you very much after all that, lol. So far, I've never had any leakage issues with my "wet" blend while carrying them in the Nalgene vials/bottles (yet), but of course anything can happen at any time, and if it did - uugghh - what a horrendous mess that could turn out to be, with all that oily, waxy mess all over other important survival gear, food, etc., especially right in the middle of a big backcountry trip with no truly good way to get everything back in order. I also like how well these solid form waxed cotton round pads you guys are using stay dry and flammable even after a good dunking - in a pond. The "Purple Dragon"? And, helping yourself to your kids' purple Crayon? Ha...., luv it! 🤣👍You sound about as bad as me. 😉 Hey, as the parent, you bought it, so....technically it's still yours, right, lol? Unfortunately, that trend seems to reverse when they reach college age and are still living at/studying from home, and you have to start clandestinely and creativly hoarding some coveted food items that you've been eagerly, patiently waiting to show up from the grocery store, lest those items miraculously sprout legs and vanish into thin air, mere hours after returning from the store 😲😤. Or worse yet, the needed food items you specifically purchased expressly for taking to work all of a sudden go awol after you've explicitly forbade anyone from even looking at them sidways, leaving you wondering why you or your spouse even bother with any of those incessant lectures🙄 🤦♀. At that time, the whole so-called "empty nest" concept may actually start looking prrretttty darn good, lol - but I digress. Anyway, those benefits alone would be great reasons to stay with that firestarter design. I'm definitely going to give these a very serious try and see how well they work out. I'll probably still add the accellerant, but in light of how well yours worked without any, will also be giving some samples of the accellerant-free Gulf Wax/Lamp Oil blend round cotton pads a fair try, under very nasty weather conditions. Thanks for sharing your findings with me/us and for your helpful reply. I try to stay open to all different Bushcraft methods and ideas, and will readily adopt/incorporate someone else's idea/design as my go-to item/method if I believe that it will be a legit upgrade to what I had been previously using/doing - always searching for that very best way/item possible. Take care. 🙂
@@wdglockandroll Best? Who knows, but what works for me is to stack several 4-6 ish and wrap them in heavy duty aluminum foil. This puck then gets dropped into a quart ziplock freezer bag with a fero rod, striker, Bic lighter, matches etc and rolled up in a tight bundle and rubber banded. Rolling the bag over givers you many layers of plastic and makes it a fairly compact & durable bundle that can be stuffed in many places. With effort a compact version of this can comfortably fit in many winter coat pockets!
This is fantastic. After spending $5 on a pack of 10 store bought starters for my last hike, I can now make hundreds for about the same price! WTG my man. Love the channel.
This was great, I used these when I was in Boy Scouts. Also, another great firestarter is using the same wax & lighter fluid mix, then you mix it with dryer lint into a large spoonful, and place it in a cardboard egg carton. You can stuff the carton in your pack, tear off one dimple, tear it a little, and light it right up. I used this in Montana all the time up in the mountains. It works great in low oxygen heights because it burns for about 20 minutes.
@Wayne Eddy I keep cotton rounds by our scentsy warmer. Whenever my wife wants to change sents, she cleans the warmer out with the cotton. Instant fire starter.
Tea candles are a cheap source of paraffin wax, they are often sold in "dollar stores" in big bags for little money. I use them mixed with teflon powder to lubricate bike chains but I will certainly try these fire starters too.
This is the best way to carry any kind of Firestarter. They pack easily, they are safe, and they WORK, I even have a couple in my medical bags I have been using this for years. I'm surprised that many people have yet to do this.
1st comment, never gotten to say that before. I made a few dozen of these with a mix of candles from birthdays, emergency candles, tea lights and old gnarly crayons, I made mine look camo from all the different shades of green crayons I added in. The crayons seem to make them burn longer. Gonna try to make some orange and red food coloring for higher visibility, lot of people don't know that food coloring is flammable.
@@johngilmore3360 wax paper, a simple square of wax paper between each disc will keep them from melting together. Added bonus the wax paper is also flammable, and can be used to wrap around one of these disks after you break it in half to keep the left over exposed tinder-dry.
I've always used the square cotton pads, they're segmented in 4 pieces, and just wax. When you break a section off, it has enough "fluff" on the sides to catch with a ferro rod and they burn close to 3 minutes per segment, 12 mins in total. Opposed to about 8 minutes I'd get from a whole square or one round one. 2-3 minutes is plenty to start a fire even in wet conditions, so you can easily light four fires per piece. That's just me. Great video!
I've been using hand sanitizer! It's everywhere now a days. It's easy! I stack my fire small on bottom to big on top. Then just dump the sanitizer down the middle, and light it. Love the channel. Keepm coming. 🤠👍💯
Since the pandemic we've got it everywhere at work, but very few people are bothering to use it any more. I'm gradually stockpiling it for firelighter use!
Good idea! Used to be high priced, but now at my local Ollie’s, I often see a large bottle of hand sanitizer for a buck! These disks would pack nicely in my altoids fire kit!@@jonfisher9214
Excellent, thank you! (BTW: I believe you could tint the melting wax by adding a small piece of a color crayon, since crayons are normally made of a soft wax. I've used crayons to color some candles I've made since this method generally costs less than candle dye and may already be available in many homes. While crayons can sometimes leave a bit of residue in the bottom of your melting tin, I don't believe that'll affect the process you showed.)
I have already been making fire starters with paraffin wax and cotton rounds for years, but the addition of lighter fluid has really raised the bar on effectiveness ! When the first one I tested was still burning hot after 5 min., I walked away,( after putting it out)I goT some rectangular cotton pads and trimmed them to fit an Altoids can. Thanks for the awesome tip!
Thats great to know. I just made some using parrifin lamp oil and golf wax and ive just been using a lighter and they have been working great. Cant wait to see if they will still hold up
Surprised no one in comments mentioned this method: two cotton rounds, a fat blob of vasoline in between two rounds oreo cookie style and done. I keep in a light weight plastic watertight container. Ziplock also good but may get squished and get messy. Fire lasts 5 minutes on average; I tested. Take care and thanks for excellent content.
I am making these! I had an incident on my adventure bike in the middle of no where desert 30 miles from anywhere and zero signal. I thought we might be spending the night. It had me rethinking some basic stuff to take on every single ride. One of them is fire starters. I had a lighter with me, but it can be really tough to get questionable wood and damp kindling actually going. A firestarter could be a lifesaver. I was going to buy them but I just want to learn to make them this way. I used to make the egg crate style in scouts. Back when scouts taught boys how to not die in the woods.
Back in the 1970's, when I was a boy scout I made some great firestarters They were made with a (steel) cat food or tuna can, a roll of separated corrugated cardboard (separate the layers to expose more fibers), and paraffin. Essentially I made 3-1/2 wide candles that would start a fire even with damp wood. Before stacking wood around it, the flames were nearly a foot and a half high! The important thing was to dig out the melted metal after the fire was cold, to pack out the trash.
I had the opportunity to be a girl scout, but I had no interest. I sort of regret it now, but I just never really been an outdoorsy person other than going to fairs or water parks or things like that.
@@Lavenderrose73 majority of the books can be had online free via Gutenberg Project and to be honest after watching the documentary about the scouts, there was a whole loft of sexual misconduct going on during the entirety of the program over the years, so you might actually be glad that you wasnt a scout.
@@whysprspick any organization and if you if you want to find something dirty you will find it. It’s the human condition. Look in the papers. Look on the news. Look in the churches. Look in the schools. Look in your neighborhood. Look in the entertainment that most people choose to watch and it’ll be no surprise why you find it rampant everywhere. I encourage you to not disparage anyone or any organization unless you are willing to share your own shortcomings publicly. (May the one who has not sinned cast the first stone).
here's an idea; instead of laying the pads on aluminum foil to cool use waxed paper. then when they're all cool cut the paper with scissors. you'll be able to stack 'em, they won't stick together and the wax paper burns up!
Just made these myself doing it this way. Did them 50/50 ratio. Let them dry and did a test for myself to see how long one would burn. It was 7 minutes when i stopped the timer and called it done. I plan on using these for deer camp fires and in my smoker. Thank you sir for the info. Works great.
Another good fire starter Take a couple of candles with you That is by far the easiest way to get a fire going even The pouring down rain You light the candleIs and build A teepee of sticks Around the candle Eventually the wax will start burning with the sticks It works really well I live in the Pacific Northwest
@@johnplaisir9042 Hard for me to say exactly because even without lighter fluid they catch fire easily, but I imagine you could reduce evaporation of the lighter fluid on the surface of the fire starters by keeping in an airtight container. 😊
You can use these to light a candle to put under your tinder or larger wood, depending on the situation. I always carry several different fire starting methods with me. Starting with a lighter, ending with a magnifying glass and everything in between. Some folks preach minimum items to survive. Folks don’t be afraid to carry a few extra ounces or pounds. Remember we are talking about your LIFE! Don’t just survive, THRIVE! I carry these with me as well as many other things to start a fire. A candle is wonderful after you get it lit. It’s is a constant light source, heat source, and ignition source until you get your fire going. Who knows, you might not find enough dry material to get a fire going. But the candle can help for a while. Who says you are limited to one candle anyway? Also another type of candle I carry is the “magic” relighting candles you find in the birthday candle section. They are great in windy conditions and I would suggest only using them in windy situations if your other methods have failed. Stay safe everyone!
If anyone is interested, I have experimented with this recipe. I have tried 50% down to 10% of the lighter-fluid ratio. The magic number, for me, is 15%. This results in an instant, strong flame from a ferro rod while keeping most of the rigidity of the gulf wax. If you're making 100 grams, use 85g wax & 15g lighter-fluid. The 50% results in a pad that is too flexible, in my opinion and seems subject to drying out.
Adding the fire starter is a great idea Dan. But I just pour a little mineral oil into a ziplock bag of cotton balls and throw it in my fire kit. Quick, easy, cheap, and it works great. Plus, the mineral oil comes in handy for protecting and lubricating anything that’s going to be around food, like my carbon steel knives and the lid to my Trangia burner.
An easy way to get colors added to the mix is to toss in a crayon or a birthday candle. If you use the birthday candle, you also have to pull the wick out of the can. I have been using these fire starters for coming up on 40 years. I learned about these in Boy Scouts way back when. Love the content!!!
For ten years or more I have been using a combination of wax ( I use leftover wax from the scented wax melts from walmart ) and lamp oil at a 50:50. The oil is less volatile than any type of lighter fluid. And when I go to the woods I take a pill bottle with the paste in it. And use what tender is available at hand. Thanks for your time
Ive used wax and kerosene. I got a 5 minute burn time. I added in some Vaseline and made it kinda gel like. That increased the burn time to 8min. Still remained waterproof too
I just made a batch of these, they are great! Super easy to make, inexpensive, and they work great! Thank you sir I will never use another store-bought fire starter!
I have used this technique to make fire starters since the mid 90's but I like to use less lighter fluid than wax for a more stiff and slower to light version. I also embed a strike-anywhere match in the wax and make sure that it is also covered and protected by the wax. Then just pop off the wax from the tip of the match, strike it on a rock or your zipper and your off to the races. I use folded up paper towels rather than the cotton disks. I don't really need the super small fibers as I embed the match and also always have a bic, and can get still carefully shred them and get them to light with sparks if I needed to, I don't ever need to though with the match. Also you can source cheap wax by buying candles at thrift stores which is what I do when I do not have a almost burned out candle of my own that I can use the leftover wax from. And last but not least I use zippo lighter fluid/ronsonol lighter fluid, not charcoal grill starter fluid, though that is probably cheaper if you were to use a large amount of wax and needed a large amount of fluid but I make small batches and have the "good stuff" on hand.
Damn. That was good. Right now I'm making boonie hats that incorporate Dave Canterbury's 10Cs of survival. This would definitely help in the combustion category given its waterproof characteristics. Way to go Dan. Much appreciated.
@@ryanvalencia1027 Given that I'm mass producing these things, if you'd like to participate in testing I'd be glad to send you a freebie. Not that I require any feedback, as I don't like mandating anything to anybody at anytime, but suggestions, concerns, or ideas to make it better would be appreciated. Last night I was experimenting with one of the hats. I tore off some duct tape from the hat and affixed one of those tiny, button-like flashlights to the brim and it worked magnificently in the dark. I'm not into selling these things. Just sharing. Go to TOPTIE and let me know which color hat you'd like. Or I could just send you a ready made one.
@@ryanvalencia1027 Cordage is simple. 550 cord, about 10 feet coiled inside the hat and taped down with orange (or whatever color you like) duct tape in the form of a big X or two Xs, one vertical one horizontal to hold it in place. Usually I split the tape in half and lay it in that way. That covers 1) Cordage and 2) Cargo Tape. The boonie hat itself is 3) Cover (yeah, I know, it's pretty lame but it is what it is), 4) Combustion devices- matches and/or mini bic lighter wrapped in self-adhesive bandage tape. The matches require waterproofing or just buy them that way. All you need is a few. I camouflage both of them in appropriate colored camo tape and stick them in the hat band. 5) Cotton bandana- I go with orange for signalling or whatever and simply fold and stick inside the hat on top of the cargo tape. 6) Cutting tool- I use duct tape to marry a guitar pick with a box cutter blade. The guitar pick gives you a good grip. Have to angle it a certain way so that your forefinger rest on top of the pick next to the blade. I use the self adhesive bandage tape and wrap it around several times to make the blade safe, then stick it in the hat band. 7) Candling device- I use a flat button flashlight. They can stay on for 15 hours. They fit into the hat band easily and yes I wrap it in the adhesive tape. 8) Compass- use a air-filled button compass made by Stanley of London. Very accurate. Provides cardinal directions only. 9) Canvas needle- I thread the needle with a heavy duty waxed thread, then roll it up and down onto the needle, then wrap it with adhesive tape. I stick it into the hat band and take a small piece of cork to apply to the needle head. 10) Container- this was the hard one. I use a Whirl-Pak Stand up bag. Holds half a gallon, maybe? A foldable, sealable plastic bag which I put a few purification tabs inside. Goes inside the hat under the cotton bandana. It's best to get an extra large hat which allows one to carry more cordage. But that's it. In practice I would lay a decent pocket knife into the hat and when in use stick the pocket knife into a pocket while keeping the box cutter blade as a backup.
I’ve been making these for awhile. The only change is that I mix some petroleum jelly in with the charcoal lighter to make it a little thicker, less conducive to evaporation, vaseline burns… I like the wax paper idea. Also, for simple storage, fold the cotton round and use gorilla tape to seal it. Light the gorilla tape or cut it open.
Aha! Knew there must be some trick I was missing. I made some from tail ends of candles and whatever wax bits were lying around. Don't burn worth a hoot. Sending my husband on a lighter fluid procurement mission ASAP! (The gulf wax is already on the pantry shelf.) Can't wait to try this and cackle like Dan. 😄
I’ve made these using cheap votive candles for the wax but never added the lighter fluid. Another tool for the toolbox that I’ll have to try. Thanks Dan!
That is real nifty, but you have a DRYER at home just take the lint out of the dryer and make it whatever shape you want and do the same thing. You could also take an egg carton. The recycled cardboard or whatever one. Put some lint down in that and drip wax over the top as well. Boom cheap and easy. I been doing it for years. My mom and dad were huge into outdoors when I was a kid and they showed me how to make these and pack a ruck. I'm real thankful for the knowledge they gave me. Love the channel keep up the great work.
Thanks for this. Just made a batch for my pellet stove. Used a small metal bowl inside of my pot which I boiled water in (double boiler method). This allowed me to put it back into the hot water to soften the wax mixture as often as I needed (after I removed it from the heat source). Was super easy and they work great!
These are great but I recommend using parchment paper between each piece. In the summer months, they have a tendency of sticking together. I store mine in used pellet tens. So if you have a pellet gun here is another way to repurpose the empty tens. In the past, I've only used wax but I can see where using an excellent would greatly enhance the fire-starting capabilities of this method. Thanks for sharing.
I was wondering about this too. I was planning to keep a tin of them in my car for emergencies and wondered if they would melt into a big brick. Thanks for the parchment paper tip.
I can attest that these also help with wooden coal barbecue lighting as well. We don't have much use for them in the tropics, but are quite convenient for starting fires without using a range or big lighter.
Just used your method and they work like a charm. I had some used WD40 left over from a cleaning/lubricating project and mixed this in the melted candle wax. About a 25% mix. I also put in a shot of yellow vegetable dye for colour. I did the time test on one of them and it lasted with a good flame for 6 1/2 minutes. If I can't get a fire going within 6 1/2 minutes I may as well stay home. I made 80 of them and the total cost was $1.25. 80 cotton rounds from Dollarama for $1.25. Candle wax from old candles from friends and family, free. Used WD40 free. Stored them in a clear plastic container with a screw on lid to make them more waterproof. Heat source was a tuna can rolled cardboard and melted wax mini stove which was also also $0.00.
Went and made a batch of these. Just happen to be snowing outside when I called my bro-in-law to show him. Wind is blowing and snowing but this lit on first spark and burned down to nothing. Impressive to say the least.
These pads are great. Thanks. I personally always used Hexamine/Esbit tablets as fire starters (they burn for +-10 minutes) and cost a few cents per tablet. But I will definitely make these pads as well.
On my AT thru hike I used those cotton pads with my wood burning stove. I could almost always get a fire started using 1/4 of one pad using paraffin wax only. Yours probably start easier with a ferro rod due to the lighter fluid but I had no problem with a Bic. Yours also seemed to initially flame up more. Thanks for sharing. I recently subbed btw. Outstanding channel.
Awesome. I did that in my apartment but just with the lighter fluid and a very small pile of tiny wood shavings from a small dry tree stick and my ferro rod - it started pretty quickly.
@@rockytopwrangler2069 Maybe not now, considering how whooped they've become. But I was a Boy Scout back in the 70's. And Yes, we used both lighter fluid and petroleum jelly. We even started our own fires to melt the wax. . . OOOOOO Scary. lol
Dan, these fire starters are fantastic! I made some yesterday, using melted candle stubs and adding an equal measure of charcoal lighter fluid. I dipped the cosmetic rounds and laid them out on the snow to cool. I lit one with a couple strokes of my ferro rod, and I was amazed at the blaze it produced.
You are the first person on UA-cam I have seen add accelerant to the mix. Most just do cotton dipped in wax. This caught my attention because a few years ago I bought some citronella Tiki torch oil on clearance at the dollar store and thought, "Hmmm...". I didn't mix it with the wax. Instead I dipped the rounds quickly in the Tiki torch fuel, let them sit a few minutes until any excess drained then dipped them in melted Gulf wax. I carry five or six of them in a 'travel size' Nivea lotion tin (used the lotion because my skin is very dry) in my pocket as part of my EDC kit. I cut rounds of parchment paper and scrap printer paper to separate them in the tin. There has never been any leakage into my pocket even after several years of carrying them that way. I used a couple from the same batch that were in my camping fire kit along with a piece of fatwood, also from the fire kit, to start a fire on a recent camping trip after it had been pouring down rain and everything was wet. These things are absolutely legit.
VERY IMPORTANT: At 3:04 he says to take the melted wax off the fire. I must stress to do this. It's VERY important. I was doing this in my kitchen, and the "take it off the fire" part had gone right past me. Well, after I added the lighter fluid to the wax and began dipping my cotton balls -- with the pot still on the stove -- the mixture eventually warmed to the point that it burst into flames. Coulda been catastrophic. Fortunately, I was able to usher the flaming pot out into my backyard before I burned my house down. Therefore, I can't stress enough: TAKE THE POT OFF THE FLAME BEFORE ADDING THE LIGHTER FLUID.
Awesome video! So I tried this but I did it a little bit differently in that I did 1 part wax and then 60/40 lighter fluid/petroleum jelly for the rest. Never made these before but my first tester burned over 5 mins. Thanks for the ideas! Love this channel.
I like the addition of the light fluid. I use the same but without that and it works well. A mate suggested coating them in Vaseline (Petroleum Jelly) as that too is flammable but I have not tried that yet.
Awesome, I made these and they work great! The addition of lighter fluid as a catalyst is a great idea. One step up from my vaseline coated cotton balls.
Great! They also work well without the lighter fluid. My son and I showed how to make these in one of our videos a while back, too. We ended up just using some scented soy candle wax and melted it in a potpourri pot 👍
Very nice! I'm still a believer in the old vaseline soaked cotton balls. Just melt the vaseline in a pot on an electric hotplate, throw in a bunch of cotton balls so they are completely soaked, then take them out one by one using foreceps, put them one by one in a cheapo garlic press to remove the excess vaseline, and bob's yer uncle. Store in whatever container you want. The key to this is the garlic press. It makes things simple and it gets rid of the excess vaseline. No mess either because you are not rubbing vaseline into a cotton ball by hand. You now have basically a waterproof firestarter. Just fluff up to start with a ferro rod. Been doing this for over 20 years and I've yet to find a homemade fire starter that is any better. You can mash a ton of these into a small container and even fit a part of one into a small metal keychain capsule and carry it on your keychain.
Absolutely awesome Dan! I had no clue it was this easy to make them. Now that I know how to, I got something to keep me busy and save some money also!!
Using these cosmetic pads is a great way to go. I don't bother with anything other than just wax though. Good burn time and strong flame. I used one the other day that was 3 yrs. old and had no issues. Tampons work really well too. I let them soak in wax for several minutes (DO NOT remove the applicator). They will absorb a lot of wax, which makes for a long burn. After cooling, remove the plastic applicator and store. I usually cut one in half and flatten it with the butt of a knife, exposing fibers. Couple strikes with a rod and you get a strong flame for 6-7 minutes or more, depending on how long you soak them in wax. Flint and steel is fun and good practice, but as Coalcracker said, if you need a fire ASAP, it's always good to have some of these starters in the kit.
Neat idea. I’m fond of the old “Vaseline cotton ball” trick, though I use bag balm because it’s a bit better for other purposes than Vaseline in my opinion. Question: have you played around with the ingredients any? For example: beeswax instead of paraffin or zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid instead of charcoal lighter fluid (they’re not quite the same thing I think)
I have been doing this since I was a kid using zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid far less fluid than wax like 75% wax 25% zippo fluid and I use paper towels rather than cotton disks. I also embed a strike-anywhere match (or 2) in each of mine.
Good info. I’m from the Vaseline, cotton ball or lint mixture. They don’t seem to deteriorate. I’ve used the fiber egg cartons too. Always glad to learn something new. At 70, I keep learning.
I have my own variation of this. Products are tea candles, petro jelly, cotton rounds, and some wax paper. Tools: small fire, container to cook the supplies in, a fork or needle nose pliers to dip the cotton rounds with, and a drill. Step one, pop the metal disk holding the wicks from the tea candles. Set them aside for now. Step two, melt a good supply of petroleum jelly. Step three, dip the cotton rounds in the liquid jelly. They will soak up the liquid jelly. Put them on the wax paper to cool and harden. Step four, melt the tea candles. Dip the harden jelly cotton rounds in the wax. A quick dip is all it takes. Put them back on the wax paper to cool and harden. Step five, take your drill and the smallest drill bit you can find and pierce the center of the wax covered cotton rounds. Step six those wicks you set to the side, take one and insert the wick in the hole you just drilled in the cotton round. Now test one by lighting the wick. The flame on the wick will melt the candle wax exposing the jelly on the cotton round. The fire will then begin to consume the round. It should last a couple of minutes at least which should give you enough time to get other small fire wood chips or twigs to light. Easy peasy and no mess. I will make one recommendation though. Petroleum jelly has a very low melt point. I would not make these in the heat of summer outdoors. Best time to make these is when the temperature is below 75. But once you dip them completely in wax they are good to go for long term storage. The candle wax will completely conceal the jelly so the round will not leak or dry out. I've never tested these after long term storage, but I imagine that they might last for many years.
I checked the out the cotton disc wax- fire starters. The burn time was reproducibly 4 1/2 minutes. Just like on Dan's video. A great addition to my fire kit.
I agree with some form of double boiler (old pot with water and your can). I use a slightly different method. I soak pads in fluid. When wax is ready I squeeze the excess fluid from the pad then dip in wax. I let mine cool on parchment paper (no sticking). When cool I dip again. This seals the lighter fluid in. I have had 10 year old starters start instantly. I store in a sealed tin or zip lock bag.
Hey Dan instead of buying specific candle dye, could you simply use the left over wax from a colored candle that has come to the end of its wick? Or would a cheaper option ( I realize that Gulf Wax is not expensive just killing two birds with one stone) be to buy a dollar package of colored tapered or votive candles and melt them to the amount that you need? I love these DIY firestarters! Thanks for sharing! Love your channel!
Not having charcoal lighter fluid in the garage, I improvised a change and I think it's an improvement. I use petroleum jelly. First, warm up the petroleum jelly, then dip the cotton rounds thoroughly and allow to cool. Then dip twice in melted wax. This ensures the outside is totally waterproof and the inside has all that petroleum jelly coating and it burns like crazy. Totally waterproof and foolproof.
Alot of great questions and tips in these comments. Short soak time vs long soak, different ratios of wax and fuel, optional waxes (not all candles are the same), adding other proven fuel types (petrolium jelly either melted or smeared, crayon coloring, questions of odour and storage, evaporation and long term storage, adding tinder or matches to pad...this could take years of dedicated experimentation might even need a notebook haha. Have fun and don't get careless and burn yourself or the house down. Have fun! I will be testing some things.
great video I made something like this still works good the video said dip them in rubbing alcohol then dip them in wax just in case you cant find fire starter you can normally find the other stuff
I have been playing around with making home made fire starters but this is hands down the easiest I have seen. The size and shape would also be perfect for caring in an empty plastic "snuff" (tobacco) can for ease and protection. Time to hit Walmart lol. Thank you!!
I make these and keep them in my various camping kits just in case. Usually I'll just scrape up some kindling and use some little sticks and moss and stuff and light it with my lighter, but if I'm ever cold and wet and need not to be quickly, I know I have these, fatwood, a ferro rod, and a bag of Fritos. They WILL start a fire, at least here in the foothills of the Appalachians, in ANY conditions. In my backpacking and truck kits, I have several more methods, but I ALWAYS have at least what I mentioned before. I can camp without most stuff, but I'll never camp without at least a minimal fire.
Haven't been on in a while, love the new intro! I've been a huge fan of the petroleum jelly/cotton ball starter for quite some time, and also like to make them with triple antibiotic ointment. I am really looking forward to learning this new (to me) recipe.
I love these. Just made some. So much easier than what I was doing which is twine wrapped around matches dipped in wax. Those are good to but so time consuming to make in contrast to these. My only question is storage how do you like to store these?
Scam alert!!
Please be aware we are not holding a contest or giveaway. Several individuals have emailed that they have received information that they have won a giveaway. This is not us and it is a scam please report this if it happens.
Thanks.
Dan.
This has been happening to a lot of channels out there. If the reply comes from the channel "via" someone else, it's a scam. Don't go to any link! Just click on the message and report it, marking that it is spam.
I'm finding that the key word is "telegram me". I could be wrong though, so just report it.
What kind of knife was you using I like the size of it
It's a new scam going around that's getting old quick. They use Coinbase, Lowe's, Home Depot and a lot others saying you won something and all you have to do is pay shipping/handling . . . using your credit card info of course.
Yeah, if they say send a gift card also. C'mon sewer rats leave us alone!
Best and simplist fire starters...
Cotton balls smeared in Vaseline. Light weight and easy to carry in a small zip lock bag.
Plus you have vaseline jelly which in and of itself can be handy in the woods for scrapes, cuts, and skin rashes.
Almost step by step as grandpa showed over 40 years ago. The difference is he used dryer lent, kerosene (or starter fluid) and the same Gulf wax. We did them in egg cartons, then put them in a used bread bag, then in a tin can in the smokehouse til you were going hunting, fishing, etc. I miss Pop. Glad there's someone to teach these things.
I have a friend that we go 18th century primitive camping with who always has a few lint/egg carton "fire cups" in his kit. They really work well.
I just recently made those type of fire starters using dryer lent and without lighter fluid. We never used lighter fluid for starting fires many years ago. And it still works fine and burns well. After I have lit a candle for it to scent a room I will drain the melted wax onto the dryer lent that I have placed in a egg carton (not the plastic ones...lol) and let dry. I keep them in the carton until ready to use. I might try some with lighter fluid before my hunting trip this week. Thank you for commenting; always nice to know others that learned from their parents outdoor crafts.
i have made those as well, and they were a big success as well...
Dryer lint used to be a go-to tinder. These days, clothes are treated with pretty effective fire retardants. It’s amazing how often my dryer lint doesn’t want to catch a spark. It’s a good thing to have less flammable clothing, though!
If you don't have access to candle dyes, chunks of crayons work fine for coloring.
have you tried it? Do they burn as well as regular wax?
When I was 11 in 1963 the Boy Scouts taught us how to make fire starters.Gulf wax, cardboard . We'd cut the cardboard into equal sized squares,tied them with string.Melt the Gulf wax ,dip the cardboard into the melted paraffin let it sit in the wax for just a second then pull them out.They always worked really well.Made enough to last for years .Still worked after ten years.Dont need the lighter fluid.
I forgot ,stack the pieces of cardboard four or five together,then tie them together and dip them.Cardboard boxes work the best because they are corrugated.They will truly last forever..
I was taught to soak the cotton wipes in rubbing alcohol, then put it in melted wax. Been making them that way for about 4 years now. Good video for those that did not know about this.
Doing it with the alcohol mean's your sealing it in with the wax...mixing the wax with the fuel make's sense because they actually combine together to make 1 fuel, very cool idea!
Hmm. I'd have to try both as this make prevent evaporation and improve long-term storage. Personally I always carry mugwort and fatwood
@@robertjenkins5440 When you think about it the stater fluid would evaporate on it's own, although it is sealed in the cotton covered in wax.But when you tear it to expose fibers you will have the insides exposed. I like both ways. I have been using the cardboard egg cartons for a decade or more, I fill then with drier lint which is very flammable, then use the candles I have had that were to short after the woman uses them I melt them down and pour over the lint sealing them to the section of the egg carton and tear off a section when need for a fire, cheap also
@@robertjenkins5440 sealing it is preferred. As you light the wax it melts and the alcohol becomes exposed and ignites. They are also waterproof. This lighter fluid version has got to stink also.
Either one works. Naptha (lighter fluid) is a bit easier to light, with an ignition temp of 44C (as opopsed to 53C for isopropyl). If you're lighting with a ferrorod, that's a non-issue, but if you're trying to use an alternate method (emergencies can be unpredictable) that extra ease of ignition might come in handy.
Once lit, both will wick and burn efficiently though and neither is really driving the length of the burn, that would be the parafin.
Basically, it's six of one, half a dozen of the other.
For decades I have been making mine from the cotton cosmetic rounds saturated in PJ. I get close to ten minutes of usable flame from a disc. I have used these in adverse conditions throughout the Rockies, Sierra Nevada, Cascades and the Great Basin. I store them in chew pucks and ziplock bags depending on where they are being carried. All of my clothing for the outdoors has a ziplock with several discs in a pocket.
All of my packs have a puck as do my vehicles.
God bless
What is PJ and what are two pucks?
@@timothybuchanan1611
PJ, petroleum jelly. Puck, chew containers ie: Copenhagen, Skoal.
Petroleum jelly aka Vaseline and the cotton disc are the pucks that's what he's calling them
Thought for a minute that you meant peanut butter and just hit the wrong letter....
Then I read your answer of petroleum jelly.
Then I realized I wanted to combine the peanut butter with some grape jelly, so I made a sandwich while I looked for my petroleum jelly to make some firestarters.
Call me a happy camper now.
After dipping pds in the wax mixture, I lay the. Out on sheet of wax paper. Then I cut between the pads and wrap them in the wax paper. The wax paper is just another version of the pads. It protects the starter pads, and also adds to the flame. Also very easy to light.
"We're old and we're still playing with fire" love it!!
Made these yesterday after watching this video, and it was a 100 percent success!! I bought a pack of tea light candles and a pack of pads from the dollar tree, I already had lighter fluid. $2.50 investment, and it didn't take 25 minutes from melting the candles, to cooling and storing them! Fastest I've ever started my fireplace fire! Thank you, sir!!
I have used, since 1970 (I was 15 years old then), cotton balls, dipped in melted paraffin, and flattened out into Nickle or Quarter-sized wafers. I have simply ripped them open to expose the frayed fibres (I am Canadian, eh) of the cotton, struck a ferro rod spark . We had something called a 'Metal Match' back in the day, which was a tiny 5/32" diameter x 1-1/2" long ferrocerium rod attached to a little box with a striker that screwed into the bottom. You were supposed to put lighter fluid inside the box that had cotton in it, and when you removed the striker, it was infused with lighter fluid. I never did use it as a Zippo, and never used lighter fluid, because the spark was all I needed. Besides, things run out of gas, but that little tiny ferro rod lasted for hundreds of strikes.. These cotton ball wafers have worked well for me all these 50+ years, without any accelerant inside. I carry a couple in my pocket, always, and forget they are there, but, two or three years later, I can whip one out, fray it, strike a spark, and there is a sustainable flame that last about 3 or 4 four minutes, long enough to ignite finer kindling easily. Yes, I agree, a sure method to get a sustainable flame is necessary in emergencies. Thanks for the video.
Yep: I make mine laying out cotton balls on foil and dripping the wax from a lit utility candle onto them. Don’t need any other fuel, and they don’t need to be saturated with wax, either. Just fill an empty pill bottle with them.
If you want to be safe with paraffin, use the "double boiler" method. Set a bigger pot of water on the stove/campfire and bring it to a boil. Immerse the can with wax into the boiling water, but don't let water flow into the can. This controls the temperature of the paraffin to 212 deg F or 100 deg C. It will melt safely, quickly, and there is no risk of a fireball on your stove or campfire.
And whatever you do ... do not forget about the can of wax with water displacement or you will have water in your wax
Safety Sally 🙄
Like melting chocolate
I like balls of fire..
This is by the way the best method if you want to melt chocolate for a cake etc. without burning it.
Man, what an awesome firestarter. Of course be safe using lighter fluid around heat and flames. But I went to dollar tree, bought the round cotton pads, then found a torch fuel at dollar tree as well, so I figured let's try it. Again, at dollar tree bought the 5 hour emergency candle pack and an aluminum foil bread pan. Melted the pack of candles over a fire in the foil pan, removed the pan from the heat, dumped in the torch fuel and started dipping the round cotton pads. They work perfect! Thanks Dan!
I use liquid paraffin lamp oil as my liquid to mix in with the Gulf Wax. So far several years in it isn’t evaporating out of the mix! I mix in just enough to soften the wax so it doesn’t crumble or flake off during it’s time riding around in my pack! I too put a crayon in my mix to make my batches different colors so I can track when I made it and what mix I used. I carried cotton balls and petroleum jelly for years, but this is superior in my experience!
I like your idea and that you have tried and tested these excellent components over time to see how well they stood the test of time. Thanks for sharing your findings with us. I too have been carrying/using Paraffin Lamp Oil and really like it a lot. Although I have never tried Gulf Wax, I think I will, as my current choice of emergency firestarter is cotton ball halves soaked in a 50/50 blend of Paraffin Lamp Oil and Coleman Fuel (White Gas) and I think that yours and Dan's idea of using the solidifying Gulf Paraffin wax might actually be an improvement over my messy Lamp Oil blend for the convenience of not having to keep/carry it in a leakproof lab grade, sealed Nalgene container (75 ml/1 fl oz. bottle). Also glad to finally read someone else acknowledging the fact that those ever popular Vaseline soaked cotton balls, as good as they may be, are simply not the superior choice available.
But with all that said, and I certainly mean no disrespect or malice in saying/asking this, it seems that you have combined two of the very best sources of fire starter BASE ingredients for fire longevity but have chosen to leave out the equally important other half of the equation - the fire ACCELLERANT (I.E.- Lighter Fluid, K1, Turpentine, Alcohol or White Gas, etc.) which, IMO, is crucial to quickly taking a Ferro Rod spark in the worst possible weather conditions one may encounter, especially if wind is present. In a true life or death hypothermia emergency situation deep in the woods, especially one involving a fall through the ice for exteme example, I'm not sure I would want to rely on anything less than a 100% instantly ignitable (with a Ferro Rod) firestarter mix with only the base ingredients in it, as good as those are. Perhaps not everyone needs/wants my extreme level of fire starter reliability, but in my mind, if I can't be carrying the very best and most reliably failproof firestarter in the backcountry, or even in the back 40, then it just seems like an unnecessarily incomplete yet easily remediable attempt at fire starting preparedness. Just my opinion though.
I would certainly be open to hearing your reasoning for choosing the mix you did. I am not here to start an endless and combative on-line argument with you or anyone about this stuff, and I assure you, I won't - there's already way too much of that going on elsewhere on the Tube, lol. That's one of the things I appreciate most about the YT Bushcraft/Survival community; most folks here are civil and here to learn and share lots of cool and useful info.
Thanks for reading my rather lengthy comment, and I trust that you viewed it as the respectfully written one that it was intended to be. Wishing you ATVB. 🔥
So far nothing else has been needed! I was looking for something that worked well, wasn’t messy, was weather resistant etc which was basically a DIY of the fire-starters commercially available. So far the liquid paraffin oil/paraffin wax mix is enough to easily catch a fero rod spark! As a demo 2 Thanksgivings ago I went out into the wet yard I was visiting threw the purple dragon (my kids may be missing a purple crayon) into their pond and then pulled it out and lit it with my fero rod! 2X strike I think, but first one wasn’t a good strike! Ripped in half with the edge fluffed just a bit it burned like crazy for several 4-6 minutes (can’t remember the exact time on this example). If more is ever needed I’ll do more research/experimenting, but so far I have a stable, non messy, easy to use fire starter that is also cheap & easy to make! Another less important factor is they either don’t smell or don’t smell much depending on exactly what you used. I’ve flown with cotton/PJ and like that this really doesn’t smell so I could probably fly with them as well since they’re unlikely to raise anyone’s eyebrows! Smelling isn’t important unless it’s all over your gear! I tend to have a couple wrapped in foil with a fero rod in coat pockets, ditty bags and any day bag I carry. Smelly fuel on several K’s worth of electronics might make a bad day!
@@SheepDoggy68 Sounds awesome! Yeah, I don't think your electronics would be liking you very much after all that, lol. So far, I've never had any leakage issues with my "wet" blend while carrying them in the Nalgene vials/bottles (yet), but of course anything can happen at any time, and if it did - uugghh - what a horrendous mess that could turn out to be, with all that oily, waxy mess all over other important survival gear, food, etc., especially right in the middle of a big backcountry trip with no truly good way to get everything back in order. I also like how well these solid form waxed cotton round pads you guys are using stay dry and flammable even after a good dunking - in a pond. The "Purple Dragon"? And, helping yourself to your kids' purple Crayon? Ha...., luv it! 🤣👍You sound about as bad as me. 😉 Hey, as the parent, you bought it, so....technically it's still yours, right, lol? Unfortunately, that trend seems to reverse when they reach college age and are still living at/studying from home, and you have to start clandestinely and creativly hoarding some coveted food items that you've been eagerly, patiently waiting to show up from the grocery store, lest those items miraculously sprout legs and vanish into thin air, mere hours after returning from the store 😲😤. Or worse yet, the needed food items you specifically purchased expressly for taking to work all of a sudden go awol after you've explicitly forbade anyone from even looking at them sidways, leaving you wondering why you or your spouse even bother with any of those incessant lectures🙄 🤦♀. At that time, the whole so-called "empty nest" concept may actually start looking prrretttty darn good, lol - but I digress. Anyway, those benefits alone would be great reasons to stay with that firestarter design. I'm definitely going to give these a very serious try and see how well they work out. I'll probably still add the accellerant, but in light of how well yours worked without any, will also be giving some samples of the accellerant-free Gulf Wax/Lamp Oil blend round cotton pads a fair try, under very nasty weather conditions.
Thanks for sharing your findings with me/us and for your helpful reply. I try to stay open to all different Bushcraft methods and ideas, and will readily adopt/incorporate someone else's idea/design as my go-to item/method if I believe that it will be a legit upgrade to what I had been previously using/doing - always searching for that very best way/item possible. Take care. 🙂
What’s best to store them in?
@@wdglockandroll Best? Who knows, but what works for me is to stack several 4-6 ish and wrap them in heavy duty aluminum foil. This puck then gets dropped into a quart ziplock freezer bag with a fero rod, striker, Bic lighter, matches etc and rolled up in a tight bundle and rubber banded. Rolling the bag over givers you many layers of plastic and makes it a fairly compact & durable bundle that can be stuffed in many places. With effort a compact version of this can comfortably fit in many winter coat pockets!
Once I used fishing reel grease as a firestarter. There was the only thing that I had in my fishing tackle. It saved the day!
Badass! I needed to watch this, I'm tired of wasting money on fire starters that either take too long or are too expensive. Thanks bud!
Made these a couple weeks ago. They are very effective. I used cheap dollar store candles instead of paraffin. They work great!
This is fantastic. After spending $5 on a pack of 10 store bought starters for my last hike, I can now make hundreds for about the same price! WTG my man. Love the channel.
This was great, I used these when I was in Boy Scouts. Also, another great firestarter is using the same wax & lighter fluid mix, then you mix it with dryer lint into a large spoonful, and place it in a cardboard egg carton. You can stuff the carton in your pack, tear off one dimple, tear it a little, and light it right up. I used this in Montana all the time up in the mountains. It works great in low oxygen heights because it burns for about 20 minutes.
I made a bunch of these just by using cheap candles for their wax and they work fine. Never thought to add some lighter fluid!
Thanks Dan!
I do the same..👍🏻
Have added a scentsy block to the mix for scented fire starters..👍🏻😂
@Wayne Eddy I keep cotton rounds by our scentsy warmer. Whenever my wife wants to change sents, she cleans the warmer out with the cotton. Instant fire starter.
Tea candles are a cheap source of paraffin wax, they are often sold in "dollar stores" in big bags for little money. I use them mixed with teflon powder to lubricate bike chains but I will certainly try these fire starters too.
@@stillwatersforge3957dang, _I_ need to keep that in mind!
@Murgoh dog gone, I'm always burning those in my bathroom for ambience! I guess I could just toss a pack of _those_ in a go bag if I need to. 😊☕️
This is the best way to carry any kind of Firestarter. They pack easily, they are safe, and they WORK, I even have a couple in my medical bags
I have been using this for years. I'm surprised that many people have yet to do this.
1st comment, never gotten to say that before. I made a few dozen of these with a mix of candles from birthdays, emergency candles, tea lights and old gnarly crayons, I made mine look camo from all the different shades of green crayons I added in. The crayons seem to make them burn longer. Gonna try to make some orange and red food coloring for higher visibility, lot of people don't know that food coloring is flammable.
It's pathetic!!!
Crayons do work well.
@@youtubekeepscensoringme3357 what's pathetic?
Have any suggestions on keeping them from sticking together when they get warm if not individually wrapped?
@@johngilmore3360 wax paper, a simple square of wax paper between each disc will keep them from melting together. Added bonus the wax paper is also flammable, and can be used to wrap around one of these disks after you break it in half to keep the left over exposed tinder-dry.
I've always used the square cotton pads, they're segmented in 4 pieces, and just wax. When you break a section off, it has enough "fluff" on the sides to catch with a ferro rod and they burn close to 3 minutes per segment, 12 mins in total. Opposed to about 8 minutes I'd get from a whole square or one round one. 2-3 minutes is plenty to start a fire even in wet conditions, so you can easily light four fires per piece. That's just me. Great video!
I've been using hand sanitizer! It's everywhere now a days. It's easy! I stack my fire small on bottom to big on top. Then just dump the sanitizer down the middle, and light it. Love the channel. Keepm coming. 🤠👍💯
Since the pandemic we've got it everywhere at work, but very few people are bothering to use it any more. I'm gradually stockpiling it for firelighter use!
Good idea! Used to be high priced, but now at my local Ollie’s, I often see a large bottle of hand sanitizer for a buck! These disks would pack nicely in my altoids fire kit!@@jonfisher9214
How long does it stay viable before it evaporates? Chapstick similar niche.
The unadulterated happiness of the guy squirting flammable liquid on fire made my day 🤣
Excellent, thank you! (BTW: I believe you could tint the melting wax by adding a small piece of a color crayon, since crayons are normally made of a soft wax. I've used crayons to color some candles I've made since this method generally costs less than candle dye and may already be available in many homes. While crayons can sometimes leave a bit of residue in the bottom of your melting tin, I don't believe that'll affect the process you showed.)
Why
A couple birthday candles would work. But like he said unless you're in snow/ sand white is probably the best color
That is a great suggestion!
Thank you.
Colored tea light candles are the right kind of wax an are readily available at dollar stores
We might be old but we haven’t grown up!! I see fire I click the like button
I love these videos! That said, I’m also a vaseline and cotton ball guy. It just works and is vastly easy to make.
Same here learned it in scouts , we used to put them in film containers…. Good luck finding those now days!
@@brockbutz6641 *FEEBAY*
Old medicine bottles
Made these from your video last year. Happy to report these work amazingly well! Cheap, easy diy, and highly effective. Makes fire lighting a breeze.
I have already been making fire starters with paraffin wax and cotton rounds for years, but the addition of lighter fluid has really raised the bar on effectiveness ! When the first one I tested was still burning hot after 5 min., I walked away,( after putting it out)I goT some rectangular cotton pads and trimmed them to fit an Altoids can. Thanks for the awesome tip!
U ever tried them a year later? Does it evaporate?
@@pvmelite4230 yes, ihave just recently... they worked fine! :)
Thats great to know. I just made some using parrifin lamp oil and golf wax and ive just been using a lighter and they have been working great. Cant wait to see if they will still hold up
Where would you get rectangular cotton pads?
@timothybuchanan1611 ive seen them in my dollar general. Might be in the makeup section or nesr some first aid stuff
Surprised no one in comments mentioned this method: two cotton rounds, a fat blob of vasoline in between two rounds oreo cookie style and done. I keep in a light weight plastic watertight container. Ziplock also good but may get squished and get messy. Fire lasts 5 minutes on average; I tested. Take care and thanks for excellent content.
We used crayons to color our wax candles way back in the day…… maybe that had some influence on my joining the Marines back in ‘77. 🇺🇸
😮😆🤣
I am making these! I had an incident on my adventure bike in the middle of no where desert 30 miles from anywhere and zero signal. I thought we might be spending the night. It had me rethinking some basic stuff to take on every single ride. One of them is fire starters. I had a lighter with me, but it can be really tough to get questionable wood and damp kindling actually going. A firestarter could be a lifesaver. I was going to buy them but I just want to learn to make them this way. I used to make the egg crate style in scouts. Back when scouts taught boys how to not die in the woods.
Back in the 1970's, when I was a boy scout I made some great firestarters
They were made with a (steel) cat food or tuna can, a roll of separated corrugated cardboard (separate the layers to expose more fibers), and paraffin.
Essentially I made 3-1/2 wide candles that would start a fire even with damp wood. Before stacking wood around it, the flames were nearly a foot and a half high!
The important thing was to dig out the melted metal after the fire was cold, to pack out the trash.
Buddy burners, every time i made them, everything got all sooted up
I had the opportunity to be a girl scout, but I had no interest. I sort of regret it now, but I just never really been an outdoorsy person other than going to fairs or water parks or things like that.
@@Lavenderrose73 majority of the books can be had online free via Gutenberg Project and to be honest after watching the documentary about the scouts, there was a whole loft of sexual misconduct going on during the entirety of the program over the years, so you might actually be glad that you wasnt a scout.
@@whysprspick any organization and if you if you want to find something dirty you will find it. It’s the human condition. Look in the papers. Look on the news. Look in the churches. Look in the schools. Look in your neighborhood. Look in the entertainment that most people choose to watch and it’ll be no surprise why you find it rampant everywhere.
I encourage you to not disparage anyone or any organization unless you are willing to share your own shortcomings publicly. (May the one who has not sinned cast the first stone).
Loved the opener! Made these right before my trip this past weekend. Worked splendidly! Thanks for the tip!
Thanks again . I have found burnt motor oil and cotton balls work really well for almost a 10 minute burn
Thanks Dan! The best fire starter I’ve found so far (next to a road flare)! An old shoe polish can makes a great storage container too.
Excellent. Your neighbourhood church will likely have a box of scrap wax or half used candles (mine does!) looking for a good home.
here's an idea; instead of laying the pads on aluminum foil to cool use waxed paper. then when they're all cool cut the paper with scissors. you'll be able to stack 'em, they won't stick together and the wax paper burns up!
Good afternoon from Syracuse NY USA brother and thank you for sharing your adventures and wood lore
Just made these myself doing it this way. Did them 50/50 ratio. Let them dry and did a test for myself to see how long one would burn. It was 7 minutes when i stopped the timer and called it done. I plan on using these for deer camp fires and in my smoker. Thank you sir for the info. Works great.
Melted petroleum jelly takes the guesswork out. Been lighting campfires with those for 30 plus years.
Do you mix it with candle wax?
@@redcros93 I haven't personally used candle wax but I do see other people doing it and that seems to work well too.
Another good fire starter Take a couple of candles with you That is by far the easiest way to get a fire going even The pouring down rain You light the candleIs and build A teepee of sticks Around the candle Eventually the wax will start burning with the sticks It works really well I live in the Pacific Northwest
Can confirm, these fire starters are excellent. Easy to light, long lasting, compact, and cheap and easy to make! 😊
Don't you mean LITTERLY excellent
How long lasting are they? Does the lighter fluid not dissipate, even when encased in wax?
@@johnplaisir9042 Hard for me to say exactly because even without lighter fluid they catch fire easily, but I imagine you could reduce evaporation of the lighter fluid on the surface of the fire starters by keeping in an airtight container. 😊
You can use these to light a candle to put under your tinder or larger wood, depending on the situation. I always carry several different fire starting methods with me. Starting with a lighter, ending with a magnifying glass and everything in between. Some folks preach minimum items to survive. Folks don’t be afraid to carry a few extra ounces or pounds. Remember we are talking about your LIFE! Don’t just survive, THRIVE! I carry these with me as well as many other things to start a fire. A candle is wonderful after you get it lit. It’s is a constant light source, heat source, and ignition source until you get your fire going. Who knows, you might not find enough dry material to get a fire going. But the candle can help for a while. Who says you are limited to one candle anyway? Also another type of candle I carry is the “magic” relighting candles you find in the birthday candle section. They are great in windy conditions and I would suggest only using them in windy situations if your other methods have failed. Stay safe everyone!
Best fire starter i've ever seen! thanks for showing. Greetings from Germany!
If anyone is interested, I have experimented with this recipe. I have tried 50% down to 10% of the lighter-fluid ratio. The magic number, for me, is 15%. This results in an instant, strong flame from a ferro rod while keeping most of the rigidity of the gulf wax. If you're making 100 grams, use 85g wax & 15g lighter-fluid. The 50% results in a pad that is too flexible, in my opinion and seems subject to drying out.
Adding the fire starter is a great idea Dan. But I just pour a little mineral oil into a ziplock bag of cotton balls and throw it in my fire kit. Quick, easy, cheap, and it works great. Plus, the mineral oil comes in handy for protecting and lubricating anything that’s going to be around food, like my carbon steel knives and the lid to my Trangia burner.
An easy way to get colors added to the mix is to toss in a crayon or a birthday candle. If you use the birthday candle, you also have to pull the wick out of the can. I have been using these fire starters for coming up on 40 years. I learned about these in Boy Scouts way back when. Love the content!!!
I remember using these in a couple of your classes. Now I know how ya made em. Thank you.
For ten years or more I have been using a combination of wax ( I use leftover wax from the scented wax melts from walmart ) and lamp oil at a 50:50. The oil is less volatile than any type of lighter fluid. And when I go to the woods I take a pill bottle with the paste in it. And use what tender is available at hand. Thanks for your time
Ive used wax and kerosene. I got a 5 minute burn time. I added in some Vaseline and made it kinda gel like. That increased the burn time to 8min. Still remained waterproof too
I just made a batch of these, they are great! Super easy to make, inexpensive, and they work great! Thank you sir I will never use another store-bought fire starter!
I have used this technique to make fire starters since the mid 90's but I like to use less lighter fluid than wax for a more stiff and slower to light version. I also embed a strike-anywhere match in the wax and make sure that it is also covered and protected by the wax. Then just pop off the wax from the tip of the match, strike it on a rock or your zipper and your off to the races. I use folded up paper towels rather than the cotton disks. I don't really need the super small fibers as I embed the match and also always have a bic, and can get still carefully shred them and get them to light with sparks if I needed to, I don't ever need to though with the match. Also you can source cheap wax by buying candles at thrift stores which is what I do when I do not have a almost burned out candle of my own that I can use the leftover wax from. And last but not least I use zippo lighter fluid/ronsonol lighter fluid, not charcoal grill starter fluid, though that is probably cheaper if you were to use a large amount of wax and needed a large amount of fluid but I make small batches and have the "good stuff" on hand.
Match idea is great. Thank you.
Where do you find "strike anywhere" matches that actually work?
These are great. Ive done soaking in paraffin lantern oil and then dipping in wax to seal it. Works great too and burns a long time.
Damn. That was good. Right now I'm making boonie hats that incorporate Dave Canterbury's 10Cs of survival. This would definitely help in the combustion category given its waterproof characteristics. Way to go Dan. Much appreciated.
Can you elaborate more? I have some ideas for boonies that I haven't seen applied at all
@@ryanvalencia1027 Given that I'm mass producing these things, if you'd like to participate in testing I'd be glad to send you a freebie. Not that I require any feedback, as I don't like mandating anything to anybody at anytime, but suggestions, concerns, or ideas to make it better would be appreciated. Last night I was experimenting with one of the hats. I tore off some duct tape from the hat and affixed one of those tiny, button-like flashlights to the brim and it worked magnificently in the dark. I'm not into selling these things. Just sharing. Go to TOPTIE and let me know which color hat you'd like. Or I could just send you a ready made one.
@Thomas S. I only found generic brand stuff on Amazon, do you have a link? Or pm me more direct info, I'd love to try one out
@@ryanvalencia1027 How about I send you a list? Won't take long.
@@ryanvalencia1027 Cordage is simple. 550 cord, about 10 feet coiled inside the hat and taped down with orange (or whatever color you like) duct tape in the form of a big X or two Xs, one vertical one horizontal to hold it in place. Usually I split the tape in half and lay it in that way. That covers 1) Cordage and 2) Cargo Tape. The boonie hat itself is 3) Cover (yeah, I know, it's pretty lame but it is what it is), 4) Combustion devices- matches and/or mini bic lighter wrapped in self-adhesive bandage tape. The matches require waterproofing or just buy them that way. All you need is a few. I camouflage both of them in appropriate colored camo tape and stick them in the hat band. 5) Cotton bandana- I go with orange for signalling or whatever and simply fold and stick inside the hat on top of the cargo tape. 6) Cutting tool- I use duct tape to marry a guitar pick with a box cutter blade. The guitar pick gives you a good grip. Have to angle it a certain way so that your forefinger rest on top of the pick next to the blade. I use the self adhesive bandage tape and wrap it around several times to make the blade safe, then stick it in the hat band. 7) Candling device- I use a flat button flashlight. They can stay on for 15 hours. They fit into the hat band easily and yes I wrap it in the adhesive tape. 8) Compass- use a air-filled button compass made by Stanley of London. Very accurate. Provides cardinal directions only. 9) Canvas needle- I thread the needle with a heavy duty waxed thread, then roll it up and down onto the needle, then wrap it with adhesive tape. I stick it into the hat band and take a small piece of cork to apply to the needle head. 10) Container- this was the hard one. I use a Whirl-Pak Stand up bag. Holds half a gallon, maybe? A foldable, sealable plastic bag which I put a few purification tabs inside. Goes inside the hat under the cotton bandana. It's best to get an extra large hat which allows one to carry more cordage. But that's it. In practice I would lay a decent pocket knife into the hat and when in use stick the pocket knife into a pocket while keeping the box cutter blade as a backup.
I’ve been making these for awhile. The only change is that I mix some petroleum jelly in with the charcoal lighter to make it a little thicker, less conducive to evaporation, vaseline burns…
I like the wax paper idea.
Also, for simple storage, fold the cotton round and use gorilla tape to seal it.
Light the gorilla tape or cut it open.
Aha! Knew there must be some trick I was missing. I made some from tail ends of candles and whatever wax bits were lying around. Don't burn worth a hoot. Sending my husband on a lighter fluid procurement mission ASAP! (The gulf wax is already on the pantry shelf.) Can't wait to try this and cackle like Dan. 😄
Up here in New England pine cones and fatwood are the best fire starters, they're already in the forest and they burn like crazy 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
I’ve made these using cheap votive candles for the wax but never added the lighter fluid. Another tool for the toolbox that I’ll have to try. Thanks Dan!
That is real nifty, but you have a DRYER at home just take the lint out of the dryer and make it whatever shape you want and do the same thing. You could also take an egg carton. The recycled cardboard or whatever one. Put some lint down in that and drip wax over the top as well. Boom cheap and easy. I been doing it for years. My mom and dad were huge into outdoors when I was a kid and they showed me how to make these and pack a ruck. I'm real thankful for the knowledge they gave me. Love the channel keep up the great work.
Thanks for this. Just made a batch for my pellet stove.
Used a small metal bowl inside of my pot which I boiled water in (double boiler method). This allowed me to put it back into the hot water to soften the wax mixture as often as I needed (after I removed it from the heat source).
Was super easy and they work great!
Awesome! whats the best storage ,method for these? in an Altoid tin, or Aluminum foil in a zip lock bag?
I was thinking a small empty paint can, you could stuff a lot in there along with some dry kindling or fat wood, and keeps it water tight 👍
These are great but I recommend using parchment paper between each piece. In the summer months, they have a tendency of sticking together. I store mine in used pellet tens. So if you have a pellet gun here is another way to repurpose the empty tens.
In the past, I've only used wax but I can see where using an excellent would greatly enhance the fire-starting capabilities of this method. Thanks for sharing.
great tip. Thanks
I was wondering about this too. I was planning to keep a tin of them in my car for emergencies and wondered if they would melt into a big brick. Thanks for the parchment paper tip.
I can attest that these also help with wooden coal barbecue lighting as well. We don't have much use for them in the tropics, but are quite convenient for starting fires without using a range or big lighter.
Just used your method and they work like a charm. I had some used WD40 left over from a cleaning/lubricating project and mixed this in the melted candle wax. About a 25% mix. I also put in a shot of yellow vegetable dye for colour. I did the time test on one of them and it lasted with a good flame for 6 1/2 minutes. If I can't get a fire going within 6 1/2 minutes I may as well stay home.
I made 80 of them and the total cost was $1.25. 80 cotton rounds from Dollarama for $1.25. Candle wax from old candles from friends and family, free. Used WD40 free. Stored them in a clear plastic container with a screw on lid to make them more waterproof. Heat source was a tuna can rolled cardboard and melted wax mini stove which was also also $0.00.
Went and made a batch of these. Just happen to be snowing outside when I called my bro-in-law to show him. Wind is blowing and snowing but this lit on first spark and burned down to nothing. Impressive to say the least.
I've been using the little tea candles for fire starting for years. Water proof and cheap.
This is a great idea and may try making a few
These pads are great. Thanks. I personally always used Hexamine/Esbit tablets as fire starters (they burn for +-10 minutes) and cost a few cents per tablet. But I will definitely make these pads as well.
On my AT thru hike I used those cotton pads with my wood burning stove. I could almost always get a fire started using 1/4 of one pad using paraffin wax only. Yours probably start easier with a ferro rod due to the lighter fluid but I had no problem with a Bic. Yours also seemed to initially flame up more. Thanks for sharing. I recently subbed btw. Outstanding channel.
Great video! I love making all my own firestarters. I have made these and they do work very well and pack easily.
Awesome. I did that in my apartment but just with the lighter fluid and a very small pile of tiny wood shavings from a small dry tree stick and my ferro rod - it started pretty quickly.
Used this back in the Scouts. But I put the lighter fluid on first and then dipped them in wax. Same concept and worked outstandingly. |
... No Boy Scout program would condone using liquid fuel ....
@@rockytopwrangler2069 Maybe not now, considering how whooped they've become. But I was a Boy Scout back in the 70's. And Yes, we used both lighter fluid and petroleum jelly. We even started our own fires to melt the wax. . . OOOOOO Scary. lol
@@H8FULL1 Lmao this is a great comment. I wish I grew up back then when we were more free. Now-a-days I am barely allowed to hike. -.-
Dan, these fire starters are fantastic! I made some yesterday, using melted candle stubs and adding an equal measure of charcoal lighter fluid. I dipped the cosmetic rounds and laid them out on the snow to cool. I lit one with a couple strokes of my ferro rod, and I was amazed at the blaze it produced.
Great video. I've done the same with dryer lint and it works well if you can see it.
You are the first person on UA-cam I have seen add accelerant to the mix. Most just do cotton dipped in wax. This caught my attention because a few years ago I bought some citronella Tiki torch oil on clearance at the dollar store and thought, "Hmmm...". I didn't mix it with the wax. Instead I dipped the rounds quickly in the Tiki torch fuel, let them sit a few minutes until any excess drained then dipped them in melted Gulf wax. I carry five or six of them in a 'travel size' Nivea lotion tin (used the lotion because my skin is very dry) in my pocket as part of my EDC kit. I cut rounds of parchment paper and scrap printer paper to separate them in the tin. There has never been any leakage into my pocket even after several years of carrying them that way. I used a couple from the same batch that were in my camping fire kit along with a piece of fatwood, also from the fire kit, to start a fire on a recent camping trip after it had been pouring down rain and everything was wet. These things are absolutely legit.
VERY IMPORTANT: At 3:04 he says to take the melted wax off the fire. I must stress to do this. It's VERY important. I was doing this in my kitchen, and the "take it off the fire" part had gone right past me. Well, after I added the lighter fluid to the wax and began dipping my cotton balls -- with the pot still on the stove -- the mixture eventually warmed to the point that it burst into flames. Coulda been catastrophic. Fortunately, I was able to usher the flaming pot out into my backyard before I burned my house down. Therefore, I can't stress enough: TAKE THE POT OFF THE FLAME BEFORE ADDING THE LIGHTER FLUID.
Ever heard of the double,boiler method.....it keeps rookie candle,makers from being tiki torches
Slamming the lid down on it starves the fire of oxygen, but does mean you need the lid handy
Awesome video! So I tried this but I did it a little bit differently in that I did 1 part wax and then 60/40 lighter fluid/petroleum jelly for the rest. Never made these before but my first tester burned over 5 mins. Thanks for the ideas! Love this channel.
I like the addition of the light fluid. I use the same but without that and it works well. A mate suggested coating them in Vaseline (Petroleum Jelly) as that too is flammable but I have not tried that yet.
Cotton balls soaked in Petroleum jelly works amazing too, lights right up with a spark even after being submerged in water.
Awesome, I made these and they work great! The addition of lighter fluid as a catalyst is a great idea. One step up from my vaseline coated cotton balls.
Great! They also work well without the lighter fluid. My son and I showed how to make these in one of our videos a while back, too. We ended up just using some scented soy candle wax and melted it in a potpourri pot 👍
Very nice! I'm still a believer in the old vaseline soaked cotton balls. Just melt the vaseline in a pot on an electric hotplate, throw in a bunch of cotton balls so they are completely soaked, then take them out one by one using foreceps, put them one by one in a cheapo garlic press to remove the excess vaseline, and bob's yer uncle. Store in whatever container you want. The key to this is the garlic press. It makes things simple and it gets rid of the excess vaseline. No mess either because you are not rubbing vaseline into a cotton ball by hand. You now have basically a waterproof firestarter. Just fluff up to start with a ferro rod. Been doing this for over 20 years and I've yet to find a homemade fire starter that is any better. You can mash a ton of these into a small container and even fit a part of one into a small metal keychain capsule and carry it on your keychain.
Absolutely awesome Dan! I had no clue it was this easy to make them. Now that I know how to, I got something to keep me busy and save some money also!!
How do you store them? Bag or maybe metal tin with cover?
Using these cosmetic pads is a great way to go. I don't bother with anything other than just wax though. Good burn time and strong flame. I used one the other day that was 3 yrs. old and had no issues. Tampons work really well too. I let them soak in wax for several minutes (DO NOT remove the applicator). They will absorb a lot of wax, which makes for a long burn. After cooling, remove the plastic applicator and store. I usually cut one in half and flatten it with the butt of a knife, exposing fibers. Couple strikes with a rod and you get a strong flame for 6-7 minutes or more, depending on how long you soak them in wax. Flint and steel is fun and good practice, but as Coalcracker said, if you need a fire ASAP, it's always good to have some of these starters in the kit.
Neat idea. I’m fond of the old “Vaseline cotton ball” trick, though I use bag balm because it’s a bit better for other purposes than Vaseline in my opinion. Question: have you played around with the ingredients any? For example: beeswax instead of paraffin or zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid instead of charcoal lighter fluid (they’re not quite the same thing I think)
Yes!♡
Yep. I have a stainless key ring pill holder tube full of Vaseline and cotton balls. It’s never failed me. Works every time.
I have been doing this since I was a kid using zippo/ronsonol lighter fluid far less fluid than wax like 75% wax 25% zippo fluid and I use paper towels rather than cotton disks. I also embed a strike-anywhere match (or 2) in each of mine.
Good info. I’m from the Vaseline, cotton ball or lint mixture. They don’t seem to deteriorate. I’ve used the fiber egg cartons too. Always glad to learn something new. At 70, I keep learning.
I use lamp oil and left over candle wax; works great.
I have my own variation of this. Products are tea candles, petro jelly, cotton rounds, and some wax paper.
Tools: small fire, container to cook the supplies in, a fork or needle nose pliers to dip the cotton rounds with, and a drill.
Step one, pop the metal disk holding the wicks from the tea candles. Set them aside for now.
Step two, melt a good supply of petroleum jelly.
Step three, dip the cotton rounds in the liquid jelly. They will soak up the liquid jelly. Put them on the wax paper to cool and harden.
Step four, melt the tea candles. Dip the harden jelly cotton rounds in the wax. A quick dip is all it takes. Put them back on the wax paper to cool and harden.
Step five, take your drill and the smallest drill bit you can find and pierce the center of the wax covered cotton rounds.
Step six those wicks you set to the side, take one and insert the wick in the hole you just drilled in the cotton round.
Now test one by lighting the wick. The flame on the wick will melt the candle wax exposing the jelly on the cotton round. The fire will then begin to consume the round. It should last a couple of minutes at least which should give you enough time to get other small fire wood chips or twigs to light.
Easy peasy and no mess.
I will make one recommendation though. Petroleum jelly has a very low melt point. I would not make these in the heat of summer outdoors. Best time to make these is when the temperature is below 75. But once you dip them completely in wax they are good to go for long term storage. The candle wax will completely conceal the jelly so the round will not leak or dry out. I've never tested these after long term storage, but I imagine that they might last for many years.
I checked the out the cotton disc wax- fire starters. The burn time was reproducibly 4 1/2 minutes. Just like on Dan's video. A great addition to my fire kit.
I agree with some form of double boiler (old pot with water and your can). I use a slightly different method. I soak pads in fluid. When wax is ready I squeeze the excess fluid from the pad then dip in wax. I let mine cool on parchment paper (no sticking). When cool I dip again. This seals the lighter fluid in. I have had 10 year old starters start instantly. I store in a sealed tin or zip lock bag.
Hey Dan instead of buying specific candle dye, could you simply use the left over wax from a colored candle that has come to the end of its wick? Or would a cheaper option ( I realize that Gulf Wax is not expensive just killing two birds with one stone) be to buy a dollar package of colored tapered or votive candles and melt them to the amount that you need? I love these DIY firestarters! Thanks for sharing! Love your channel!
I just tried it out... works perfectly. A friend of mine only uses wax without any lighter fluid. That also works fine
Thank you very much Dan, I love all the video clips you produce for your channel. Greetings from Montreal 🤠
Not having charcoal lighter fluid in the garage, I improvised a change and I think it's an improvement. I use petroleum jelly. First, warm up the petroleum jelly, then dip the cotton rounds thoroughly and allow to cool. Then dip twice in melted wax. This ensures the outside is totally waterproof and the inside has all that petroleum jelly coating and it burns like crazy. Totally waterproof and foolproof.
Alot of great questions and tips in these comments.
Short soak time vs long soak, different ratios of wax and fuel, optional waxes (not all candles are the same), adding other proven fuel types (petrolium jelly either melted or smeared, crayon coloring, questions of odour and storage, evaporation and long term storage, adding tinder or matches to pad...this could take years of dedicated experimentation might even need a notebook haha. Have fun and don't get careless and burn yourself or the house down. Have fun! I will be testing some things.
great video I made something like this still works good the video said dip them in rubbing alcohol then dip them in wax just in case you cant find fire starter you can normally find the other stuff
thank you for all your hard work trying to keep us safe/alive lot of great ideas...love how you troubleshoot with us 👍👍
I have been playing around with making home made fire starters but this is hands down the easiest I have seen. The size and shape would also be perfect for caring in an empty plastic "snuff" (tobacco) can for ease and protection. Time to hit Walmart lol. Thank you!!
Dan that is an awesome fire starter.I’ll be making a lot of them,thanks for the great idea.😊☮️
I make these and keep them in my various camping kits just in case. Usually I'll just scrape up some kindling and use some little sticks and moss and stuff and light it with my lighter, but if I'm ever cold and wet and need not to be quickly, I know I have these, fatwood, a ferro rod, and a bag of Fritos. They WILL start a fire, at least here in the foothills of the Appalachians, in ANY conditions. In my backpacking and truck kits, I have several more methods, but I ALWAYS have at least what I mentioned before. I can camp without most stuff, but I'll never camp without at least a minimal fire.
Haven't been on in a while, love the new intro! I've been a huge fan of the petroleum jelly/cotton ball starter for quite some time, and also like to make them with triple antibiotic ointment. I am really looking forward to learning this new (to me) recipe.
I love these. Just made some. So much easier than what I was doing which is twine wrapped around matches dipped in wax. Those are good to but so time consuming to make in contrast to these. My only question is storage how do you like to store these?