Always make sure you have adequate ventilation when using any type of emergency heating or light options for your van or car. Cracking open the windows is needed for cross ventilation as well as using your roof vent and/or a fan. Never go sleep without making sure that any emergency candles have been put out.
Ventilation- This was what I was listening for. Also is it safe to sit it on an upholstered front seat or carpeted floor. Bob I appreciate you sharing frugal ideas on heating. Edit-I see m. Campbell (in comments)stated a crockpot as a holding vessel. I thought this was a great idea. With the lid you could extinguish the flame quickly and it will insulate the heat from nearby flammables.
Yes, important since burning virtually any fuel produces toxic Carbon Monoxide along with consuming oxygen. Personally, I would use 2 CO detectors in case one fails.
@@wownewstome6123 definitely don’t use that plastic container or anything plastic. The glass he showed much better. The stove area might be best area to put it when it burns. Like you you would a pot or pan.
I make a heating pad or bed warmer/foot warmer by dumping 1-2 boxes of salt into a low temp skillet and after heating dry salt, dump the warm/hot, clean, dry salt into a single pillow case & tie. Put it at the foot of your bed or in any area of your body you would apply a heating pad. You can use the same salt over & over.
I use the same concept except I put about a pound of rice in a pillow case and warm it in the microwave. This warms the foot of my bed for my feet. And will stay warm all night if I have my feet on it!
Put the Crisco in babyfood jars and use birthday candles as wicks. Arrange four of them in a bread pan under a small terra-cotta pot. Put a piece of metal over the hole in the small pot. Then cover with a larger terra-cotta pot over the top. The small pot heats the air between it and the larger pot, then the heat comes out of the hole in the larger pot. Much better heat retainment by covering the hole in the smaller pot.
A few chunks of copper scrubber with the wick threaded through in small tomato sauce or paste cans, many are copper lines and copper throws off no toxic fumes. Fill with olive oil or vegetable oil. You can use some carbon felt as the forever wick and use a few drops of lantern oil to get it to light and it stays lit. Use a dropper bottle and the lantern oil will last a long time and be safe to add another drop or two if needed. The forever wick olive oil candles video states 10 drops is about right but every once in a while you have to add extra.
A "qulliq" burned fat and was perhaps the most important household implement of Innuit (Eskimo) culture. It was the only source of heat and light in winter.
My advice to everyone is always to go as lowtec as possible. I went throught -10f winters, stealth van living, with no heat. I ended up with about 6 cheap walmart comforters. They were ice cold when I got into bed, but once warmed up, kept me warm on the coldest of nights. Plus your body adapts to the extreme temps....
@denisephillips9269 Or you can piss in a empty vodka bottle, put the cap back on and toss them in the bottom in the bottom of your sleeping bag to warm your feet.
Great video on this and spot on. Couple things to add. You can also cook/boil water with Crisco candles, if you want or need to cook. Just need to set a pan or kettle above the flame. 2 or 3 candle flames work better for cooking or boiling water. For heat, you can set a pot of sand (yes, sand) above the flame. Once hot, the pot of sand will radiate heat for several hours. The bigger the pot (more sand) the longer it will radiate heat. Aim a little USB fan above the pot of sand and it'll blow heat directly on you for a few hours after the Crisco candle is extinguished. Seems safer to have hot sand radiating heat as you sleep than having an open flame burning unattended. The sand can also be heated with a camp stove, FWIW. Anyway, just food for thought. Happy trails.
In not certain that you need 3 separate candles. I think what you could use would be one much heavier wick. Possibly like one of the wide types they use in kerosene lanterns.
@@rudygeorgiamulesandcountry1594 as Bob said, the shortening has to burn fast enough so that it doesn't flood the wick and put out the flame. That's why he said 3 candles.
Oil lamps have been around for centuries, some of the best oil lamps (open flame) have a tapered base, small at the bottom, larger at the top, and the wick sits in the middle, the volume of oil is greater at the top than the bottom and this allows you to leave the candle for longer amount of time as the oil level drops, with no fear of fire.
Bob you should warn your people that with the corning ware the flame can't touch the glass. If u don't heat the glass evenly it can explode. If the wick stays in the middle there shouldn't be a problem, but if it touches the glass to long, boom. I know this because my husband blew up my pie pans because the tea kettle was touching one when he was making coffee! Pumpkin pie and glass everywhere 🥺
I am glad you mentioned that about the Corning ware. I have tiles I put candles on (left over from a construction project), what I wanted to know is, is it safe to leave on all night?
Originally Crisco was marketed for candle making. As more and more homes and businesses went electric there was no need for candles. If you look at the "I' in Crisco it's a candle. I was a cafeteria lady for 20 years. I have in my garage some of the one gallon commercial sized food cans. I thought I would transfer leftover shortening into those. You might ask a local restaurant or school if you could get them to save you some or just go dumpster diving. I was also thinking if I couldn't use a 14 oz food can (aka corn, peas, green beans) for spacers to put my terracotta pot on. I also thought I could use my crock pot liner in stead of a terracotta pot. It's heavier and would not be as easily broken as a terracotta pot.
Much safer to melt the shortening then pour into a metal coffee or large food can, or a glass canning jar. (You would have more light with the light shining through the jar.) Plus be safer than burning candles in a plastic paper covered crisco can. But thanks for the other ideas.
Hi Bob🖖 I work security overnight in Los Angeles. The job is outdoors and I use my vehicle a 1998 Ford Windstar . In the winter I have been using small Candles 2-4. In a foil lined brownie pan covered with a clay flower pot. It makes a huge difference! I am a lot more comfortable and I don’t need to waste gas to run heat all night.I have a center console and set my “ heater” on the opened up console. Thanks for all the info, time and effort! I’ve also got your paperback . Going to dabble with solar next. Wish me luck 😊
Bob, if I was parked somewhere, I'd do this during say, late afternoon and evening, then I'd put out the candles when I went to bed and let the terra cotta pots give off the heat at night. I lived in an old SUV for 2 years on Vancouver Island and I nevee bothered with heat from any source even when it snowed. I dressed warm and slept with my winter coat and boots on. I had a thick sleeping bag and a wool blanket and I was fine.
Good idea! I'm moving back into my van, Okanagan. How you are describing this sequence sounds safer. Once all tucked into your blankets it's good, but in the evening and maybe early morning, would be nice to have heat without turning on the van.
@@heatherstockford814 A metal tub or large pot with sand in an open area would be a good addition to something like this. Provide stability and safety. Good luck.
Just put the shortening in a few canning jars or thrift store small sauce pans. It would be wise to place the candles on a fireproof tile, sheet pan, etc.
Candle wicks in extra virgin olive oil is what they use in menorahs/hannikias. They also sell long burning candles in the kosher section of grocery stores for shabot/sabbath . More expensive than crisco but better smell & take up less room.
I buy thin, long candles because they are cheaper than normal thick candles, and less paraffin wax is better in my opinion. Unfortunately, they easily fall over. To fix this, I wrap aluminum foil inside the jar, and make a hole in the middle, and insert the candle through the hole, and then tightly wrap the foil around the candle bottom
Don't forget you can always shrink down the space you are trying to heat. Tack up blankets, tape up plastic sheeting, or whatever to partition off the minimal area you need. Just remember to ventilate for fresh oxygen and it never hurts to have a CO detector.
my dad did this when we were low on heating oil. sheets closing off living and we all slept in that one room. my friends thought it was "cool" that you could see your breath in my bedroom in the morning lol
The canvas of traditional yurts and cabin tents had a nice balance of holding in stove heat while allowing a bit of air through the material. Condensatioon can become a huge issue in super cold temps.
@@maryjojouwstra3860They often off-gas a ridiculous amount of nasty fumes, especially when first opened. Flexible plastic types are usually the most poisonous.
When I lived in ND we always carried emergency candles made from either paraffin or beeswax, sleeping bag(s), and food (pemmican bars) when traveling in the winter. For the candles we’d make our own using either canning or baby food jars with holes poked in the lids to reduce the risk of an open flame.
I saved several #3 tin cans and poured the Crisco in them with two wicks. They are very efficient and the size of the can is not prone to tipping. They work well with the medium clay flower pot. I used tuna cans upside down to hold up the flower pots. I set the whole thing on hot pot protectors from the dollar store. A couple of these really helped heat the bathroom.
I read, some people are worried about the price of candles. You can find candles at Good Will stores for a reasonable price, sometimes sold in bundles. I've seen small lanterns that can hold candles, and there are sometimes oil lamps at Good Will. Walmart sells lamp oil.
This is valuable information for everyone, including house dwellers. During the winter you never know when the power will cut out or how long it will be out. This in a small space could make a world of difference.
Yes, infact I just bought the supplies tonight in preparation of a power outage here in Sierra Foothills. We lostvitc2 nights ago, & I was cold in my mobile home.
That's why I watched this. I live in a condo in the northeast and we are not allowed to have generators. We have lost power but not for very long.....yet. I want to be prepared to have a heat source if we ever lose power. Not sure if I can find a clay pot this time. Also going to look to see if they sell Crisco is smaller containers which might be easier and safer than the large Crisco.
Flower pot are not fired to a high temperature and may have voids in them that makes them shatter with high heat. I would suggest that for a least the 1st time that they are heated outside so if it does shatter it is away from combustible items. I still have scars from making a camper stove from rocks that shattered and landed on me and started my sleeping bag on fire. The pieces can be very hot and fly quite far.
I remember using candles to heat a small efficiency years ago downin Georgia ..it actually snowed that year it got so cold. It worked to it would get the room.bareable within about 40 minutes! Candles put off alotmore heat than you would think..i used like 3 candles in a10 x 10 room.
When I was living in Kansas one winter we had an ice storm that took out the electricity for 6 days. I lived in a 1,000sq ft home and candles helped to keep the temperature bearable. I learned that scented candles are nice when you burn just one but quickly become overwhelming when you burn several. I have never bought a scented candle since
Just last night I put a cast iron pan on top of my camping burner on low flame and it raised the temp in my ext Chevy express from 45 to 56. It also lowered the humidity inside by more then 10%. Next I’ll try the can of crisco the candles and the cast iron pan.
Bed curtains were popular ages ago to help with heat. I use a pressure rod with a shower curtain on the stairs to help keep hear from rising. This may work in some vehicles/vans to make your sleeping area warmer.
You may have seen in old houses a door that would close over the stairs to the second floor. That way they could conserve the heat for the first floor.
@@Couplescience see if you can find a thermal curtain and tension rod at a thrift store. If you just put the curtain so that it hangs over both sides and use some safety pins just below the rod to hold the curtain together you end up with a double insulated curtain. You could also put a piece of reflectix in between and just safety pin (or sew) it in.
I bought a much larger can of Crisco at a garage sale that was 5 years outdated years ago for $1.00. I also bought 5 tapered candles at a Thrift store for $1.00. They need not be white, nor perfect!
I don't recommend those terra cotta or clay pots to absorb the heat. They can trap moisture and then if they get too hot the steam can build up pressure until the material explodes for it to escape. Use things made of soapstone instead - it's a safe material for this purpose and in fact was used in the "old days" for bed warmers and such. Although they take a while to heat up, they are just as stubborn in retaining the heat. In fact, I've been toying with the idea of making a safe way to hold "bricks" of soapstone that I can place in a campfire or fireplace to heat up over a few hours and then pick up with tongs and "drop" into holders to radiate heat all night as I sleep.
I'm in b.c., and when i was small, we had some flat rocks, about the volume of a canteloupe, that were found in the fraser canyon. They were heated on the woodstove, wrapped in wool, and used as bedwarmers. Later, i discovered/noticed that they were all b.c. jade! Selected for that. Jade is very dense, and doesent absorb water easily, or much. A week under the stove dried them completely.
I believe I may test this idea, but, I will probably buy a couple of restaurant sized cans of fruit, empty the fruit and transfer the crisco to them. I'm uncomfortable with a plastic or cardboard encased candle. Interesting idea!
I found coffee in large metal cans and bought a couple of those to transfer the vegetable oil into so I wouldn't have this problem. There's no way I would burn it in one of those containers!
I have an off grid trailer and I use the exact same thing to heat just a bathroom and it makes so much difference. I have gotten so many great Tips from your channel you really make a difference in people's lives honestly thank you
This is why I have an oil heater that looks like the old steam heaters. It heats up the oil and it stays warm longer than anything else. So with it staying warm longer it uses less electricity. Now that’s if you have electricity. Bob you will have to show me some tricks when I come out next year. I’m sure you can teach me some things to help me out. I am most likely coming out next September.
When a clay pot is heated with a candle it diffuses highly polluted fine dust. I used to use this mthod until I read the tests. Now I use other thermal matter like big rocks, tiles and concrete bricks (with the candles) to heat my room. It doesn't work as well as the clay pot, but I don't want to ruin my lungs this way.
I have heard of the clay pots exploding, perhaps from fine cracks? I think one person used a dish of water to add humidity, but I am not recommending anything, without knowledge of how safety is affected. I'd think about unused metal paint cans, or pyrex, rather than the original crisco container. that melting issue looked a bit dicey to me. Additionally, I would consider your animals, if left alone with one of these, though really, I would want it attended whenever in use... Anyone know about carbon monoxide concerns? Thanks, Bob, I know heat is a very real issue, so I applaud your efforts.
You can pickup a new and empty 1-qt. Or 1-gal paint can at your local DIY store, and while you are there you can purchase a single ceramic floor tile for a heat barrier so that you can safely use your candle on either plastic or wooden table. Both are just a few dollars
I would put the Crisco in a metal container and use the metal container over and over. The burning plastic of the Crisco container will smoke and give off toxic fumes. It is cheaper than buying propane canisters. Good idea!
Heat may be a problem in a vehicle, but light isn't. Get yourself a Fenix E12 flashlight, which runs on a single AA battery. Battery life is nothing short of incredible. I tested mine with an Amazon brand green rechargeable AA (the eneloop clone) on low mode, and ran the light continuously to see how long it would last. After 80 hours, I finally got bored checking on it and turned it off. Fantastic. If you had just two AA rechargeable batteries you could run that setup indefinitely and it would probably cost you 40 cents/year.
I use the clay pots and saucers to help heat my bedroom at home. One hint that works well with them and allows air to get under the pot is to use paper clips on two or three sides of the rim of the pot, leaving a nice air flow to keep candle burning. Another tip in using tea lights is to put foil under the tea lights to reflect the light better and heats much better. I enjoy trying simple things that do not cost much and enhance a simple life!!
do you open a window? or how do you get ventilation this way? moved in with daughter and my room is quite a bit colder than rest of house. looking for economical solutions.
We used lard from our hogs rendered out from fat and the skin that we used for cooking on our wood cook stove for candles during power outages back in the 1950s we used braided cloth as a wick worked great
Bob’s BEST heating method was that single-burner Coleman with a 1LB bottle of propane, surrounded by a wind shield and topped with tin foil! For myself, I use a small Dutch oven (Griswold #7) on a propane burner, with an interior grate to cook a couple big sweet potatoes. My van gets VERY warm by the time those potatoes are ready-to-eat! (In about 45 minutes.) TIPS: First - burn off any cooking/priming residue on your Dutch oven OUTSIDE over a HOT flame until the pan is ‘dry’. You don’t want any of that smoke in your vehicle. SECOND - cast iron will direct heat downward, so make sure of air circulation underneath your stove along with some metal flashing or ceramic tile. THIRD - a three-sided metal camping wind shield with a ‘little roof’ diverts more heat outwards instead of upwards. NOTE: your cast iron pot must be free of any commercial coatings - it must be ONLY cast iron metal. OK - Put the Dutch oven on your stove with the flame on high for 10 minutes, then place the potatoes on the grate and turn the flame down to low. Cook for about 30 minutes. Economical, heat producing, and one has supper too.
My best heating method for van life so far has been a regular propane turkey fryer covered with a small cast iron skillet. Unlike the previous Buddy and Coleman catalytic heater I've had It's reliable, never tipped over during transit and can be used to cook if necessary. I put a small cast iron skillet on it to help cover it that provides a sturdy base for the heated fan to sit which made it much warmer during the recent storm of the century (I was in a t-shirt in my van at -1 degrees). The heated fan also provides recirculation for better ventilation.
@@cheryllundholm8779 I think he means one of those fans you put on top of a wood burning stove, where the upward heated air turns the blades and forces the air outward (towards you) instead of upward. I've looked at them online at Home Depot. Don't recall the price. Hope this helps.
Bob this video sure would come in handy for emergencies when you’re stuck in your car truck/vehicle and you don’t want to freeze to death like so many people had happened already this year. Excellent video and something we should consider during the winter months just in case we get stuck. I bought some shortening, hoping to use it like an old-fashioned pie crust but now I see even a better way to keep it for this type of emergency situation. Love your videos keep up the good work you and your team Bob.👍
I buy freeze dried food. A #10 can and heated crisco would pour into a #10 easily then you wouldn't need to cut the plastic can as it burns. I'm going to give it a try. Great idea by the way!
Heat , light and can cook with this. During her during a hurricane when the electricity was out for 4 days I had to depend on a three-wick candle to cook food I had a small metal rack from my toaster oven and I set it up over the candle securely and cook hot dogs and beans it did take about 15 minutes for it to cook but I appreciated and enjoyed those hot dogs and beans so much. No it was nice to have coffee in the morning and I could scramble eggs too. I still have that candle and whenever I see one I buy it. I guess I could make my own also but I like the idea of Crisco being an option burning 72 hours
A candle would put quite a bit of paraffin and soot toxins from partial combustion into the food. It wouldn't be a big deal from a few times of doing it, the comfort of food would be worth it at first during a survival thing, but not a healthy long term option.
I used a generator to boil water & put in big plastic bottles then put in my van & stayed warm all night safely ! It was still warm in the morning so I took a shower with it 🥰👍 what do you think about that approach ?
Ventilation is extremely important. This is going to produce fumes and moisture, neither of which is good in a small space like a car. The kind of cross ventilation required to make this “safe” will negate most of the benefit. Instead, get a couple of Walmart synthetic sleeping bags (NOT down bags), nest them inside each other and hunker down until the worst of the cold is passed. Then move thyself to a warmer climate!
If you can burn a wax candle, you can burn crisco (which is also clean burning). But I agree with you. Get sleeping bags or a 12v electric blanket. I only make these candles out of waste oil as a way to ♻️
@@jessiehead6525 the feathers in down bags compress and lose their insulation mojo. Also the moisture from sweat and your breath will reduce efficiency too. Synthetic bags don’t suffer from these issues nearly as much and are usually cheaper so you can afford a lower temperature rated bag. The drawback is they’re heavier so no good for backpacking, which isn’t an issue when you’re living out of a vehicle.
@putin - moisture is a byproduct of the combustion process. Next time you’re burning a candle hold a hand mirror near the flame and you’ll see the water vapor condensing on the glass.
How do you deal with the soot accumulation over the long haul? Wax, shortening, animal fat type products do not burn clean. Yellow flame testifies to that fact. For an emergency, yes, use anything that works to help survive the event. However for non-emergency long term usage does have side effects. Soot isn't easy to clean off walls & ceilings. Neither is breathing it for any material length of time very healthy either. Burning any of the products mentioned in quantity can set off smoke detectors. Don't ask me how I know! Great advice for emergency situations. Thank you for sharing the how-to.
Hi Bob I used this method recently in my mini van when the temperature went down to 7 degrees in Pennsylvania for 2 days. I have plenty of cover but wanted to heat the van a little and it worked really well I used 2 and when I got up the van was warm enough to knock the chill off and create enough warmth that I didnt have to start the van.
I have used the Terracotta heater in a canvas tent in a Minnesota winter for a week. outside temps were 30 degrees, We kept the shelter at 50 with candle heat.
I have empty LARGE vegetable cans with their lids bought at Sams Club that I have used the veggies. If you place a Crisco container in one of those I think that could be an added safety measure. Placing the lid on top AFTER the flame has been extinguished might help with protecting the container and spilling/dropping things into the Crisco.
I’d like more people to comment about the odor and the possibility of greasy soot??? I had used my large Dutch oven on a stand over a can of sterno. Sterno doesn’t seem to have any odor at all to it as you burn it. I fill my Dutch oven with marble chips that you can buy in garden centers. Before I went to sleep, I put sternal flame out. And the cast iron Dutch oven with marble chips, acts as a heat battery giving off more heat after the flame is out. Right now I’m camping where I have an electric line coming in in and a small electric ceramic heater. (It was 6° for several nights last week. I slept in my clothes those nights. - i’m leaving for South Florida in a few days, so I’m not too worried about keeping warm. . But I was younger. I camped a little more remotely so the Dutch oven heat battery really worked well. Any kind of open flame I always extinguish before I go to sleep. I can see this Crisco candle thing working in an emergency, but I wouldn’t want to have the smell of Crisco in my van regularly. God bless the nomads, especially when it gets cold.
I have made candles out of crisco and I use it to make soap and it has basically no smell. You could add a little essential oil for a better smell, esp. if you melt it to put in a can, but not really needed. HTH
i have been using this in my home my bedroom gets a bit cold in winter. I use a carriage bolt run down the hole on the bottom of a large pot, add a nut to secure it, then added another medium pot inside the big one then another nut to secure that one in place then i added a 3rd smaller pot an nut to secure in place, then a tin can I cut a hole in the center on the bottom to slide on the bolt and a nut to secure and to collect the heat from the candles or whatever i choose to burn. I made several of them for my home and family about 8 years ago, i mostly use one in my bedroom in the winter it doesn't get to hot yet keeps the chill away while i sleep. they are amazing heaters, I've used a tuna can with veggie oil and a cotton ball they burn a while and you can safely add more oil as it burns it up. i have a slate tile i picked up at home depot to cover a night stand I place it on. so you know the size of room it's approx 12' x10' ceiling to floor about 7 1/2' you may like it warmer so 2 should make it comfortable depending how well insulated the space is. just doing this i save on my electric in the winter costing me pennies in comparison. i stopped using our central heater and use oil filled heaters, 200$ a month is better than 600$ a month. I'm not in a van or rv but this would be reasonable for travelers. it can be scaled to the size you need or make several still cheaper in the long run. you can reuse cooking oil here's a video on how to do that. ua-cam.com/video/ZZg6hirk9r0/v-deo.html to use oil use a medal can or paint can and rolled up corrugated card board cut just below the top of the can with the holes in the card board up so you can drizzle the oil down the holes they light it. if you get a can with a tight fitting lid it's easier to store. can also use wax in this the card board acts as the wick. just wanted to add what I've learned from using this type of heater. Thanks for sharing this with other they are wonderful little things and cost effective too :) ♥much love♥ oh and i use 4 candles.
Although it would be more expensive but is awesome to use as a candle and on yourself is coconut oil! Add a few drops of water essential oils and it’s awesome!
If you build a tower of terra cotta pots, largest on the bottom over the candle, next size on top of that and et cetera, you get a nice chimney. More surface area to exude heat. Good for folks in a tent or who have some height to work with. The pots nest inside each other when it comes time to move.
TIP: You can buy wicks in 100 count for very cheap and push them down into the Crisco to the bottom and still have the wick poke out the top! I bought 28 cans of Crisco, (I'm a prepper), and 100 wicks for emergencies/SHTF situation.
Added value: For just a little bit more money, you can buy a pack (usually 3 to 5) of oil lamp replacement wicks to use instead of the candles. They provide a wider flame, and may only require one or two per-container for the same amount of thermal units. Of course, that depends on how you're dividing your fuel. There are as many sizes of wicks, as there are of lanterns. I, personally, would divide the large canister of flammable grease into smaller metal/glass canisters, and use the smaller, broader wicks. Pro tip: If you're going to use clay pots for containment of radiant heat ... good on ya! However, you should keep those parts (the clay pots) of the "heater" very dry. If they get wet, they might explode when heated up rapidly. I say this because the average person might not know. I live in the PNW, where people *can* freeze to death, and I do keep clay pots for heating without planting things in them, because that would make them wet. We just plant things in pots that we wouldn't put over heat ... because it might explode. Maybe *one* full sized lantern wick, per can o'Crisco, could do that same job better ... or as well? Holler at me, if you figure it out.
Wow. I contemplated this method during my test travel this past week, 20 degrees at night in FL (when the cold front moved south following me from Ohio). I hated to start the minivan, but it was necessary. I will definitely prepare a few to use in the future. In my sailboat, the lanterns work well to take the chill off, although I would not leave kerosene burning overnight. Thanks again, Bob. FYI, so many Vanlifers I met during my quick tour soo appreciate your advice. :)
I've done this for year's. I like the butter flavored scent. Put foil around the ridge to increase the reflection of the heat and light. I've added scented candles also. U can fill jars and old candle holder's to place around the house. Don't put the candle so deep, about an inch above works fine. I actually have been buying case's to take to homeless encampments. Lard melts alot slower, as does beef suet. Settlers, native Americans and other's around the world have been using fat with a wick since the beginning of time.
That's probably the only way those little buddy heaters actually warm something up cuz they sure don't work in a van very well... The top half of your van would be warmish and below that your legs freeze it's almost like being outside.. But the doctors screwed up my thyroid so I do get cold quicker and warmer in hot weather quicker.. so that does make a big difference.. I'm wondering about the odor or smell if it comes off of it.. some people are allergic to a lot of things.. I like the commenter who said to heat flower pots outside first to make sure they don't explode like if they have a crack or defect in them👍
Mojo thank you. Not bad at the moment but they say january/February we may get outages. We are just not used to it. , so I am getting pro active. Happy New year to you
Walmart sells a 0.5 gallon glass cookie jar made by anchor for $5 and comes with a glass lid. You can fit about 1 and 1/2 tubs of 3lb Great Value shortening in them and it’s wide enough to fit 3 candles. Walmart also sells 4 10” candles for $3.
Just went through my first power outage after 1 year full time. 36°F outside but I was super comfy with my emergency candles and tea lights. You're so right! Those tea lights burn so fast! And the emergency candles are not cheap! Adding all these items to my next shopping list, and learning how to salvage all the wax to make new candles. Thanks for all your helpful information.
If you want a larger flame try lantern wicks , ,3/8 can be found in sporting goods at Wall World or 1/2 in candle section , of course burn time would be shortened
Get a # 10 size restaurant metal can which is pretty easy to come by, warm up the lard until it will slide out of the plastic tub. Dump the lard into the # 10 can and it is dual purpose. The metal can will get hot and you can put the flower pot over it or something else. Use a little ingenuity. Watch some of the bush-craft/survival videos on UA-cam. This idea will work but is Raton Micky, you can make something sturdier and will last longer.
Heat my Toyota? Let my truck run. It used .25 gallons per hour. 2 gallons in 8 hours. Perfect temperature. Changed my oil more frequently. It’s too late now that I’m retired, but I’m glad I have this information now. Not a bad emergency heater should you breakdown, which happened years ago in my wife’s car.
Yeah when learning about these my first thought was of Crisco absorbing into everything. After learning about grease and wires during a rewiring a kitchen - nope.
The use of the terracotta pots improves the efficiency of the heat source. Without it the heat all rises up to your ceiling. The pot heats up as a heat sink. Then the heat is radiated out as infrared range light which is absorbed by you and any other objects.
cool idea...head over to a good will, sort of used item store and look for some cooking pot's that you could scoop the crisco out of the paper package into the cooking pot. You might think to hacksaw off the handle but it will give you a safe way to move molten crisco.
Thank you. As always, you have shared something wonderful and practical. I am sleeping in my van, but I am afraid to use propane. I’m going to try the Crisco candle tonight! Thanks again!
Not an old wives tale. My grandparents used to do this. However, I appreciate this, and the idea of the bowl is excellent. Thank you Bob. Happy New Year!
Maybe build a small heating system with some small bricks with tiles & heat the tiles with the crisco candles. After tiles are heated you can put out the candle & the heat retained in the tiles would continue for a while to heat your space.
I have watched your videos for a long time to lean more about being prepared in case of an emergency. I am not a nomad (though I would love to be, but family obligations keep me in a stationary dwelling), and find your preparedness videos very helpful. Love this one about using Crisco - or cheaper store brand - for heating. Thank you for taking time to do this; you are helping non-nomads, too. Greetings from the earthquake prone great Northwest.
Thanks Bob! This started with the ceramic pot but didn’t end that way, reason? I use an old burner grate for a stove top to provide ventilation to place the terra cotta pot over a midsize Crisco-candle, sitting on a small cookie sheet ~it works well. The burner grate can be used as a trivet, the terra cotta pot for colllecting whatever and the cookie sheet for baking.
Thanks for the video! I wonder if there would be any difference if you didn't use the upside down flower pot. I would love to see a test comparing with the flower pot and without.
living in Canada this is a fabulous idea which i will indeed try- and once it proved to be safe and efficient for my dodge grand caravan it will be, literally, a life saver! sometimes the highways have accidents and cause pile ups and up to six hours of sitting on the highway with NO WHERE TO GO...but sit. this is indeed a life saver. I have had emergency candles before but this is super slick! Today as I watched this I attained the Crisco- here in Canada 11.99 and bought candles from the Dollarama for 1.75 and will be experimenting with it on Saturday when sleeping in the van enroute to Hamilton, Ontario. such a wonderful video and fb posts- life saving and also economical since I have not got enough money to purchase a Jackery and also do not know what model I need for my electrical items. thanks so much. love your videos and that ambulance- How cool!
ive Been stocking up on 8 hr burn tea lights here in the cold UK, along with cooling racks and placing terracotta pots on top, but im gonna try this with Crisco, it'll help for the house and my medium size van when camping 😁👍
You are brilliant! I have. Small RV but I only heat up my bedroom & my tiny bathroom at night. I have a Mr Buddy heater but since it’s a little warm tonight I decided to try your method with a slight twist. I received a 2- 3 wick candles & 2 9” tall candles for Christmas so I lit them all. Not only is it heating up my bedroom but the fragrance candles smell way better than propane.
Always make sure you have adequate ventilation when using any type of emergency heating or light options for your van or car. Cracking open the windows is needed for cross ventilation as well as using your roof vent and/or a fan. Never go sleep without making sure that any emergency candles have been put out.
Ventilation- This was what I was listening for. Also is it safe to sit it on an upholstered front seat or carpeted floor. Bob I appreciate you sharing frugal ideas on heating.
Edit-I see m. Campbell (in comments)stated a crockpot as a holding vessel. I thought this was a great idea. With the lid you could extinguish the flame quickly and it will insulate the heat from nearby flammables.
Yes, important since burning virtually any fuel produces toxic Carbon Monoxide along with consuming oxygen. Personally, I would use 2 CO detectors in case one fails.
I haven’t purchased Crisco since probably 1995 or so. I had no idea they come in a plastic container now!😮
@@wownewstome6123 definitely don’t use that plastic container or anything plastic. The glass he showed much better. The stove area might be best area to put it when it burns. Like you you would a pot or pan.
THANK YOU!
I would never burn that thing in the plastic package unless it was an emergency. Excellent video though, and great ideas
I make a heating pad or bed warmer/foot warmer by dumping 1-2 boxes of salt into a low temp skillet and after heating dry salt, dump the warm/hot, clean, dry salt into a single pillow case & tie. Put it at the foot of your bed or in any area of your body you would apply a heating pad. You can use the same salt over & over.
Brilliant!!!
I use rice or dry beans.
@@lisarn5938 or pea gravel
I use the same concept except I put about a pound of rice in a pillow case and warm it in the microwave. This warms the foot of my bed for my feet. And will stay warm all night if I have my feet on it!
Just use a water bottle and water
Put the Crisco in babyfood jars and use birthday candles as wicks. Arrange four of them in a bread pan under a small terra-cotta pot. Put a piece of metal over the hole in the small pot. Then cover with a larger terra-cotta pot over the top. The small pot heats the air between it and the larger pot, then the heat comes out of the hole in the larger pot. Much better heat retainment by covering the hole in the smaller pot.
Vienna sausage cans work too.
A few chunks of copper scrubber with the wick threaded through in small tomato sauce or paste cans, many are copper lines and copper throws off no toxic fumes. Fill with olive oil or vegetable oil. You can use some carbon felt as the forever wick and use a few drops of lantern oil to get it to light and it stays lit. Use a dropper bottle and the lantern oil will last a long time and be safe to add another drop or two if needed. The forever wick olive oil candles video states 10 drops is about right but every once in a while you have to add extra.
A "qulliq" burned fat and was perhaps the most important household implement of Innuit (Eskimo) culture. It was the only source of heat and light in winter.
My advice to everyone is always to go as lowtec as possible. I went throught -10f winters, stealth van living, with no heat. I ended up with about 6 cheap walmart comforters. They were ice cold when I got into bed, but once warmed up, kept me warm on the coldest of nights. Plus your body adapts to the extreme temps....
Use hot water bottle/bag in your covers...nice warm bed to hop into.
@denisephillips9269 Or you can piss in a empty vodka bottle, put the cap back on and toss them in the bottom in the bottom of your sleeping bag to warm your feet.
Yeah it’s called frostbite
My king size down comforter doubled over kept me warm when camping with no heat. It's very luxurious as well.
@@Wardaddy51-50❤❤❤😊
Just remember, don't have all stuff piled on top of you...... Good bedding that you are on TOP of is SO important!!! Bin there, done that.... 🤣🤣🤣✌️🇨🇦
Great video on this and spot on. Couple things to add. You can also cook/boil water with Crisco candles, if you want or need to cook. Just need to set a pan or kettle above the flame. 2 or 3 candle flames work better for cooking or boiling water.
For heat, you can set a pot of sand (yes, sand) above the flame. Once hot, the pot of sand will radiate heat for several hours. The bigger the pot (more sand) the longer it will radiate heat. Aim a little USB fan above the pot of sand and it'll blow heat directly on you for a few hours after the Crisco candle is extinguished. Seems safer to have hot sand radiating heat as you sleep than having an open flame burning unattended.
The sand can also be heated with a camp stove, FWIW.
Anyway, just food for thought. Happy trails.
81 hours with 3 candles in it is impressive. Thanks for doing these experiments for the community!
In not certain that you need 3 separate candles.
I think what you could use would be one much heavier wick. Possibly like one of the wide types they use in kerosene lanterns.
This will be put to good use!
@@rudygeorgiamulesandcountry1594 as Bob said, the shortening has to burn fast enough so that it doesn't flood the wick and put out the flame. That's why he said 3 candles.
I know of a way to use 2 pots like those to keep food cold with just sand and water!!😊
Book: No Impact Man😊
Finally, someone has found a good use for Crisco!
Pie crust is made with crisco it spoils if left out of refrigerator. Smells bad!
@@tonyprice2256 hmmm. Besides entertaibment, you men? Oh, never mind.
Oil lamps have been around for centuries, some of the best oil lamps (open flame) have a tapered base, small at the bottom, larger at the top, and the wick sits in the middle, the volume of oil is greater at the top than the bottom and this allows you to leave the candle for longer amount of time as the oil level drops, with no fear of fire.
Bob you should warn your people that with the corning ware the flame can't touch the glass. If u don't heat the glass evenly it can explode. If the wick stays in the middle there shouldn't be a problem, but if it touches the glass to long, boom. I know this because my husband blew up my pie pans because the tea kettle was touching one when he was making coffee! Pumpkin pie and glass everywhere 🥺
Yeah, get a cheap stock pot, Dutch oven, or crock pot instead.
Did that with a apple pie! Was still finding glass on the floor for a couple of years, usually with my foot.
I am glad you mentioned that about the Corning ware. I have tiles I put candles on (left over from a construction project), what I wanted to know is, is it safe to leave on all night?
A cheap stock would be great with oposing small handles .
Thx for the warning!
Originally Crisco was marketed for candle making. As more and more homes and businesses went electric there was no need for candles. If you look at the "I' in Crisco it's a candle. I was a cafeteria lady for 20 years. I have in my garage some of the one gallon commercial sized food cans. I thought I would transfer leftover shortening into those. You might ask a local restaurant or school if you could get them to save you some or just go dumpster diving. I was also thinking if I couldn't use a 14 oz food can (aka corn, peas, green beans) for spacers to put my terracotta pot on. I also thought I could use my crock pot liner in stead of a terracotta pot. It's heavier and would not be as easily broken as a terracotta pot.
Developed before that as a fuel alternative before crisco went food with it.
You'd need a hole in the top of the crock pot of your using it like a flower pot
Much safer to melt the shortening then pour into a metal coffee or large food can, or a glass canning jar. (You would have more light with the light shining through the jar.) Plus be safer than burning candles in a plastic paper covered crisco can. But thanks for the other ideas.
Hi Bob🖖 I work security overnight in Los Angeles. The job is outdoors and I use my vehicle a 1998 Ford Windstar . In the winter I have been using small Candles 2-4. In a foil lined brownie pan covered with a clay flower pot. It makes a huge difference! I am a lot more comfortable and I don’t need to waste gas to run heat all night.I have a center console and set my “ heater” on the opened up console. Thanks for all the info, time and effort! I’ve also got your paperback . Going to dabble with solar next. Wish me luck 😊
Heating aluminum is dangerous. Causes Altziemers. Do your research on this please
Bob, if I was parked somewhere, I'd do this during say, late afternoon and evening, then I'd put out the candles when I went to bed and let the terra cotta pots give off the heat at night. I lived in an old SUV for 2 years on Vancouver Island and I nevee bothered with heat from any source even when it snowed. I dressed warm and slept with my winter coat and boots on. I had a thick sleeping bag and a wool blanket and I was fine.
Good idea! I'm moving back into my van, Okanagan. How you are describing this sequence sounds safer. Once all tucked into your blankets it's good, but in the evening and maybe early morning, would be nice to have heat without turning on the van.
@@heatherstockford814 A metal tub or large pot with sand in an open area would be a good addition to something like this. Provide stability and safety. Good luck.
Nothing's warmer than wrapping up with a hound dog and a few blankets.
Atta a boy. And the just listen to everything you say with genuine interest. Man’s best friend for a reason.
hound dongs are to stinky
@erikguth4830 my coonhound is cold whenever it's under 50 degrees but she sure keeps the camper warm for me😅
A big fluffy livestock guardian dog
Hence the term '3 dog night!'
Just put the shortening in a few canning jars or thrift store small sauce pans. It would be wise to place the candles on a fireproof tile, sheet pan, etc.
Candle wicks in extra virgin olive oil is what they use in menorahs/hannikias. They also sell long burning candles in the kosher section of grocery stores for shabot/sabbath . More expensive than crisco but better smell & take up less room.
Wouldn't vegetable oil be a lot cheaper than EVOO?
@@jshepard152 Veg oil isn't even very good for you to eat, so how much good does it do to suck it into your lungs?
@@jshepard152
Cheaper, yes. But evoo burns cleaner and your rig won't smell like old french fries.
I buy thin, long candles because they are cheaper than normal thick candles,
and less paraffin wax is better in my opinion. Unfortunately, they easily fall over.
To fix this, I wrap aluminum foil inside the jar, and make a hole in the middle,
and insert the candle through the hole, and then tightly wrap the foil around the candle bottom
Thanks for doing this for us, Bob. These Comments and Replies are loaded with useful information and good ideas, so thank you Everybody! Woot, woot!!
Don't forget you can always shrink down the space you are trying to heat. Tack up blankets, tape up plastic sheeting, or whatever to partition off the minimal area you need. Just remember to ventilate for fresh oxygen and it never hurts to have a CO detector.
The plastic basic shower curtain liner is thick plastic . Would work perfect.
my dad did this when we were low on heating oil. sheets closing off living and we all slept in that one room. my friends thought it was "cool" that you could see your breath in my bedroom in the morning lol
Old Cargo Vans Never heat unless Heavy curtail behind Seats.
The canvas of traditional yurts and cabin tents had a nice balance of holding in stove heat while allowing a bit of air through the material. Condensatioon can become a huge issue in super cold temps.
@@maryjojouwstra3860They often off-gas a ridiculous amount of nasty fumes, especially when first opened. Flexible plastic types are usually the most poisonous.
👍🏼Thanks for taking the Time and Sharing the Info. I'll be lookkng for a sale✌🏼
When I lived in ND we always carried emergency candles made from either paraffin or beeswax, sleeping bag(s), and food (pemmican bars) when traveling in the winter. For the candles we’d make our own using either canning or baby food jars with holes poked in the lids to reduce the risk of an open flame.
I saved several #3 tin cans and poured the Crisco in them with two wicks. They are very efficient and the size of the can is not prone to tipping. They work well with the medium clay flower pot. I used tuna cans upside down to hold up the flower pots. I set the whole thing on hot pot protectors from the dollar store. A couple of these really helped heat the bathroom.
Great idea! I think I'll try that for my greenhouse. Something super big would put off too much light for seedlings
I read, some people are worried about the price of candles. You can find candles at Good Will stores for a reasonable price, sometimes sold in bundles. I've seen small lanterns that can hold candles, and there are sometimes oil lamps at Good Will. Walmart sells lamp oil.
This is valuable information for everyone, including house dwellers. During the winter you never know when the power will cut out or how long it will be out. This in a small space could make a world of difference.
Yes, infact I just bought the supplies tonight in preparation of a power outage here in Sierra Foothills. We lostvitc2 nights ago, & I was cold in my mobile home.
That's why I watched this. I live in a condo in the northeast and we are not allowed to have generators. We have lost power but not for very long.....yet. I want to be prepared to have a heat source if we ever lose power. Not sure if I can find a clay pot this time. Also going to look to see if they sell Crisco is smaller containers which might be easier and safer than the large Crisco.
Some kids I babysat for showed me how to do this back in the early 70's. It's kind of fun actually.
Microwaved the Crisco and scooped into mason jars. Stuff a long candle into the middle. All good, all safe. Great idea.
Flower pot are not fired to a high temperature and may have voids in them that makes them shatter with high heat. I would suggest that for a least the 1st time that they are heated outside so if it does shatter it is away from combustible items. I still have scars from making a camper stove from rocks that shattered and landed on me and started my sleeping bag on fire. The pieces can be very hot and fly quite far.
never use rocks that have quartz in them, they blow up.
Or wet rocks
Thanks for the warning Dan. I'm planning to make a terra cota heater, I will do it outside first, near my water hose.🤩
I remember using candles to heat a small efficiency years ago downin Georgia ..it actually snowed that year it got so cold. It worked to it would get the room.bareable within about 40 minutes! Candles put off alotmore heat than you would think..i used like 3 candles in a10 x 10 room.
When I was living in Kansas one winter we had an ice storm that took out the electricity for 6 days. I lived in a 1,000sq ft home and candles helped to keep the temperature bearable. I learned that scented candles are nice when you burn just one but quickly become overwhelming when you burn several. I have never bought a scented candle since
Just last night I put a cast iron pan on top of my camping burner on low flame and it raised the temp in my ext Chevy express from 45 to 56. It also lowered the humidity inside by more then 10%. Next I’ll try the can of crisco the candles and the cast iron pan.
Bed curtains were popular ages ago to help with heat. I use a pressure rod with a shower curtain on the stairs to help keep hear from rising. This may work in some vehicles/vans to make your sleeping area warmer.
Thank you for your suggestion. More & more people have to turn to their cars to LIVE in. God help us.
Awesome
@@Couplescience If you can double or triple the curtain you will get a fantastic result - like having 2x or 3x pane window.
You may have seen in old houses a door that would close over the stairs to the second floor. That way they could conserve the heat for the first floor.
@@Couplescience see if you can find a thermal curtain and tension rod at a thrift store. If you just put the curtain so that it hangs over both sides and use some safety pins just below the rod to hold the curtain together you end up with a double insulated curtain. You could also put a piece of reflectix in between and just safety pin (or sew) it in.
Terrific use of Crisco! Whatever you do, don’t fry in it. Use butter and bacon fat instead; it’s better for you.
Don't forget tallo/lard for cooking
This is the best use of crisco.
I bought a much larger can of Crisco at a garage sale that was 5 years outdated years ago for $1.00. I also bought 5 tapered candles at a Thrift store for $1.00. They need not be white, nor perfect!
This is THE best and easiest "Crisco" candle heater! ❤❤❤
I don't recommend those terra cotta or clay pots to absorb the heat. They can trap moisture and then if they get too hot the steam can build up pressure until the material explodes for it to escape. Use things made of soapstone instead - it's a safe material for this purpose and in fact was used in the "old days" for bed warmers and such. Although they take a while to heat up, they are just as stubborn in retaining the heat. In fact, I've been toying with the idea of making a safe way to hold "bricks" of soapstone that I can place in a campfire or fireplace to heat up over a few hours and then pick up with tongs and "drop" into holders to radiate heat all night as I sleep.
Smart idea. Can we get an update on what you've learned? What and where you sourced it?
Thanking you. Uk
Where do you get soap stone? Never heard of it
I'm in b.c., and when i was small, we had some flat rocks, about the volume of a canteloupe, that were found in the fraser canyon. They were heated on the woodstove, wrapped in wool, and used as bedwarmers. Later, i discovered/noticed that they were all b.c. jade! Selected for that. Jade is very dense, and doesent absorb water easily, or much. A week under the stove dried them completely.
Hot water bottles are inexpensive ways to keep warm as well. They even sell core body-size versions on Amazon.
I believe I may test this idea, but, I will probably buy a couple of restaurant sized cans of fruit, empty the fruit and transfer the crisco to them. I'm uncomfortable with a plastic or cardboard encased candle. Interesting idea!
I found coffee in large metal cans and bought a couple of those to transfer the vegetable oil into so I wouldn't have this problem. There's no way I would burn it in one of those containers!
I thought of a tall can like pineapple juice comes in.
I have an off grid trailer and I use the exact same thing to heat just a bathroom and it makes so much difference. I have gotten so many great Tips from your channel you really make a difference in people's lives honestly thank you
This is why I have an oil heater that looks like the old steam heaters. It heats up the oil and it stays warm longer than anything else. So with it staying warm longer it uses less electricity. Now that’s if you have electricity. Bob you will have to show me some tricks when I come out next year. I’m sure you can teach me some things to help me out. I am most likely coming out next September.
When a clay pot is heated with a candle it diffuses highly polluted fine dust. I used to use this mthod until I read the tests. Now I use other thermal matter like big rocks, tiles and concrete bricks (with the candles) to heat my room. It doesn't work as well as the clay pot, but I don't want to ruin my lungs this way.
Hi, can you explain exactly how you do it ? Thanks 🙏@MgoM
Thanks for the tip, I've been around this sort of content a while and never heard of clay pot dust
To you have the source of the test results?? I googled this and couldn't find anything about clay pot dust.
I have heard of the clay pots exploding, perhaps from fine cracks? I think one person used a dish of water to add humidity, but I am not recommending anything, without knowledge of how safety is affected. I'd think about unused metal paint cans, or pyrex, rather than the original crisco container. that melting issue looked a bit dicey to me. Additionally, I would consider your animals, if left alone with one of these, though really, I would want it attended whenever in use... Anyone know about carbon monoxide concerns? Thanks, Bob, I know heat is a very real issue, so I applaud your efforts.
What if you painted it with a heat resistant paint?
You can pickup a new and empty 1-qt. Or 1-gal paint can at your local DIY store, and while you are there you can purchase a single ceramic floor tile for a heat barrier so that you can safely use your candle on either plastic or wooden table. Both are just a few dollars
I would put the Crisco in a metal container and use the metal container over and over. The burning plastic of the Crisco container will smoke and give off toxic fumes. It is cheaper than buying propane canisters. Good idea!
Heat may be a problem in a vehicle, but light isn't. Get yourself a Fenix E12 flashlight, which runs on a single AA battery. Battery life is nothing short of incredible. I tested mine with an Amazon brand green rechargeable AA (the eneloop clone) on low mode, and ran the light continuously to see how long it would last. After 80 hours, I finally got bored checking on it and turned it off. Fantastic. If you had just two AA rechargeable batteries you could run that setup indefinitely and it would probably cost you 40 cents/year.
Heat rises so I think insulating your roof would help a lot in keeping your rig warmer no matter what you are using for a heat source
Floor too...anything, newspapers, throw rugs, clothing
I use the clay pots and saucers to help heat my bedroom at home. One hint that works well with them and allows air to get under the pot is to use paper clips on two or three sides of the rim of the pot, leaving a nice air flow to keep candle burning. Another tip in using tea lights is to put foil under the tea lights to reflect the light better and heats much better. I enjoy trying simple things that do not cost much and enhance a simple life!!
do you open a window? or how do you get ventilation this way? moved in with daughter and my room is quite a bit colder than rest of house. looking for economical solutions.
Good 💡 with the foil
We used lard from our hogs rendered out from fat and the skin that we used for cooking on our wood cook stove for candles during power outages back in the 1950s we used braided cloth as a wick worked great
❤ love this mate. many thanks x
Bob’s BEST heating method was that single-burner Coleman with a 1LB bottle of propane, surrounded by a wind shield and topped with tin foil!
For myself, I use a small Dutch oven (Griswold #7) on a propane burner, with an interior grate to cook a couple big sweet potatoes. My van gets VERY warm by the time those potatoes are ready-to-eat! (In about 45 minutes.)
TIPS: First - burn off any cooking/priming residue on your Dutch oven OUTSIDE over a HOT flame until the pan is ‘dry’. You don’t want any of that smoke in your vehicle. SECOND - cast iron will direct heat downward, so make sure of air circulation underneath your stove along with some metal flashing or ceramic tile. THIRD - a three-sided metal camping wind shield with a ‘little roof’ diverts more heat outwards instead of upwards. NOTE: your cast iron pot must be free of any commercial coatings - it must be ONLY cast iron metal.
OK - Put the Dutch oven on your stove with the flame on high for 10 minutes, then place the potatoes on the grate and turn the flame down to low. Cook for about 30 minutes.
Economical, heat producing, and one has supper too.
My best heating method for van life so far has been a regular propane turkey fryer covered with a small cast iron skillet. Unlike the previous Buddy and Coleman catalytic heater I've had It's reliable, never tipped over during transit and can be used to cook if necessary. I put a small cast iron skillet on it to help cover it that provides a sturdy base for the heated fan to sit which made it much warmer during the recent storm of the century (I was in a t-shirt in my van at -1 degrees). The heated fan also provides recirculation for better ventilation.
@@marcushennings9513 Heated Fan?
@@cheryllundholm8779 I think he means one of those fans you put on top of a wood burning stove, where the upward heated air turns the blades and forces the air outward (towards you) instead of upward. I've looked at them online at Home Depot. Don't recall the price. Hope this helps.
@@marcushennings9513do you have anything inside while warming or just empty. Would filling it with sand be ok to hold more radiant heat?
Bob this video sure would come in handy for emergencies when you’re stuck in your car truck/vehicle and you don’t want to freeze to death like so many people had happened already this year. Excellent video and something we should consider during the winter months just in case we get stuck. I bought some shortening, hoping to use it like an old-fashioned pie crust but now I see even a better way to keep it for this type of emergency situation. Love your videos keep up the good work you and your team Bob.👍
I buy freeze dried food. A #10 can and heated crisco would pour into a #10 easily then you wouldn't need to cut the plastic can as it burns. I'm going to give it a try. Great idea by the way!
Thank you for your advice!
Heat , light and can cook with this. During her during a hurricane when the electricity was out for 4 days I had to depend on a three-wick candle to cook food I had a small metal rack from my toaster oven and I set it up over the candle securely and cook hot dogs and beans it did take about 15 minutes for it to cook but I appreciated and enjoyed those hot dogs and beans so much. No it was nice to have coffee in the morning and I could scramble eggs too. I still have that candle and whenever I see one I buy it. I guess I could make my own also but I like the idea of Crisco being an option burning 72 hours
You just answered one of my questions about "can I cook with this". Would it get hot enough for grilled cheese?
A candle would put quite a bit of paraffin and soot toxins from partial combustion into the food. It wouldn't be a big deal from a few times of doing it, the comfort of food would be worth it at first during a survival thing, but not a healthy long term option.
Shortening is covered by most food stamps programs.
I used a generator to boil water & put in big plastic bottles then put in my van & stayed warm all night safely ! It was still warm in the morning so I took a shower with it 🥰👍 what do you think about that approach ?
Ventilation is extremely important. This is going to produce fumes and moisture, neither of which is good in a small space like a car. The kind of cross ventilation required to make this “safe” will negate most of the benefit. Instead, get a couple of Walmart synthetic sleeping bags (NOT down bags), nest them inside each other and hunker down until the worst of the cold is passed. Then move thyself to a warmer climate!
If you can burn a wax candle, you can burn crisco (which is also clean burning). But I agree with you. Get sleeping bags or a 12v electric blanket. I only make these candles out of waste oil as a way to ♻️
Why are synthetic sleeping bags better for this purpose than down bags?
moisture? how would a crisco candle produce moisture??
@@jessiehead6525 the feathers in down bags compress and lose their insulation mojo. Also the moisture from sweat and your breath will reduce efficiency too. Synthetic bags don’t suffer from these issues nearly as much and are usually cheaper so you can afford a lower temperature rated bag. The drawback is they’re heavier so no good for backpacking, which isn’t an issue when you’re living out of a vehicle.
@putin - moisture is a byproduct of the combustion process. Next time you’re burning a candle hold a hand mirror near the flame and you’ll see the water vapor condensing on the glass.
How do you deal with the soot accumulation over the long haul? Wax, shortening, animal fat type products do not burn clean. Yellow flame testifies to that fact. For an emergency, yes, use anything that works to help survive the event. However for non-emergency long term usage does have side effects. Soot isn't easy to clean off walls & ceilings. Neither is breathing it for any material length of time very healthy either. Burning any of the products mentioned in quantity can set off smoke detectors. Don't ask me how I know!
Great advice for emergency situations. Thank you for sharing the how-to.
He is burning vegetable oil not lard animal fat !
The cheaper one that he burned was a combination of animal and vegetable fat. Only the Crisco brand was pure vegetable fat.
how about my mini alcohol stove if burning more expensive Heet or denatured?
The soot should largely stay in the pot. I would plug the hole though and set the pot on something wider than the tub of shortening
Your crisco candle will be covered by the item you are using to radiating the heat... soot will be contained within that item.
Hi Bob I used this method recently in my mini van when the temperature went down to 7 degrees in Pennsylvania for 2 days. I have plenty of cover but wanted to heat the van a little and it worked really well I used 2 and when I got up the van was warm enough to knock the chill off and create enough warmth that I didnt have to start the van.
I have used the Terracotta heater in a canvas tent in a Minnesota winter for a week. outside temps were 30 degrees, We kept the shelter at 50 with candle heat.
I have empty LARGE vegetable cans with their lids bought at Sams Club that I have used the veggies. If you place a Crisco container in one of those I think that could be an added safety measure. Placing the lid on top AFTER the flame has been extinguished might help with protecting the container and spilling/dropping things into the Crisco.
I’d like more people to comment about the odor and the possibility of greasy soot??? I had used my large Dutch oven on a stand over a can of sterno. Sterno doesn’t seem to have any odor at all to it as you burn it. I fill my Dutch oven with marble chips that you can buy in garden centers. Before I went to sleep, I put sternal flame out. And the cast iron Dutch oven with marble chips, acts as a heat battery giving off more heat after the flame is out. Right now I’m camping where I have an electric line coming in in and a small electric ceramic heater. (It was 6° for several nights last week. I slept in my clothes those nights. - i’m leaving for South Florida in a few days, so I’m not too worried about keeping warm.
. But I was younger. I camped a little more remotely so the Dutch oven heat battery really worked well. Any kind of open flame I always extinguish before I go to sleep. I can see this Crisco candle thing working in an emergency, but I wouldn’t want to have the smell of Crisco in my van regularly. God bless the nomads, especially when it gets cold.
I have made candles out of crisco and I use it to make soap and it has basically no smell. You could add a little essential oil for a better smell, esp. if you melt it to put in a can, but not really needed. HTH
i have been using this in my home my bedroom gets a bit cold in winter. I use a carriage bolt run down the hole on the bottom of a large pot, add a nut to secure it, then added another medium pot inside the big one then another nut to secure that one in place then i added a 3rd smaller pot an nut to secure in place, then a tin can I cut a hole in the center on the bottom to slide on the bolt and a nut to secure and to collect the heat from the candles or whatever i choose to burn. I made several of them for my home and family about 8 years ago, i mostly use one in my bedroom in the winter it doesn't get to hot yet keeps the chill away while i sleep. they are amazing heaters, I've used a tuna can with veggie oil and a cotton ball they burn a while and you can safely add more oil as it burns it up. i have a slate tile i picked up at home depot to cover a night stand I place it on. so you know the size of room it's approx 12' x10' ceiling to floor about 7 1/2' you may like it warmer so 2 should make it comfortable depending how well insulated the space is. just doing this i save on my electric in the winter costing me pennies in comparison. i stopped using our central heater and use oil filled heaters, 200$ a month is better than 600$ a month. I'm not in a van or rv but this would be reasonable for travelers. it can be scaled to the size you need or make several still cheaper in the long run. you can reuse cooking oil here's a video on how to do that. ua-cam.com/video/ZZg6hirk9r0/v-deo.html to use oil use a medal can or paint can and rolled up corrugated card board cut just below the top of the can with the holes in the card board up so you can drizzle the oil down the holes they light it. if you get a can with a tight fitting lid it's easier to store. can also use wax in this the card board acts as the wick. just wanted to add what I've learned from using this type of heater. Thanks for sharing this with other they are wonderful little things and cost effective too :) ♥much love♥
oh and i use 4 candles.
Although it would be more expensive but is awesome to use as a candle and on yourself is coconut oil! Add a few drops of water essential oils and it’s awesome!
great film watching from Cornwall UK
A 1 gallon paInt can with the lid would work too then you can extinguish and store.
Good idea
Very good info!
If you build a tower of terra cotta pots, largest on the bottom over the candle, next size on top of that and et cetera, you get a nice chimney. More surface area to exude heat. Good for folks in a tent or who have some height to work with. The pots nest inside each other when it comes time to move.
Also you can get a terra cotta tray and little feet for the tray at most places that sell terra cotta pots. Safer surface for burning!
First time that I tried this I used one candle and as he said the liquid put out the flame.
TIP:
You can buy wicks in 100 count for very cheap and push them down into the Crisco to the bottom and still have the wick poke out the top!
I bought 28 cans of Crisco, (I'm a prepper), and 100 wicks for emergencies/SHTF situation.
Day of the Wick!
You also can buy some carbon fiber material cut an roll it wound in copper wire and never need a wick again. I have crisco smudge pot for my citrus.
I really love how you make it all so simple. It takes the fear of living differently
Added value:
For just a little bit more money, you can buy a pack (usually 3 to 5) of oil lamp replacement wicks to use instead of the candles. They provide a wider flame, and may only require one or two per-container for the same amount of thermal units. Of course, that depends on how you're dividing your fuel. There are as many sizes of wicks, as there are of lanterns.
I, personally, would divide the large canister of flammable grease into smaller metal/glass canisters, and use the smaller, broader wicks.
Pro tip:
If you're going to use clay pots for containment of radiant heat ... good on ya! However, you should keep those parts (the clay pots) of the "heater" very dry. If they get wet, they might explode when heated up rapidly.
I say this because the average person might not know.
I live in the PNW, where people *can* freeze to death, and I do keep clay pots for heating without planting things in them, because that would make them wet. We just plant things in pots that we wouldn't put over heat ... because it might explode.
Maybe *one* full sized lantern wick, per can o'Crisco, could do that same job better ... or as well?
Holler at me, if you figure it out.
I would worry about that plastic shortening container, recommend using a metal or heat resistant container!😲😲
Great tips for survival Bob, I would have never thought of using Crisco shortening.
PYREX dish with all caps lettering is safe to use too. Very cheap from a thrift store or garage sale.
Wow. I contemplated this method during my test travel this past week, 20 degrees at night in FL (when the cold front moved south following me from Ohio). I hated to start the minivan, but it was necessary. I will definitely prepare a few to use in the future. In my sailboat, the lanterns work well to take the chill off, although I would not leave kerosene burning overnight. Thanks again, Bob. FYI, so many Vanlifers I met during my quick tour soo appreciate your advice. :)
Good ideal. Have u tried the toilet paper in a can with alachol .you pour alachol over the paper after you take the roll thingy out and light it .
I've done this for year's. I like the butter flavored scent. Put foil around the ridge to increase the reflection of the heat and light. I've added scented candles also. U can fill jars and old candle holder's to place around the house.
Don't put the candle so deep, about an inch above works fine.
I actually have been buying case's to take to homeless encampments. Lard melts alot slower, as does beef suet.
Settlers, native Americans and other's around the world have been using fat with a wick since the beginning of time.
Thank you for the foil and scented candles tip, have a great day.
That's probably the only way those little buddy heaters actually warm something up cuz they sure don't work in a van very well...
The top half of your van would be warmish and below that your legs freeze it's almost like being outside.. But the doctors screwed up my thyroid so I do get cold quicker and warmer in hot weather quicker.. so that does make a big difference..
I'm wondering about the odor or smell if it comes off of it.. some people are allergic to a lot of things..
I like the commenter who said to heat flower pots outside first to make sure they don't explode like if they have a crack or defect in them👍
With the power outages especially in Buffalo this could have been the difference between life & death!
You are correct about corning ware exploding. I worked at corning for 30 years. It will explode.
I really found this very helpful. I am in England and we are expected to have outages soon. X
Hope you keep warm and things get better for all of our English cousins
If you have access to propane and the Buddy heaters sold in the US, they are excellent if operated correctly.
Mojo thank you. Not bad at the moment but they say january/February we may get outages. We are just not used to it. , so I am getting pro active. Happy New year to you
Thank you x
Walmart sells a 0.5 gallon glass cookie jar made by anchor for $5 and comes with a glass lid. You can fit about 1 and 1/2 tubs of 3lb Great Value shortening in them and it’s wide enough to fit 3 candles. Walmart also sells 4 10” candles for $3.
Just went through my first power outage after 1 year full time. 36°F outside but I was super comfy with my emergency candles and tea lights. You're so right! Those tea lights burn so fast! And the emergency candles are not cheap! Adding all these items to my next shopping list, and learning how to salvage all the wax to make new candles. Thanks for all your helpful information.
If you want a larger flame try lantern wicks , ,3/8 can be found in sporting goods at Wall World or 1/2 in candle section , of course burn time would be shortened
Get a # 10 size restaurant metal can which is pretty easy to come by, warm up the lard until it will slide out of the plastic tub. Dump the lard into the # 10 can and it is dual purpose. The metal can will get hot and you can put the flower pot over it or something else. Use a little ingenuity. Watch some of the bush-craft/survival videos on UA-cam. This idea will work but is Raton Micky, you can make something sturdier and will last longer.
Heat my Toyota? Let my truck run. It used .25 gallons per hour. 2 gallons in 8 hours. Perfect temperature. Changed my oil more frequently. It’s too late now that I’m retired, but I’m glad I have this information now. Not a bad emergency heater should you breakdown, which happened years ago in my wife’s car.
I used a Crisco candle in my apartment for a few hours, even used candles just like this. They kind of work, and they kind of smell up the room.
Your emergency candles should never be scented because they quickly become nauseating
What, you don't want to smell like lard?
Coconut oil comes in metal cans already and smells great when heated!
Yeah when learning about these my first thought was of Crisco absorbing into everything. After learning about grease and wires during a rewiring a kitchen - nope.
The use of the terracotta pots improves the efficiency of the heat source. Without it the heat all rises up to your ceiling. The pot heats up as a heat sink. Then the heat is radiated out as infrared range light which is absorbed by you and any other objects.
I wonder if you get a little usb powered fan and blow it at the pot itd act as a fan heater? and make your rig toasty.
cool idea...head over to a good will, sort of used item store and look for some cooking pot's that you could scoop the crisco out of the paper package into the cooking pot. You might think to hacksaw off the handle but it will give you a safe way to move molten crisco.
I appreciate your input. I’m glad I found your channel. You rock!
Thank you. As always, you have shared something wonderful and practical. I am sleeping in my van, but I am afraid to use propane. I’m going to try the Crisco candle tonight! Thanks again!
Put it in your cast iron dutch oven for stability or something similar.
Not an old wives tale. My grandparents used to do this. However, I appreciate this, and the idea of the bowl is excellent. Thank you Bob. Happy New Year!
Maybe build a small heating system with some small bricks with tiles & heat the tiles with the crisco candles. After tiles are heated you can put out the candle & the heat retained in the tiles would continue for a while to heat your space.
I have watched your videos for a long time to lean more about being prepared in case of an emergency. I am not a nomad (though I would love to be, but family obligations keep me in a stationary dwelling), and find your preparedness videos very helpful. Love this one about using Crisco - or cheaper store brand - for heating. Thank you for taking time to do this; you are helping non-nomads, too. Greetings from the earthquake prone great Northwest.
Thanks Bob! This started with the ceramic pot but didn’t end that way, reason? I use an old burner grate for a stove top to provide ventilation to place the terra cotta pot over a midsize Crisco-candle, sitting on a small cookie sheet ~it works well. The burner grate can be used as a trivet, the terra cotta pot for colllecting whatever and the cookie sheet for baking.
Thanks for the video! I wonder if there would be any difference if you didn't use the upside down flower pot. I would love to see a test comparing with the flower pot and without.
The upside down pot is a good flame heat absorber and heat sink source and prevents contact with open flame.
@@JohnSherman2 good idea if you have a pet
How bout the galvanized pales - buckets!?!
test the flower pot vs a pot of water?
@@billyfordsr6235 the galvanized zinc coating will create toxic fumes when in contact with flame heat
living in Canada this is a fabulous idea which i will indeed try- and once it proved to be safe and efficient for my dodge grand caravan it will be, literally, a life saver! sometimes the highways have accidents and cause pile ups and up to six hours of sitting on the highway with NO WHERE TO GO...but sit. this is indeed a life saver. I have had emergency candles before but this is super slick! Today as I watched this I attained the Crisco- here in Canada 11.99 and bought candles from the Dollarama for 1.75 and will be experimenting with it on Saturday when sleeping in the van enroute to Hamilton, Ontario. such a wonderful video and fb posts- life saving and also economical since I have not got enough money to purchase a Jackery and also do not know what model I need for my electrical items. thanks so much. love your videos and that ambulance- How cool!
ive Been stocking up on 8 hr burn tea lights here in the cold UK, along with cooling racks and placing terracotta pots on top, but im gonna try this with Crisco, it'll help for the house and my medium size van when camping 😁👍
@DON'TakeTheMARK - Hi, I am in the UK too - can you tell me where you buy Crisco here and if possible what is Crisco made of ?
@@mo-end-times-infoI think it's just vegetable shortening, eg: the pie crust stuff, like white lard, but veg.
@@Seriously_sirius2 I tried with our lard and I couldn’t get it to work, I was wondering where to get Cristo in the U.K. too
Have you ever looked to see how much soot is in Crisco. I haven't but it would be a good experiment I think.
You are brilliant! I have. Small RV but I only heat up my bedroom & my tiny bathroom at night. I have a Mr Buddy heater but since it’s a little warm tonight I decided to try your method with a slight twist. I received a 2- 3 wick candles & 2 9” tall candles for Christmas so I lit them all. Not only is it heating up my bedroom but the fragrance candles smell way better than propane.
Great video 🎉