Call me frugal, but cheap and simple are two of my favorite words. Combine those words with survival or prepping and you have my attention.
A little prep work ahead of time can turn the task of starting a fire into a snap. We all know there are countless methods to start fires but these homemade fire starter doo-dads are one of my favorites. Why? Because it is reliable, it gets the job done in a flash and it can be made without spending a single penny.
A little prep work ahead of time can turn the task of starting a fire into a snap. We all know there are countless methods to start fires but these homemade fire starter doo-dads are one of my favorites. Why? Because it is reliable, it gets the job done in a flash and it can be made without spending a single penny.
How to make Egg Carton Fire Starters
Three items are all you need to make these. Cardboard egg cartons, wax and some form of dry fiber such as dryer lint, sawdust or paper towels for example.
For this project we use only the cup portion of the egg carton, so cut off the lids of your cartons. Do not separate each individual cup, that step comes later. It is worth noting you should only use the paper cardboard type of egg carton, do NOT use Styrofoam egg cartons for this project.
Stuff a generous amount of dryer lint, sawdust or paper towels in the bottom of each egg cup until the cup is about half full of your dry material. Scraps of fabric, cedar shavings or paper napkins are excellent alternatives if you do not have dryer lint. As long as it is dry and flammable it will work.
This project is a great way to use up left over wax from old candles or bits of broken crayons. Plus there is no need to worry about remaining paper labels on the crayons or pieces of wick in the candle pieces. Dump all of your wax pieces into a metal can to melt. Use the double-boiler method to melt the wax by placing the container holding the wax into a pan half full of water and bring to a boil. This is the safest way to melt wax. The melting process will take a few minutes and can be done on a stovetop or grill. Melt the wax until it is in liquid form and carefully pour the hot, melted wax into the lint or sawdust filled cups. Remember to use extreme caution when working with hot wax, use oven mitts or gloves and work slowly to avoid the splashing the wax.
The final step is simply to let the wax cool until it become solid again. Once the wax is completely cool to the touch, cut the eggcups into individual cups and store them away. A Pringles can or plastic zipper bag makes a great storage container.
All of the material needed to make these do-it-yourself fire starters can usually be found for FREE. If you do not have the necessary items call a schoolteacher and ask them to save old crayons for you and ask your friends to save their egg cartons and used candles for you. We all like free and easy do-it-yourself projects and this one really comes in handy. Lightweight and easy to carry, long-burning fire starters are perfect for backpacking, camping or home use.
somebody please send me a video of how to do this . [email protected]
I do a lot of woodworking at the house and have long made these using wax and sawdust. I use a 50/50 mix of both and stir the sawdust into the liquid paraffin thoroughly. I also use the 3oz. paper DIXIE cups from the bathroom as containers. My wife’s been wondering how I use so many of them (SHHH). All you have to do is light the cup and stand back, these burn almost 15 minutes and if you can’t start a roaring fire with them, then you’ve got real problems…lol
I use plastic ice cube trays to make mine. They pop out easily.
And I use a wood pellet stove to heat my house. One of the bags got wet and the pellets broke down to the sawdust. That makes the perfect filler for the starters.
soaked sorry for miss spelling
These egg carton fire starter’s work awesome , they burn a long time . We also put it out with water sokaed it real good then tried starting again when it was still wet and it lit up like it did when dry . these are awesome fire starters
I have used this same process but after running out of lint I tried successfully using old newspapers that I rendered down by shredding up and boiling in water a few minutes to break them down and then strain and squeeze out as much water as I could, after it cools of course and spread out to dry on cookie sheets. I had no patience to let dry in the sun, so I dryed the pulp like stuff in a 350 deg. oven watching it carefully and checking periodically until completely dry. I crumbled it up into as small of pieces as I could and used it instead of lint. I suggest using an old junk pot or big pan for the boiling process that is not used for cooking food in because the ink residue was hard to scrub out of the stainless pot that I used and may present a health hazard if used for food preparation afterward.
Lisa, you little Fire Bug! Melt some old candle wax in a soup can, and pour it on a sheet of wax paper. Then, pull the drier lint carefully out of your filter, and sandwich it all together, fold or roll for convenience, cut or tear off as needed, use magneasium starter, or magnifying glass, and carry it all inside a couple of small baggies.
grayghostcsa’s comment (#1, Para 1.2) is how I was taught to make fire starter (petroleum jelly impregnated cotton balls). However, in my tests we timed a single cotton ball to burn at almost a full 6 minutes. These are fast to prepare. No melting and no pans needed. Just fluff out the cotton ball and spread petroleum jelly through out, then ball it back up and store in a ziplock. You can make a weeks worth in minutes.
For more advanced techniques, there are tutorials on YouTube that show you how to melt the petroleum jelly and dunk the cotton for better absorption. And other videos show how to use a common plastic straw for storing the treated cotton. Cut the straw into desired lengths. Then use pliers to clamp and burn one end to seal is closed. Shove your treat cotton in the open end to fill it, and then clamp and burn the other end for a sealed fire starter package.
Mass produce them and store in an Altoids Tin.
i would love to see a video of both ways to do this
This is a good method and my Scout Troop has been using it for a long time. Two other good methods.
1. Similar to the original post but use the pressed paper inserts that hold fluorescent light tubes in boxes. Almost any organization that uses 8 foot fluorescent lights has these and you can ask them to save them for you. Cut them into four inch squares and dip them in wax.
2. This is more for back packers. Take cotton balls such as women use for cosmetics and impregnate them with petroleum jelly. Do this by putting the PJ on your fingers and rubbing the cotton ball between your fingers in a circular motion. This compacts the cotton ball. Put it in a zip lock bag or container. When ready to use pick at it to expand it back to its original size. Make sure you have plenty of tinder as the cotton ball burns rapidly, usually only lasting about a minute.