3 Ways to make Awesome Cheap Fire Tinder

We look at 3 super cheap ways to make long burning fire tinder, using household items and wax.
#Firestarter #Makefiretinder #Cheap
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[@kroninn]

I take laundry lint and or cotton balls and mix it with Vaseline. I build fire bundles with toilet paper rolls, shredded junk mail and my lint/vaseline mix in the middle. I generally use these in my charcoal starter. Three gets the job done.

[@CourtJester1960]

On the cotton rounds, if you only dip them 90% or so, leaving just a bit unwaxed, you can fluff up the unwaxed part and light it with flint & steel or ferro rod. Much easier to light.

[@pradeepchaudhary5996]

it still easily catches fire when fully waxed

[@spacekat8249]

I know it's basic for the "old" preppers but please, do more videos like this, thx! Regards from France

[@ctrip34]

I agree.. it's just a nice refresher & it might give older preppers a new idea or perspective on how to do something.

[@patriciaduncan6523]

@@ctrip34 Hello from San Diego! In 1975, I was in France and bought some mustard in a pretty little French ceramic jar, and never used it until my husband who loves to cook opened it bcuz we had no mustard on Thanksgiving day in 2005. So he made up a delicious mustard & honey glaze for the ham and we all chowed down on it like it was manna from Heaven! All scarf and no barf, lol. But I never told my family, they just kept eating it up! Plus I baked up some Hawaiian sweet bread, called Malasads, from scratch, they finished that off too…. Anyway, so glad for your site, learning good stuff!

[@archangelmichael1978]

Junk mail, dryer lint, vacuum cleaner bag, and receipts and such are great. Shred them. Stuff it into a bucket and mix with some water and vaseline. Press the water out of it. Let it dry. Knock it out of bucket. Now you've got a big block of firestarter. I like your egg carton and toilet paper roll trick though! That'd be a great use.

[@midknightrider58]

Great video!!! Here is a technique that I did to make two of these types of fire starters. I actually made the paper egg carton fire starters about 6 years ago. The only difference in the ones I made. I mixed sawdust, magnesium shavings with cotton balls covered in petroleum jelly. Then I poured wax in on top of them. After they cooled and I cut them apart. I glued a piece of paper over the tops of them for a neater finished product. Then to use and light up, just cut open the top with a knife to expose and lite the mixture inside. I also made fire starters using cotton rounds. With magnesium and petroleum jelly sandwiched between two cotton rounds dipped in wax. Once cooled, I stored them in an old snuff can. The magnesium made a hugh difference! And they burned more intense and worked outstanding in wet or snowy and even in breezy conditions.

[@bingothelegend]

The lint also works with Vaseline. I have used both the tp rolls and egg cartons. It is a little messy so wear gloves but it is much quicker than the wax method. I took an old bowl and emptied a jar of Vaseline and mixed in the lint then added the lint to both the rolls and the egg carton. Thanks for the great videos. I love the old style informative videos.

[@anthonybarker2087]

I always love your one on one demonstrations. You're my favorite.

[@saltydog3394]

pretty fancy there Sootch lol - i put the wax in an old tomato can to melt on the wood stove to make the egg carton item and the flat side for the cotton rounds for get home bag or the like... pretty cool tho, thanks for sharing these reminders!

[@janeentumbao8690]

Perfect timing! So... An Army friend of mine said that, in a pinch, he used hand sanitizer in place of Sterno. How would you recreate emergency Sterno? And if you could do an indoor version, that would be great! Alot of us preppers live in big cities and still want to be prepared! 😁 Thanks!

[@rwun283]

I tend to mix dry sawdust with mine. We haven't used our dryer in 6 years, so... It's a good dense cellulose source, that takes the wax well. Add some cotton that blows off the trucks on the way to the mill, you're golden.

[@alsparks8709]

Ok loved the video I have followed you for about 3 years now and love your content. While watching the video I had an idea , why not leave the cotten pads on the wax paper fold it up helps water proof it and adds to the burn time you are gonna toss it out anyway and the same could be done with aluminum foil it won't burn but it could provide a dry base in wet conditions

[@Gumby1978]

I have made all three. They are great fire starters.

[@patriotallen9717]

Low tech and very practical. Very useful content.

[@jillcooper6371]

The egg crate one works wonders!!!! It's how I light my pizza oven.

[@nmr6988]

That is very cool.

[@liquidflame1987]

I've always add and either diesel or grill lighting fluid to the melted wax to make it easier to light

[@marccalvert6040]

Just made a bunch with the egg carton flats. They are awesome for fire starting when we go camping.

[@bretjessicayanish1432]

I never thought of that wow

[@simonlamb6326]

Can we please get more videos like this. Good information and reusing things we all have. We can all prep without spending hundreds of dollars with useful knowledge and proper planning.

[@lindahudson8618]

The cotton rounds look easy to make! I've done the toilet paper rolls with lint but didn't know you could use Gulf Wax. Thanks for the info.

[@watchandpray8918]

The candle wax is bith a fire accelerant and a fire extender so it's an excellent choice. That said, if you didn't have access to wax or didn't want to use your candles this way, you could substitute cooking fat, vaseline, chapstick or something like old duct tape you were throwing out. Lots of stuff will burn. But it's very good to get it together to have ready ahead of time. Thank you for doing these teaching vids. People should keep stuff like this in their car in case they get strandred.

[@aslansdaughter4648]

Very good! I have used the toilet paper rolls and paper towel rolls with lint before, but did not add the wax. That will be my next project!❤

[@PhlpsRoche]

Same here

[@joshuabessire9169]

Impressed with how well the cotton pad worked, but that tp tube was a portable dura flame log. Wonder if I could use hickory shavings and cook with it.

[@joshuabessire9169]

@@WinterInTheForest paper towel roll would work, or wrapping paper.

[@ctrip34]

@@WinterInTheForest its not like he wipes his ass with the roll. The lint & hair on the other hand I'd probly stay away from. Take some saw dust & pack a tube. Then pour wax into that.

[@nmr6988]

@@WinterInTheForest you obviously use your toilet paper rolls in ways regular people don't. 😳

[@nmr6988]

@Joshua Bessire you could definitely put in hickory chips and have some delicious smokey grilled hamburgers, other meats, vegetables. It's a great idea!

[@reginaschmid2657]

Love this idea! Have seen the idea with the make-up pads before, but with the toilet paper rolls, that is new to me! Thanks for sharing and keep these sort of tips and tricks coming!!😊

[@raptureready4080]

cool stuff for camping or back yard cooking.

[@counselorchip2248]

I used hemp string and waxed it. Cut to length for an Altoids tin.

[@MattTransit]

Growing up, my Dad would roll up old newspapers, tied off with cotton twine or string. He'd store them in the basement several months in order for them to maintain their rolled up shape. Then we'd use them in the fireplace during the winter months. Luckily, none ever popped open after the string holding them burnt off.

[@janiceshrope4062]

I am So happy you are getting back to these short informative videos👏

[@renee8813]

Thank you SP 🙏This is awesome! Mine will be the Dog Hair variety as well .I also have about 30 large jar Yankee candles that are 80% empty and now I know what to do with that leftover wax! 👍😅🐾💕🐶

[@jacobjones784]

With the cotton rounds mix a little bit of paraffin lamp oil into the wax before you dip them. About 10-1 wax to oil. Helps get them started and burn better. Those are my go to fire starter, you can start them with a ferro rod very easily

[@nanachick05]

Great demonstration Sootch! Love the simplicity of these.

[@johnsmithfakename8422]

When I make my waxed fire tender, I add a little oil to the wax mix (Mineral oil is my favorite, but paraffin lamp oil is also a great alternative, and some charcoal lighter fluid works), I think in a 4 wax : 1 oil ratio. This softens the wax, makes it easier to manipulate, and ignite. My preferred wax infusion material is cotton (cotton rounds, cotton rolls).

[@stevemoore9951]

Greetings from the PPRC great video, I am impressed.🇺🇸

[@Oli_5.56]

Grillanzuender (Wachs/Holzgemisch) sind auch sehr gut und lassen sich auch gut mit dem Feuerstahl anzuenden. Man muss sie nur etwas aufbroeseln.

[@saramclaughlin2470]

I watched a video where wax paper, like used in the kitchen, was wrapped around the toilet paper roll after it was stuffed to help keep it dry plus the wax paper will also burn. Great video by the way.

[@michaelmeyers4950]

Great video! Make up pads in wax are my favourite. One tip though: From my experience it will be difficult to light it with a ferro rod (even after breaking it up). What I do is is only dip the top 25% and bottom 25% of the pad in wax. That way when you pull the pad apart it will take a spark instantly.

[@ctrip34]

I use the cotton pads but I dunk mine in a Petro jelly mixed with lighter fluid. I let them dry & then do a quick dunk in some wax. Works pretty good. I've thought about cutting out the petro jelly cuz it is kinda gooey & messy but it does work well. Just depends. Sometimes it's nice to have just the petro jelly with wax on the outside. Allows you to break it up & use it for dry skin or chapped lips.

[@nmr6988]

My only thought is that I don't want to breathe fumes from lighter fluid. Isn't that stuff carcinogenic?

[@ctrip34]

@@nmr6988 mmm I don't think itll be lit long enough to do any harm to you. Once it gets your small kindling going & the flame gets bigger itll consume that starter in no time. Mmm there might be a way to use Alcohol but idk.

[@dovey4703]

Thank you for the great idea!! Love the toilet rolls and egg carter

[@dennislogan6781]

I make the cotton pads with candle wax by using a candle warmer and getting the wax to a liquid state and dipping the cotton pads in.

[@jrgmelb25]

Fire, Fire! Fire!!!! 🔥

[@XXDirkDiglerXX]

fire is cool beavis

[@billygraham3064]

Instead of candle wax you could also use Crisco vegetable lard which is a cheaper alternative.

[@DrSchor]

Hello Scooth. Excellent information you alway have. It is not more sensible to use the many excellent inexpensive commercial fire starters already on the market, as opposed to making you own. If you are forced to improvise to create a Firestarter, you have not sensibly prepped, which is the theme of your channel

[@MI_Prepper]

The toilet paper roll was a GREAT idea, I bet some waste paper from a shredder would be a good ingredient, too. So would "smoker" wood chips or wood pellets.

[@nmr6988]

Well, that is a great idea and sounds like a good cottage industry. My shredder has a double cross-hatch action that turns everything into tiny little compressed balls. They would be perfect to use in any of these fire starters.

[@user-ff8yl2ob3r]

Great video, as always, Don. Always appreciate the information you provide.

[@wehrmeister]

I'm about to make a bunch of the egg carton fire tinders. I had to buy cardboard egg cartons from Amazon, can't find them in my grocery store, and bought bags of tea lights from the dollar store, along with a metal dog bowl to melt the wax in. Guess I could have used toilet paper cores, but I think I like the smaller portions to carry, although you pointed out that you can cut the rolls down.

[@richardelliott9511]

I don't know how much those egg crates cost to buy buy maybe check out paper condiment cups.

[@atongs_edc]

Great idea. I actually use pencil shavings as tinder. I got four kids going to school so I sharpen pencils every single day. I collect them and put them in ziplock pouch as well. Got this idea from a friend, also an outdoor enthusiast and part time KZbinr. Tinder is much easier to carry than to find outdoors so you gotta have them with you.

[@eileensimpson3725]

Thanks for the video. I just made some egg carton tenders. It's easy and fun.

[@herbertoakleyjr7176]

Thanks for the tips keep them coming

[@tactesticality3673]

Fritos chips make a good fire starter in a pinch.

[@chrissewell1608]

I bet most greasy potato chips would light up!

[@doplardom]

Mmmm, Freetoes!🥴

[@chrissewell1608]

@@doplardom 🦶😛

[@doplardom]

@@chrissewell1608 😂, yep and they smell like feet too, Freetoes for breakfast!

[@nmr6988]

Both the suits channel and sensible prepper have them videos using Doritos to light fires.

[@laurelrunlaurelrun]

Less grocery stores carry gulf wax now. I think less people use it for canning now. I found some at Michael's, the big craft store chain. In the candle making aisle there of course.

[@TressaZimmerman]

Yep that is some good use of stuff that normally would be thrown away.

[@davemartin9632]

Like the instructional video!!

[@kurtcranford3045]

if you have a band saw..........it makes cutting the egg carton super easy

[@chrissewell1608]

Thanks to you, Don, and a few others... I am building a small (med.) Size tinder box! I have always wanted one, so why not!? Because ya just never know when you need a good camp fire, Bon fire, or inner city peaceful protest!? (I live near Atlanta, So....!)

[@somoza8121]

Great video and may the LORD CHRIST JESUS Bless you

[@Enes-wj5xq]

He can't because he is not God

[@nmr6988]

@SOMOZA81 AMEN!

[@leatherneckprepper4477]

I love the smell of burnt dog hair in the morning!

[@chrissewell1608]

I was thinking that too! 🤢🤮

[@772tsweet77]

It smells like victory

[@nanachick05]

@@772tsweet77 😂😂😂😂😂

[@PhlpsRoche]

Smell of Cat Hair is Even Better😂

[@leatherneckprepper4477]

@@PhlpsRoche lol

[@deceptionsdemise]

These are great ideas 💡

[@hopebuxton7123]

Great video! Thank you!! 🙏🏻❤️🙏🏻

[@snteevveetns]

I use CA coastal oak for my fires. I struggled w my first fire start in my fire pit. I had the paper too tightly wrapped. My 2nd/3rd fired I used just lint under the kindling (small chips of oak from the feathering), and it work excellent! I didn’t have any wind/inclement weather to be dealing with. I’ll start making the egg create version of this! Thanks!

[@monicagould8136]

The wax you are using is used to top off and seal jelly. Instead of using jar lids you simply pour the wax on top of the brim of the jelly jar to seal it up!!!! It will not hurt any thing you use to heat it up,,,it is a food product,,, that's why it is sold in the canning department at the store!!!!!! Just wanted to let you know!! I enjoy all of your shows and miss the series!!!!!

[@nagaviper1169]

I was wondering. Never heard of gulf wax, but I don't can so there's that. Than you

[@andreasm1317]

That was really interesting. Thanks. Phenomenal that the TP roll went for nearly a half hour. Given access to wax may be challenging, would these work with animal fats (lard/tallow) instead? Not as stable of course but more accessible. Peace.

[@christiananthony1274]

the pads look the best. i wonder how to press pads out of lent

[@DavidMN-]

Great way to use up all those random "No there's still some left!" candles lying around my house :)

[@Valor_Defense]

Going back old school aye Don lol

[@sinclairpages]

When all the electric goes away your stove will no longer work. Suggest a gas type stove. Gas will be around a lot longer than electric in an SHTF. My gas stove runs on Natural or Propane gas. I have the orifices for both. People over look old COTTON shocks, T-Shirts and underwear as a fire starter. I have a paper shredder that shreds down to almost powder. It makes great fire tinder also.

[@pnyarrow]

Grerat info - thanks for sharing. stay safe. ATB. Nigel

[@kevinramsey3490]

Shannon!!!! Don's in the kitchen!!!😎😇

[@chrissewell1608]

Chiseling on the fine counter top!

[@chriswilson9230]

I’m impressed with how long that the cotton pad even burned. I’ll go with the toilet paper roll.

[@Bear5491]

Easier way to make cheap fire starters is to cut up a duraflame log. You can about 40 starters from one log and cutting the log up with a hand saw is much faster than messing with the wax. Cut the log like a loaf of bread in 1” slices and then slice the slices in 4 pieces with knife. They will burn for about 15 minutes and this is how I light fires in my wood stove all winter long.

[@papimaximus95]

They actually make Duraflame Firestart CUBES that are wrapped and the size of those mini candy bars. I keep 5-10 in my bag and use them all the time to start fires.

[@Bear5491]

@@papimaximus95 Very true, cutting up a log into 40 pieces makes the starters less the 0.10 each.

[@papimaximus95]

@@Bear5491 kzbin.infom-j3jLKiZVM

[@ctrip34]

I took one of those fire starter logs &shaved off some pieces to light a fire. It didnt burn. I was really puzzled by it.

[@papimaximus95]

@@ctrip34 Purchase the Duraflame Firestart CUBES from Wally World (18 pack). They are extremely small and light weight. Just light the corner of the wrapper and it will burn for at least 30 minutes if not more.

[@darbovision2672]

I can see the TP roll being cut in half or quarters to make more starters.

[@chrissewell1608]

Well, atleast someone has finally found a good use for dryer lint! (I can donate 40,000 lbs. / year! ) And left over TP and paper towel tubes! We usually give our egg crates to some friends who raise chickens, and swap for a few dozen FRESH EGGS! This year (2023), eggs are so dang expensive, they may start selling them? 🐔🥚🥚🥚🍳💰💰💰

[@11ccom]

More good stuff.

[@kimskluckers5665]

Use a soup or vegetable can to melt wax in. Personally I melt my wax on a trivet on the woodstove. DO NOT LEAVE THE WAX WHEN MELTING.

[@kjon3]

I bought an old crock pot at the thrift store. When your done just shut it off until next time.

[@Castleknight]

Can you put the egg carton in the refrigerator or freezer to harden them up faster?

[@johndoe-bq1xt]

ur ah genious! boil the water as a heat transferrence i love u sir !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@Merica-1989]

Gulf wax works better than regular candle wax. Regular candle wax stays a little soft but the gulf wax hardens and doesn’t feel greasy.

[@h.h.1266]

Is it hot enough to use instead of a solid fuel tab?

[@johndoe-bq1xt]

energy is the name of the game - I LOVE AMERICA !!!!!!!!!

[@tommysimmons5266]

I save the cardboard off toiletries and paper towel. I stuffed them with old paper products and light it up, takes 15 seconds to get started.

[@bobclarke7240]

I would love to see a review of the Rapdom 96

[@m.myrick7086]

How did the wax clean out of the stainless steel containers???

[@jessesioux4431]

Egg crates are good but i won’t be using them because we keep them for getting eggs from our local supplier

[@alrinaleroux9229]

Dear Sensible Prepper, thank you for your videos. Perhaps you are already aware of this, but I discovered today that May 1 (aka "May Day") is traditionally celebrated all over the world as a holiday for laborers and the working classes (it is International Workers' Day). I read the following on Wikipedia: "May Day has been a focal point for demonstrations by various socialist, communist and anarchist groups since the Second International. May Day is one of the most important holidays in Communist countries such as China, Vietnam, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and the former Soviet Union countries. May Day celebrations in these countries typically feature elaborate workforce parades, including displays of military hardware and soldiers. ... "... The biggest celebration of 1 May usually occurred in the capital of a particular socialist country and usually included a military display and the presence of the president and the secretary general of the party. During the Cold War, May Day became the occasion for large military parades in Red Square by the Soviet Union and attended by the top leaders of the Kremlin, especially the Politburo, atop Lenin's Mausoleum. It became an enduring symbol of that period." Best regards.

[@jtpenman]

Awesome

[@neoaliphant]

ive been using the makeup pad wax biscuits for years, and my wife uses the cardboard and eg carton but with newspaper and sawdust as dryer lint has too much wool and mot enough cotton...

[@davidjones1393]

THKS DONE

[@scottystillskates]

Waxed cardboard fruit boxes cut into strips work awesome as a fire starter. Ziplock them and your good to go.

[@williamsellers8710]

What kind of fixed blade knife was that in the video when lighting the egg carton

[@patrickcarney9474]

I think he prefers Esse knives

[@kayroth8750]

I've seen the egg carton with wax and shredded newspaper.

[@5pointstar78]

i'm a big fan of cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly.

[@ceojr1963]

always have cotton twine soaked in gulfwax or just candle wax which can be bought for making candles by the pound, I used to make hand dipped candles, buying 50 pounds of wax at a time, I made fire starter kits in the early 90's so just to say, gulfwax is the offshoot of Oil production, next is beehives, animal tallow, veggie oils, life is full of consuming substances.

[@nmr6988]

Dollar Tree has economical aka cheap cotton rounds. $1 or even $1.25 is a great deal.

[@m0ther0ne]

A good one is soaking cotton wool in Vaseline (petroleum jelly).

[@nmr6988]

That's the first firestarter video I ever saw on SensiblePrepper about nine years ago. It's still my favorite after all these years.

[@memphis2houston346]

I wish society could get back to listening to others thoughs & life observations instead of instantly letting ignorance fly.... I've learned alot over the years from this gentleman, he's doing us a service. For all the nay sayer if you can do better pls create a yt channel & I'd give it a go, just leave my guy alone. #yes I spazzed out 🤣

[@papimaximus95]

Even easier: They actually make Duraflame Firestart CUBES that are wrapped and the size of those mini candy bars. I keep 5-10 in my bag and use them all the time to start fires.

[@papimaximus95]

kzbin.infom-j3jLKiZVM

[@MrRedFox13Photography]

the cotton round A tier

[@jessesioux4431]

Golf or gulf wax? I got beeselwax and paraffin wax .

[@theoneandonlycarlton]

That wax isn't gonna ruin your pot,it's perfectly edible,they use in Chocolate candy making.

[@Amara1324]

From experience, if you get a decent amount of pet hair in your dryer lint, it doesn't work very well. In that case, I suggest saw dust instead.

[@nmr6988]

I have had just the opposite experience with pet hair. It burns like crazy when mixed with the other ingredients. Maybe different kinds of pet hair? Who knows.

[@Amara1324]

@@nmr6988 I have 10 cats and 2 dogs, I honestly think my lint is 90% hair.

[@gardenjoy5223]

Fun to watch. But I'm not sure it will help. For when the s. does hit the fan and electricity is out, my dryer won't work. I'll be out of fire starters like these in a second. On the other hand, the store right now does have a lot of already made fire starter blocks. Which we use, when lighting a fire. Why not just have those in good stock and use those? Saves you a lot of time. Time is valuable too. Might be used to shoot game to go on the fire. Just saying.

[@thinkoutsidethebox7020]

Cook fatwood the same way and add the resin to the wax

[@spookymulder945]

Neat!