I've found a really easy and economical way to make my own fire lighters. These fire lighters are good for log burners, open fires, or camp fires. Perfect for emergency preparedness.
The burn time in my log burner was about 10 minutes. They cost literally pennies to make, and are ideal for outdoor fires as they are waterproof. They can be lit with matches or a flint.
Here's what you need:
Bag of cotton wool balls
Petroleum Jelly or Vaseline
Ziploc bags or an airtight container
The easiest way to make these fire lighters is to put your hand in a ziploc bag and turn the bag inside out, then scoop out a large handful of Petroleum Jelly into the bag. Take you hand out of the bag and put the bag the other way round so the Petroleum Jelly is inside the bag. Depending on the size of your bag put about 10 - 20 cotton wool balls in the bag.
Close the bag and then squash, and squish the cotton balls in the bag so that they are all coated with the Vaseline.
These fire starters are great for home fires, or outdoor fires. They are perfect for keeping for emergency use in a 72 hour, or bug out pack.
When lighting one of your fire lighters you may need to pull the cotton apart slightly to find some cotton in the middle that doesn’t have Vaseline on it. Mine didn’t light properly at first because I tried to light the ball directly on the Vaseline. I ended up using about 6 matches 🤦 At least it proves that the fire lighter balls are indeed waterproof 😂
My cosy log burner fire. This is the first fire I have ever lit using cotton wool balls and petroleum jelly. I’ve been meaning to try this ides for ages, but haven’t got around to it until today. I went to light our log burner and realised that I had run out of fire lighters. Perfect opportunity to try out these diy fire starters. So happy with the results.
This is my cosy fire 30 minutes after lighting.
Give it a go and let me know the results you have, and please share any ideas or hacks you have for diy fire lighters.
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