The haunting memory of an embarrassingly difficult time getting a fire started in the snow last year motivated me to come up with a solution.
There are many methods of getting a fire started. My preferred methods of doing anything really are safe, easy, cheap, quick, and with things I already own or with garbage (very cheap).
Having once been a Boy Scout, I have a working knowledge of many of the popular fire starting methods. I currently use a ferro rod and striker from firesteel.com as well as a chunk of resinous pine (fat wood) for use as waterproof tinder. This is a relatively painless way to get things going however the biggest drawback to using any kind of shavings whether they be resinous wood or magnesium is that they can very easily blow away. I just so happen to have discovered this last winter while camping in Sequoia National Forest. A small pile of tiny shavings also does not very easily catch a spark. I was actually worried that we weren’t going to be able to get a fire started with the wind blowing. Our wood being wet didn’t help the situation either.
It is with these flaws in mind that I set out to make a new alternative firestarter.
One existing fire starter that came to mind when thinking of ways to solve the flaws in my current technique was the old cotton ball and vaseline trick. It’s essentially just a fluffed up vaseline covered cotton ball. It probably has the best wind resistance of anything that I’ve tried but isn’t entirely waterproof and tends to get petroleum jelly all over your gear if the plastic baggie opens up. Another drawback is that they release some nasty chemicals when burned. I’d ultimately like to avoid that. You are burning a petroleum based product after all. They also only give you about 3-4 minutes. I do however very much like that they are easy to catch with a firesteel since that is what I have and am comfortable using. They are extremely reliable and not terribly heavy.
After doing a few minutes of Google searching I came upon this YouTube video.
The method shown in this video is essentially an adapted cotton ball/Vaseline method but solves the issue of waterproofing and mess. You are essentially making a candle with a giant wick. The need for adding something like lighter fluid isn’t really necessary though so I omitted it from my process. I also chose to use beeswax instead of “whatever wax” because I’d again rather not be using a petroleum based product (paraffin) and added coconut oil to make the pucks easier to fluff up as well as give them a longer burn time while essentially making what could also double as a last ditch balm of sorts if needed.
Supplies:
- 100% Cotton Rounds
- Coconut Oil
- Beeswax
- Pot or glass bowl for melting
- Bowl of water or piece of parchment paper for cooling
Directions:
Dip a cotton round into a 1:1 mix of melted coconut oil and beeswax (by weight) and then cool by either directly dropping the cotton round into a bowl of cool water or let it cool on a piece of parchment paper. The cotton rounds I use require about 6 gm of the wax/oil mixture per pad to become completely saturated.
These are very easy to both make and use. To use these effectively simply pick at the center of the round and aim for the nest you’ve made with your firesteel or match. The addition of coconut oil makes the wax pliable enough to be able to pull up enough of the fibers to create a nest big enough to easily catch the sparks from a steel. I have been able to get around 16 minutes out of each puck with light wind and have no trouble lighting them on the first or second try. I can’t wait to test these on my next trip! I imagine I could even use these to boil a cup or two of water if desperate.
The beginning on my water bottle rocket stove demo video shows how easy it is to light get a fire going using this method.