Homemade Firelighters to start a fire without kindling
Light up your next camping adventure with an ingenious, budget-friendly hack, diy camping fire starters. This is a clever way to make campfire starters using dryer lint, a household item you’d never think to repurpose. Perfect for sparking a cozy blaze, these DIY fire starters are easy to craft, eco-friendly, and a game-changer for your outdoor escapades.
Last week the grandsons came to visit us at the Ranch. We really love seeing them and spending special time with them and doing such things as riding four-wheelers, having them help us feed cattle, playing a few board games, making homemade pizza and chocolate chip cookies and of course, building campfires!
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One of their favorite things to do is start a campfire in our outside cast iron stove or in our fire-pit. They always want to have at least one night for hot dogs and s’ mores! I don’t like to use lighter fluid or other flammable liquids to start our campfire, especially with a group of rambunctious boys involved. The best way on how to start a fire without kindling is to using a diy camping fire starter. So the youngest and I prepared by making some DIY fire starters.
Get ready to ignite your campfire with ease and a touch of creativity!
What you need for these homemade firelighters:
Supplies Needed:
- Saved lint from the dryer
- A block of wax. But old candles could be used and are a great way to recycle those candles that have seen better days. Or even those scented wax melts could be recycled into these firestarters.
- Saved or purchased Cardboard egg cartons, (not the plastic foam ones but cardboard)
- Wax Melting Pot or Pitcher or you could use an old coffee can like we did.
How to make DIY Fire Starters:
Gather your saved dryer lint and old cardboard egg cartons. Cover your counter top with foil or parchment paper.
Pack each little egg cup in the egg cartoons with plenty of the recycled dryer lint. My grandson packed ours so there are parts of this DIY Firestarter that are kid-friendly. Just make sure the children are not close when you begin heating the wax.
Melt the wax using an old coffee can in a pot of water, a faux double boiler method. We also save the scented wax in this same coffee can and it can easily be remelted. You could also use a metal candle making pot or pitcher.
Sometimes metal coffee cans are hard to find and I’ve had this one for a while, but a tall metal juice can also work very well. I had cut an opening to allow easier pouring of the wax and I save this can to reuse for the next batch of these DIY firestarters.
Cover your counter with aluminum foil to protect your countertops. Place the cartons filled with lint and carefully fill each egg compartment with the melted wax, adding more if necessary. Allow them to cool completely and close the lids for easy storage. We keep ours in the fridge out in the shop.
Now we have our own little batch of handy DIY firestarters for all those summer nights of campfire fun!
How to Start a Fire without kindling with DIY Campfire Starters:
The best way on how to start a fire without kindling is using these DIY camping fire starter.
Tear out one or two of the solid DIY Firestarter egg cups to start to get those campfires burning
Light the edges of the extra cardboard around the edges of your diy camping fire starter or use two of these campfire starters. Then place wood chips, smaller logs on top and as the fire grows add larger pieces of wood.
Now it is time to pull out the s’ more ingredients and enjoy your evening campfire. And now you know another easy way how to start a fire without lighter fluid with these Campfire starters. Enjoy lighting your campfire with ease and a touch of creativity.
🥣 Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 box wax
- recycled dryer lint
- 1 cardboard Egg Carton
Instructions
- Pack each little egg compartment of the egg carton with plenty of dryer lint.
- Cut a small opening in a large metal coffee can to allow easier pouring of the wax. Sometimes metal coffee cans are hard to find but a tall metal juice can also work very well.
- Melt the wax using the old coffee can or metal juice can in a pot of water, a faux double boiler method. Or a candle making metal pitcher
- Cover your workspace with aluminum foil to protect your countertops. Place the egg cartons filled with lint on the foil. Carefully pour the melted wax into each egg compartment adding more if necessary.
- Allow them to cool completely and close the lids for easy storage.
- When you are ready to light a campfire, tear off one or two of the DIY firestarters and Light the edges of the extra cardboard around the edges, Add wood chips, twigs and smaller logs and as the fire grows add larger pieces of wood
Click HERE to save these homemade firelighters to Pinterest
We love having bonfires in the evening and this is such a great and easy idea!
Great idea! I've used the lint before stuffed inside used paper towel and toilet paper rolls and that also works great but will definitely have to give this one a try. Thanks
If you have a "Scentsy" type wax warmer for scented wax, use the wax from that after it lost its scent. Great way to use what would otherwise be thrown away.
We don’t have any wax or candles at the moment, what function does the wax serve in this project?
The wax is the fuel that keep burning long enough for the wood to catch on fire.