From lighting the night, to preparing meals, fighting off the cold, and even purifying water; fire can be used in a number of ways to keep you going during a Zombie attack, other major disaster, or even a simple camping trip… as long as you can get it going.
While not always required when trying to start a fire, a well made fire starter can make the process a lot easier, especially when dealing with wet and windy conditions, or unusual circumstances like a Zombie outbreak. Homemade fire starters come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and types. And with each different type comes a different burn time, level of reliability, ease of use, and cost.
After testing a number of these DIY fire starters for ourselves, we found two that consistently performed well. Both are easy to make, easy to light, waterproof, long burning, compact, and extremely low cost… we call them the Cotton Catch and the Jute Match.
COTTON CATCH FIRE STARTER
This simple yet elegant solution to wet and/or windy weather fire building, is our favorite homemade fire starter. Not only are Cotton Catch fire starters waterproof, they are lightweight, long burning, simple to make, and highly cost effective.
Made by soaking cotton balls (100% cotton) in melted petroleum jelly, Cotton Catch fire ftarters are a quick and simple solution for anyone looking for an all-weather, everyday carry fire starter that will never let you down. These simple starters have a maximum burn time of about 4-5 minutes, giving most users more than enough time to get a real fire going.
Tools: Wax paper, rubber gloves, and saucepan.
Materials: Cotton Balls (100% cotton), petroleum jelly, and parchment paper (optional).
Place about 2 tablespoons of petroleum jelly in a sauce pan and heat on low. Continue heating the pan until the petroleum jelly turns from a semi-solid to a liquid. Use the cotton balls one at a time to soak up the liquified petroleum jelly, squeezing out the excess from each before placing them on a sheet of parchment paper or other safe work surface. After giving the Cotton Catchers time to cool off, feel free to fluff one up and try it out.
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JUTE MATCH FIRE STARTERS
While a Jute Match isn’t as powerful as Cotton Catch, it is still a reliable fire starter and a couple of them together make an great of tinder to get a fire going. Like the Cotton Catch fire starters, Jute Matches are waterproof, lightweight, easy to make, long-burning, and low cost.
Made by soaking pieces of Jute twine in melted candle wax, Jute Matches are not only a simple and versatile solution for fire-starting. Depending on the type of wax used a 2″ length of Jute Match has an average burn time of about 4-5 minutes.
Tools: Wax paper, tweezers, scissors, and saucepan.
Materials: Wax (old candles, beeswax, etc.), and jute twine.
Cut a one-foot length of jute twine, and lower it into a small pan of melted wax. Use tweezers to fully submerge the twine into the wax until it is fully coated. Wait a few moments while the twine absorbs the wax, then remove it and let dry on a length of wax paper. Cut the twine into 2″ sections and pack it away for a rainy day.
