Are you looking for a cheap and reliable way to start a fire in any situation? Here is a simple yet highly effective fire-starting method using readily available materials, perfect for preppers, outdoor enthusiasts, and anyone building emergency kits. Read on to discover how to assemble this budget-friendly system and gain the confidence of knowing you have a reliable way to make fire.
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In this post
The Core Components
The best fire-starting system can also be the cheapest and the materials are the easiest to find at any drug or grocery store. You need only four things:
- A spark source
- Tinder
- An accelerant
- A container
The Method that Stands Out
After extensive testing, my nomination for the best overall survival fire starting method is cotton balls, slathered with petroleum jelly, combined with a magnesium or flint stick. I ran across this method when attending a Peter Kummerfeldt seminar at a sportsmen’s show. Kummerfeldt demonstrated the method at his booth, and it looked so easy, I figured there had to be a catch.
So, I got the materials and tested it myself, then had some of the scouts from Boy Scout Troop 18 in Bend, Oregon, wring out the system. Everybody likes this system because of its reliability. There is nothing to break, it requires no fuel, and the temperature has no effect. But an additional benefit is how cheap it is to produce!
This Boy Scout Hot-Spark and a prescription bottle filled with cotton balls and petroleum jelly makes a reliable firestarting method that is cheap enough to be placed in all survival kits.
How to Build Your Own Cheap and Reliable Fire-Making Kits
Follow these simple steps to create your own budget-friendly fire starter:
Time needed: 15 minutes
Create a highly effective and affordable fire starter using readily available materials by combining a reliable spark source with treated tinder, all housed within a protective container for easy and safe storage. The accelerant infused into the tinder ensures quick ignition even in damp conditions.
- Gather Your Materials
✔Spark Source: Choose a handy flint or magnesium stick in a handy size. Keychain sizes are great for everyday carry. The Boy Scout Hot-Spark is a reliable and affordable option.
✔Container: Obtain a small, waterproof container with a secure locking cap, such as an old prescription bottle with a secure, waterproof top is ideal and often free. You can also use empty 35mm film containers or waterproof matchboxes. Just make sure the lid won’t easily come off in your bag.
✔Tinder: Get extra-large, 100 percent cotton balls.
✔Accelerant: A small jar of petroleum jelly or even lip balm will work.
✔Labels (Optional): For adding usage instructions. - Prepare the Tinder with the Accelerant
Take a cotton ball and slather it generously with petroleum jelly, making sure it is well saturated. Work the jelly into the cotton until the entire ball is coated.
- Assemble the Kit
Place the petroleum jelly-coated cotton balls (your treated tinder) inside the waterproof container and close the lid tightly. Keep your spark source with the container. You can even attach a keychain-sized fire starter to the container for convenience.
- Add Instructions (Optional but Recommended)
Label your container with simple instructions for use: “Remove a small amount of tinder, fluff it, and ignite with spark source.”
This is especially helpful if someone else needs to use it in an emergency.
Helpful Tips for Your Fire Starter Kit
- These little containers of fire starter also make fantastic promotional giveaways and cost pennies. Scouts can make up a bunch, and give them out at their next camp-out or public gathering. I give the containers out when I go cross-country skiing or snowshoeing as a public service. It’s scary how often this firestarter is the only survival gear some people have!
- You can buy bigger, more expensive models, but the scout version does the trick. I have the smaller sticks on zipper fobs, key chains, and in every survival kit I own. Your Swiss Army knife can become a better survival knife if you attach a Hot-Spark to the split ring on the handle. Most importantly, practice with whatever you purchase so you can actually start a fire when you need to.
- Put a label on each container with what is inside and how to use it. You may not need the reminder, but then again, you might be injured, disabled or unconscious, and someone else might have to build that life-saving fire. Make their job easier by including simple instructions. I use a standard Avery 5160 1″x2-5/8″ labels, with Wordperfect software in the “labels” dropdown. Use 11 point, Aerial type, and this spacing, and all the information fits nicely.
- If the wood is damp, and the tinder in short supply, use a whole cotton ball. My experiments show that a cotton ball gobbed with petroleum jelly will burn for several minutes.
- The cotton balls and petroleum jelly have another use: blister care! On a Boy Scout 50-miler hike a few years back, I started to get a blister on my heel. I took out my cotton ball firestarter and rubbed the hot spot with the petroleum jelly. No blister formed! Read this post for more tips about the importance of foot care.
Easy Links to Purchase the Supplies
While all of the items are easy to find locally, if for convenience, you prefer to tack them on to your next Amazon order, here are some links:
FAQ
Cotton is a very flammable natural fiber, and when infused with petroleum jelly (a petroleum-based product), it becomes highly combustible and water-resistant. It catches a spark easily and burns long enough to ignite tinder, even in damp conditions.
The petroleum jelly helps make the cotton balls water-resistant. Storing them in a waterproof container is crucial for maintaining their effectiveness in wet environments.
Experiments show that a cotton ball thoroughly saturated with petroleum jelly can burn for several minutes, providing ample time to ignite your kindling.
These are tools used to create sparks by scraping a ferrocerium rod (flint) or a block of magnesium. The sparks generated are hot enough to ignite tinder like the petroleum jelly-coated cotton.
Both flint and magnesium sticks work well with this method. Magnesium can produce a larger, hotter flame initially, which can be helpful in very damp conditions, but both are effective at igniting the petroleum jelly.
Yes, as long as the container is waterproof and has a secure lid. Small dry bags are another alternative.
It’s always a good idea to have multiple fire-starting methods in your survival kit. This cotton ball and petroleum jelly combination is a reliable and inexpensive option to include alongside other methods like waterproof matches or a lighter.
Many lip balms contain petroleum jelly and can work as an accelerant. Experiment at home to see how well a particular lip balm ignites the cotton ball.
Yes, they are generally safe to carry. The petroleum jelly is stable, and the cotton is contained within a secure container, minimizing any risk of accidental ignition.
Related DIY Content
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- How to Make a Buddy Burner
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Final Thoughts
When you’re getting your emergency stuff together, you don’t always have to spend a ton of money. Some of the smartest ideas are also the cheapest! Find the areas – like this one – where you can cut costs without reducing quality, durability, or safety. (Then, invest the money you saved on items you can’t compromise on.)
This easy trick for starting a fire, using cotton balls and Vaseline with a simple sparking tool, shows you that. For just a few bucks and a little bit of your time, you can make a fire starter that will really work when you need it. That means you’ll have warmth, a way to cook, and feel a lot better knowing you can handle things, without spending a lot of cash. It’s all about being smart about where you spend your money so you’re ready for anything.
This is the exact firestarting method that we use on the Owl Farm. It works well in moist conditions and the cotton balls seem to burn forever. Great guide!
cotton balls ~ "check"
Vaseline ~ "check"
old Rx bottles ~ "check"
magnesium lighter ~ "check"
Time to get this great idea organized!
Thx Lisa!!!
A bit of a tangent, but this week has been driving home for me the need for burn ointment and fire protection in your home. (Wrong burner turned on almost led to a small kitchen fire, and I've burnt my @#$# hand three times this week.) In a SHTF scenario with more use of fires and less dependable fire and rescue, having good fire protection of your own (including extinguishers, fire escape ladders, a fire blanket, whatever you think you need) will be even more critical.
Ah yes, cotton burns very well, though I've never used a cotton ball as a starter before, we always used bits of wax wrapped in wax paper.
Feminine products work well in a pinch. It rained while camping once and my firewood was damp, but my friend wrapped a pad around a stick, lit it, then used it to light the fire. Also makes a good torch it you don't have a flashlight, or if you're trying to conserve power/batteries.
Two things almost everyone has in their homes are 1) 9 volt battery 2) steel wool. Touch the two together. Fire!
I've showed this to many and they're amazed that steel burns. I keep many pads of steel wool in a ziplock bag and 2 9v in a sm. container in both my BOB and tool kit. Now I'm adding cotton balls!
Bets, I hate to admit this, but I don't think there's one bit of steel wool in my house. I will have to rectify that this week! This sounds like it's maybe the easiest firestarter of all.
This is exactly what led to a full on house fire at my friend's house. A 9V battery and a piece of unused steel wool were stored in the same drawer in the garage and one day it just sparked by itself unnoticed; it burned down the garage and some of the house. So while a wonderful firestarter, use extreme caution in how you store these items.
i tried this method and it didnt work at all. the steel wool burned up but i could not get it to ignite my tinder nest.
I love the dryer lint and paraffin fire starter too. This is not my idea, saw it online. Collect dryer lint, pack it into a cardboard egg carton, pour melted wax over the lint – I used cheap dollar store candles for the wax. The lint and empty egg carton were free! Just tear off a section when you want to get a fire going. My thirteen year old daughter was able to get a fire going with a magnesium stick..Love the cotton ball and paraffin idea, must try this as well. Thanks for all the great advice!
Another way to do the Petrolium and cotton balls ive tried is to put the petrolium jelly container in a small pot of water(akin to a double boiler of sorts) and warm it up till the jelly liquifies, then dunk the whole cotton ball in, then set on wax paper to dry. Faster easier less mess and far more jelly infusion into the cottonball.