5 Easy DIY Firestarters You Can Make At Home

DIY firestarters are a simple item that can help to get a flame going when you need to start a fire quickly or when conditions make it difficult. While high humidity and rain can often interfere in the process, using a fire starter can ensure you have a roaring blaze in short order — perfect when you need to warm up or cook up a hot meal. They’re compact and are great to have with you when camping or just in case when out in the wilderness.

We’ve got five easy DIY fire starters that you can make at home and have finished and ready to go in just an hour. Most of that time, too, will simply be waiting for these simple firestarters to harden and dry.

We’ve also got some alternatives that are perfect for homesteaders and those who pride themselves on their self-sufficiency. Whether you live in remote rural areas or an apartment in a city, there are a number of options for you to choose from when it comes to making fire starters at home.

Egg Carton DIY Firestarters

There are two versions of this fire starter. Both require the same materials but have a different technique. We’ll discuss both in detail. It’s important to note that these fire starters won’t light from a spark, so be sure to have matches or a lighter on hand to light these.

Materials Needed:

Double boiler (an old coffee can in a pot of water works fine)

Paper egg carton

Dryer lint, sawdust, or shredded paper

Wax (e.g. old candles stubs or burned up container candles, canning wax, paraffin wax, etc.)

Wax Paper

This is one of our favorite DIY fire starters. It uses the most wax out of any of the methods listed here. However, each fire starter produces a large flame that burns for 10 to 15 minutes. That’s plenty of time to get a good fire going -even if you have to dry out damp kindling first.

Steps

Variation

Once each egg compartment is filled with dryer lint, sawdust, or shredded paper, tear or cut them apart. Fold in the corners at the top of each compartment so that it covers the lint. Tie the compartment closed with string, twine, dental floss, whatever is convenient.

Holding each compartment by the string, dip it into the melted wax until it is thoroughly coated and the wax has a chance to seep in through the egg carton a bit. Set on wax paper and allow at least an hour for the wax to cool and harden. You can leave the string attached or remove it; it makes no difference to the efficacy of these DIY firestarters.

Cotton Pad Fire Starters

This method uses cotton make up remover pads that you can find in the beauty supply section of your local dollar store. You should be able to find packs of about a hundred for a dollar.

Materials Needed

Double boiler (an old coffee can in a pot of water works fine)

Cotton make up remover pads

Wax (e.g. old candles stubs or burned up container candles, canning wax, paraffin wax, etc.)

Wax Paper

Steps

Cotton Ball DIY firestarters

This is by far the fastest and easiest fire starter to make in this list.

Materials Needed

Cotton Balls

Petroleum Jelly

Steps

Corrugated Cardboard Fire Starter

Materials Needed

Double boiler (an old coffee can in a pot of water works fine)

Corrugated Cardboard (old boxes, etc.)

Wax (e.g. old candles stubs or burned up container candles, canning wax, paraffin wax, etc.)

Wax Paper

Steps

Toilet Paper Tube DIY Fire starter

Materials Needed

Double boiler (an old coffee can in a pot of water works fine)

Toilet paper tubes (paper towel tubes work well, too)

Dryer lint, sawdust, or shredded paper

Wax (e.g. old candles stubs or burned up container candles, canning wax, paraffin wax, etc.)

Wax Paper

Steps

Alternatives to Wax

There are a lot of options when it comes to choosing wax and each will produce great results for your fire starters:  

But if you’re looking for something different, whether it be a more environmentally friendly option or something that you can get from your homestead or the wilderness, there are even more options available to you.

Used Cooking Oil

Bacon Grease

Tallow

Pinyon Pine Resin

While it is a bit messier, you can use old cooking oil or bacon grease in place of the wax. Another option is to use tallow which, thanks to its higher melting temperature and hard set consistency, is a far less messy option that works just as well as any wax.

Should you live in pinyon pine country, you can easily gather a couple of pounds of pinyon pine resin in just an hour. This pine resin can easily be melted down (use an old can -you’ll never get your double boiler clean) and produces a fragrant fire starter.

Storing and Using your Fire Starters

For convenience and reliability, your fire starters should be stored in airtight containers with no more than three fire starters per container. Plastic freezer bags work well, as do vacuum sealed bags. Alternatively, you can also place some of the smaller fire starters, such as the ones made with cotton pads or cotton balls, into empty plastic medicine bottles and then store in a plastic zip-close bag. That will provide you additional protection against moisture.

DIY firestarters Conclusion

These fire starters are as simple to make as they are useful, economical, and a great item to have in your backup supplies. They’re also great to have on hand when camping or hiking, as part of your emergency supplies. The larger of these DIY firestarters will burn up to 15 minutes while the smaller ones will burn for up to five. This gives you plenty of time to get a larger fire going even in high humidity or lightly raining conditions.

Got your own method? Tell us all about it in the comment section below!​ 🙂

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