How to get ahold of free tinder

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hollisticprepper

hollisticprepper

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Neighbor
Joined
Oct 22, 2014
Messages
22
Location
Ypsilanti, MI
Hello everyone,
For any of you who are bugging out, and have no idea how to get ahold of tinder, I'm going to make your day. Every time you run the dryer, you make something that can work as tinder. This something is often the culprit of house fires, and due to that, most people throw it out. You may ask "what is this substance?". It's dryer lint.

If you start saving your dryer lint, by the time shtf, you will have more than enough to make numerous fires for warmth, cooking, etc. I hope this helps a lot.​

Sincerely,
hollisticprepper

P.S. If you can manage it, I would also suggest packing some aftershave in a shatterproof bottle. Due to it's high alcohol content, it is highly flammable, and can help your fire ignite.
 
i hadn't thought of the shaving cream being flammable before.guess im lucky that i use shampoo to shave with instead...:)
 
jimLE said:
i hadn't thought of the shaving cream being flammable before.guess im lucky that i use shampoo to shave with instead...:)
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Not shaving cream. After shave. It's sort of like a cologne that you splash onto your face after you shave. However, with how much alcohol is in the stuff, you are basically spashing your face with antiseptic. With it's alcohol content, it's great for lighting stuff on fire, without the explosiveness of gasoline.
 
I store mine in used toilet paper rolls in zip locs. Lights easy enough. I keep a few in my bob then some in the camper!
 
i have a wastebasket with a shoping bag in it,next to my washer for drier lint.but i also put mop pads from my swiffer mop in it as well.in which they do burn real great and plenty hot when the kinling is plenty dry....
 
We used lint at least 50yrs ago that I remember, mom had a lint box for trapping the lint, she would use it for pillow stuffing and making yarn, dad would wrap lint in the tinder for the fireplace today however I just use cotton balls and pill bottles for storage. Aftershave is good for fire starting in a pinch but so is rubbing alcohol and cheaper ;) though I generally save the charcoal from fires for multiple reasons from absorbing poisons to water purification to making soap so I prefer not to use chemicals for fire starting if at all possible, reason I stopped using lint since it all isn't cotton.
 
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Maverick said:
We used lint at least 50yrs ago that I remember, mom had a lint box for trapping the lint, she would use it for pillow stuffing and making yarn, dad would wrap lint in the tinder for the fireplace today however I just use cotton balls and pill bottles for storage. Aftershave is good for fire starting in a pinch but so is rubbing alcohol and cheaper ;) though I generally save the charcoal from fires for multiple reasons from absorbing poisons to water purification to making soap so I prefer not to use chemicals for fire starting if at all possible, reason I stopped using lint since it all isn't cotton.
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I never thought of that. I'll have to remember that in the future.
 
If you are like Maverick, and like to go the natural route, there is always the Bear Grylls Tinderbox. It comes with a grater so that you can create tinder from trees, and once grated, it is put in the tinderbox. It also comes with a magnifying glass to ensure that so long as the sun is out, you can light a fire without using chemicals.
 
hollisticprepper said:
If you are like Maverick, and like to go the natural route, there is always the Bear Grylls Tinderbox. It comes with a grater so that you can create tinder from trees, and once grated, it is put in the tinderbox. It also comes with a magnifying glass to ensure that so long as the sun is out, you can light a fire without using chemicals.
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buy a vintage cheese grater ;) I'm not a fan of Bear Grylls merchandize IMHO

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hollisticprepper said:
I use altoid tins. They are big enough that you can fit quite a bit of them, yet small enough that you can easily fit more than one in a bug out bag. Also, at least from my experiences, they are waterproof.
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I like the idea of that. I'm going to find something similar to store mine. Thanks.
 
think I mentioned this in another thread,but guys if you dare to "borrow" a couple of tampons from your ladys supplys,when needed shred it and use for tinder,it's dry,compact and quite easy to use
 
Jontte, just go buy them. :D

I buy them for my wife, nobody is going to laugh at you at the checkout. Yeah, it felt funny the first time, but after than it was no big deal.
 
have done it many times,my advice was more to someone who feels somewhat uncomfy about them,I have male colleagues who have never bought those things and never will as they say...to shy perhaps ;)
 
jontte said:
have done it many times,my advice was more to someone who feels somewhat uncomfy about them,I have male colleagues who have never bought those things and never will as they say...to shy perhaps ;)
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I have no shame! At 51 yrs old I really don't care what anyone thinks of me!
 
This one might be covered elsewhere and I'm sort of resurrecting a thread here, but another cheap and easy firestarter out of trash materials is one using cardboard egg crates. The foam ones don't work for this but the eggs I get at the grocery store come in the cardboard containers and they are perfect for this little trick. Once you've used up your eggs, cut all of the little cups apart from each other. The cuts don't have to be pretty by any means. Then, fill each of them with dryer lint, shredded papers that you were going to throw away, or sawdust from your workbench and then use a candle to drip wax across the tops of the cups, sealing in your chosen tinder-trash. Put down a decent layer or two of wax, flip them over and put a layer on the backs, and presto chango, you've turned trash into very flammable, fairly long-burning, very lightweight firestarter balls. Simply set it down in your fire area with the edges up, and light one of the edges with a flick of your lighter or a match or whatever you use. (For me the ferro-rod is a backup only.) The cardboard lights easy, the wax burns long, and the tinder-trash adds to the heat coming off the wax flame. Just used one out back and it burns pretty high once the inside gets going. Burn time could be longer but I didn't fill them all the way as I only had so much sawdust from this mornings' work. You can store them in a ziplock bag to keep the corners dry. If they do get wet, the wax keeps the tinder dry, and you just need to get one corner dry to make it usable again.
 
i've been saving news papers and the weekly ads that come out once a week,for i dunno how many years now.and i have a 5 gallon bucket in the garage full of sawdust..sawdust is also great on the garage floor where oil ended up on it
 
I have about four Walmart plastic bags full of dryer lint. I like them as they are light, soft and can pack easily in a small space. I was thinking it might even work as an emergency pillow. The funny thing is, I've always heard dryer lint is good tinder, but I've never actually tried using any. Guess I need to try it out before long. Speaking of, I'm suprised I have any clothes left with all the lint I've collected :).
 
TheShadowKnows said:
This one might be covered elsewhere and I'm sort of resurrecting a thread here, but another cheap and easy firestarter out of trash materials is one using cardboard egg crates. The foam ones don't work for this but the eggs I get at the grocery store come in the cardboard containers and they are perfect for this little trick. Once you've used up your eggs, cut all of the little cups apart from each other. The cuts don't have to be pretty by any means. Then, fill each of them with dryer lint, shredded papers that you were going to throw away, or sawdust from your workbench and then use a candle to drip wax across the tops of the cups, sealing in your chosen tinder-trash. Put down a decent layer or two of wax, flip them over and put a layer on the backs, and presto chango, you've turned trash into very flammable, fairly long-burning, very lightweight firestarter balls. Simply set it down in your fire area with the edges up, and light one of the edges with a flick of your lighter or a match or whatever you use. (For me the ferro-rod is a backup only.) The cardboard lights easy, the wax burns long, and the tinder-trash adds to the heat coming off the wax flame. Just used one out back and it burns pretty high once the inside gets going. Burn time could be longer but I didn't fill them all the way as I only had so much sawdust from this mornings' work. You can store them in a ziplock bag to keep the corners dry. If they do get wet, the wax keeps the tinder dry, and you just need to get one corner dry to make it usable again.
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I did this and it works beautifully!! I did a few things differently that works better for my use. I used the big flat cardboard egg cartons and kept them in tact. I stuffed each egg cup with dryer lint. Instead of burning candles to make the house smell purdy, I use wax melts...you know the little chunks of wax that goes into the little burner? Well, when the smell goes out of the wax, I pour it into a little metal pitcher. When I get enough wax, I heat the wax in a double boiler and pour it into the little egg cups. I've found a utility knife works best for cutting them apart after they're filled.
 
We don't have a dryer, so I stock up cheap tampons, tissues, matches, steel woll, 9V batteries and vaseline-soaked cotton. I also store them in empty spicejars to make it waterproof.
The tissue is wrapped around a match (the top part) and soaked in hot candlewax. The matches burn longer and makes it easier to light a fire. Bonus: waterproof. Note: cut the off the part where you strike the match and store them in a waterproof container.
Nail polish remover, hairspray, and cheap perfume also works great. I prefer to not light cooking fires with them (or the tampons) because of the chemicals.
Better safe than sorry.
A 9V battery and some steel wool is both fun and useful. Take some steel wool (soap free) and tap it with the battery. Voila! Firestarter.

When I go camping, I use white birch bark and straw. The white, flaky part of the bark catches fire with ease. Dry straw (and tall grass) will also do great.


TIP: the native people of Norway is said to be able to light fires even if the wood is soaked. The trick is to have the wood be no longer than 10-20cm and two thumbs thick, have the flames burn at the middle of these sticks and the water will boil out. As long as you can get a small fire going, you can build something more sustainable.

~Alex
 
Alexandra said:
We don't have a dryer, so I stock up cheap tampons, tissues, matches, steel woll, 9V batteries and vaseline-soaked cotton. I also store them in empty spicejars to make it waterproof.
The tissue is wrapped around a match (the top part) and soaked in hot candlewax. The matches burn longer and makes it easier to light a fire. Bonus: waterproof. Note: cut the off the part where you strike the match and store them in a waterproof container.
Nail polish remover, hairspray, and cheap perfume also works great. I prefer to not light cooking fires with them (or the tampons) because of the chemicals.
Better safe than sorry.
A 9V battery and some steel wool is both fun and useful. Take some steel wool (soap free) and tap it with the battery. Voila! Firestarter.

When I go camping, I use white birch bark and straw. The white, flaky part of the bark catches fire with ease. Dry straw (and tall grass) will also do great.


TIP: the native people of Norway is said to be able to light fires even if the wood is soaked. The trick is to have the wood be no longer than 10-20cm and two thumbs thick, have the flames burn at the middle of these sticks and the water will boil out. As long as you can get a small fire going, you can build something more sustainable.

~Alex
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Have you tried one of these?
uploadfromtaptalk1440774068887.jpeg

Creditcard size magnifying glas.
 
I keep forgetting the 9V part..in which i have 2-9V'S..ijust need the part that plugs onto them..and extend the 2 wires another 2 or 3 inches ,if i need to..
 
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