almost undefeatable fire stater

[Ldstruckn]

Let me start out with a warning. If you eat all the fire starter you will not have any fire starters to use to cook the rest of your food. I start with this statement because children and spouses tend to annihilate these guys if they catch site of them.

I served many tours in special forces and the idea of keep it simple, keep it light, and make it have multiple uses is ingrained into my psyche.

Doritos. that is right; the delicious snack desired the world over is my tip.
I always carried them in my pocket while on the teams. They are a great way to make new friends in every country I have been to. They are easily carried. They are readily available. They make screaming children(and hangry spouses) happy. They are high in energy content which leads so well to their fire starter capacity.


Due to the inherent value of doritos, once they are lit on fire they are difficult to put out. Simply place a few of the tasty chips in the fire ring, cover with your typical layers of material, light the dorito on fire, and bam.
obviously for heavy rain it will require a bigger pile of chips and I recommend you get one or two chips burning at least for 10 seconds before placing them into the previously mentioned pile under your burn layers. Since the main aspect burning is the oil in the chip you have now created an oil fire at the base of your fire pit that is very difficult to put out.

 

[OutdoorsBen]

Personally I have preferred to use Fritos.

 

[grubworm]

that sounds like a good thing to know when other options are not available. my wife gets toilet paper tubes and fills them with dryer lint and uses that to start fires. not really my thing, but it seems to make her happy by "contributing" so i go along with it.

 

[Jaytperry89]

My wife used egg carton chunks, sawdust, covered with wax, then wrapped it in a napkin with a tail. Works pretty good actually. I'll have 2 let her know about the doritos lol

 

[Sasquatch SC]

that sounds like a good thing to know when other options are not available. my wife gets toilet paper tubes and fills them with dryer lint and uses that to start fires. not really my thing, but it seems to make her happy by "contributing" so i go along with it.

I use a variation of this. I seal one end of the toilet paper tube loosely and then I stuff it with cotton balls that I have saturated with vasoline. I stuff as many as I can into it and then rub a little more vasoline onto the tube itself and seal it in a ziplock bag. After it starts it will burn hot and fairly large for a remarkably long time. I have even lit these things in the wet. Once it starts burning good, I place it with the large side down. You still need to try to give it some dry fuel. It won't catch on soaked wood, but it will dry up some slightly damp logs to get them burning.

Getting the cotton balls soaked with the vasoline and into the tube is a messy business. It's definitely a garage job. Make sure you have a clean dry rag nearby and have the bags already open to put it in.

Happy Trails.

 

[Jeep jeeep]

Plastic gallon milk jugs. cut it into strips, lit one, lay it across your pile then lay more on, as they burn they'll melt and drip into the pile spreading the fire nicely

 

[Wallygator]

I use a variation of this. I seal one end of the toilet paper tube loosely and then I stuff it with cotton balls that I have saturated with vasoline. I stuff as many as I can into it and then rub a little more vasoline onto the tube itself and seal it in a ziplock bag. After it starts it will burn hot and fairly large for a remarkably long time. I have even lit these things in the wet. Once it starts burning good, I place it with the large side down. You still need to try to give it some dry fuel. It won't catch on soaked wood, but it will dry up some slightly damp logs to get them burning.

Getting the cotton balls soaked with the vasoline and into the tube is a messy business. It's definitely a garage job. Make sure you have a clean dry rag nearby and have the bags already open to put it in.

Happy Trails.

I have used Fritos in the past but I also prefer the cotton balls soaked in Vasoline. I usually only have to use one cotton ball.

 

[grubworm]

I have used Fritos in the past but I also prefer the cotton balls soaked in Vasoline. I usually only have to use one cotton ball.

the cotton balls sound like a good idea. i saw a thing somewhere about 50 uses for vaseline in a survival kit, i might should google it and check it out...vaseline is cheap and easy to store and i doubt it goes bad over time.
i was issued a small jar of vaseline in navy boot camp and didnt know what it was for...i later got orders to my first submarine command and then i understood

 

[Ldstruckn]

Plastic gallon milk jugs. cut it into strips, lit one, lay it across your pile then lay more on, as they burn they'll melt and drip into the pile spreading the fire nicely

Please do not use plastic in a fire. It is highly carcinogenic to breathe and even worse if you cook over that fire. I am a doctor so please heed my warning

 

[Jeep jeeep]

Please do not use plastic in a fire. It is highly carcinogenic to breathe and even worse if you cook over that fire. I am a doctor so please heed my warning

I'm aware of this and should have stated such, thank you for your warning. This method should only be employed in a survival situation and never for general camping. Good call out sir.

 

[Munga Brown]

I am sixty fuggin three and never knew Doritos & Fritos had such uses. Y' learn something new every day. Thanks for that!

 

[Seanm26]

Ha! We use cheese puffs!

 

[WAYAWAY]

I'm like a caveman over here using the free ad newspapers you find outside Ace Hardware (where I sometimes stop to buy firewood).

 

[Jetrngr430]

Dryer lint hasn’t failed us yet.

 

[darjo242]

Will have to remember this and carry a couple snack sized bags in my kits. This is a hell of a lot cheaper than old road flares for sure!

 

[Jetrngr430]

We usually start with the log cabin style wood stack. Smallest to the top. Down in the center we put about a tablespoon size wad of dryer lint.( we keep some in a zip lock baggie) Some small shavings on top of that then strike up the fire steel. Few sparks and we’re in business!

 

[jonald]

I carry pj cotton balls, but my favorite is a stick candle. Light it with a lighter or a small piece of cotton and a striker. Just pasted a link in the waxed cotton disk thread to a how to video.

 

[taliv]

I realize this is an old thread but I think the idea of most “fire starter” is something you can catch with just a spark. Something you would use if you were nursing a tiny ember from a wood bow. Or at least a ferro rod or flint.

will corn chips light with just a spark? Or do you use a lighter to light them and then use their energy density to light the bigger stuff?

 

[LouCampin]

Let me start out with a warning. If you eat all the fire starter you will not have any fire starters to use to cook the rest of your food. I start with this statement because children and spouses tend to annihilate these guys if they catch site of them.

I served many tours in special forces and the idea of keep it simple, keep it light, and make it have multiple uses is ingrained into my psyche.
View attachment 123431View attachment 123432
Doritos. that is right; the delicious snack desired the world over is my tip.
I always carried them in my pocket while on the teams. They are a great way to make new friends in every country I have been to. They are easily carried. They are readily available. They make screaming children(and hangry spouses) happy. They are high in energy content which leads so well to their fire starter capacity.
View attachment 123434

Due to the inherent value of doritos, once they are lit on fire they are difficult to put out. Simply place a few of the tasty chips in the fire ring, cover with your typical layers of material, light the dorito on fire, and bam.
obviously for heavy rain it will require a bigger pile of chips and I recommend you get one or two chips burning at least for 10 seconds before placing them into the previously mentioned pile under your burn layers. Since the main aspect burning is the oil in the chip you have now created an oil fire at the base of your fire pit that is very difficult to put out.

I agree with the doritos, they once helped start a bbq that would not stay lit. I am a believer.

 

[tremoroverland]

I always have a bag of fat wood with me. Best fire starter out there.