Start A Campfire In A Pinch Using These Two Household Essentials

Virtually everyone who overnights outdoors enjoys building the perfect campfire. Whether it be for cooking campfire meals, providing warmth and light, or just to add ambiance to an evening outside, most consider a campfire to be an essential part of the outdoor experience. Starting a campfire is simple enough when you are properly prepared with a lighter, fire starter, tinder, kindling, and good firewood. It can be a bit more challenging if you are missing any of those elements, but you can start a campfire in a pinch using these two household essentials — wax paper and dryer lint.

When in a bind, there are a number of genius hacks to start campfires, including several that utilize dryer lint. Why dryer lint? It is very flammable, as evidenced by the fact it is a contributing factor in more than 15,000 household fires in the United States each year. However, the same qualities that contribute to destructive fires can be used to help folks start campfires utilizing something that is typically just tossed in the trash by combining it with toilet paper tubes, wax paper, or both.

Creating DIY fire starters with these items is simple enough. The first step is to collect the supplies. Dryer lint is almost always available in your dryer's lint trap. Since it may take awhile to collect enough to create a supply of fire starters, it's a good idea to store it in a bag until you are ready to make the fire starters. Toilet paper tubes can be collected as rolls are emptied and wax paper can be used either right off the roll or you can wash and reuse pieces of wax paper.

Once you have the supplies, there are a number of ways to create fire starters with dryer lint. One method involves simply stuffing the empty toilet paper rolls full of lint. Another method takes it a step further by wrapping the lint-stuffed tube in wax paper, then rolling the ends of the wax paper so the fire starter resembles a large piece of candy. In this instance, the wax paper serves multiple purposes. The tied ends both prevent the lint from falling out of the tube and can be used as a wick when lighting. The wax paper itself also helps waterproof the tube and has flammable properties that help the fire starter burn. 

Treehugger suggests the very simple method of just wrapping dryer lint in a piece of wax paper and wrapping the ends. This can be a great solution if you don't have time to collect enough lint to fill a tube. On a camping trip, you can likely find enough lint in the clothing and sleeping bags you have with you to make an adequate fire starter when rolled in wax paper. Regardless of what method you use, you will need a way to light it, so it's a good idea to always keep some waterproof matches in your emergency supply kit.