When the time comes to build a fire, life is much easier if you have a firestarting kit in hand. But if you find yourself without your usual tool set, you still can “MacGyver” up a fire with a little ingenuity. We searched the internet far and wide to bring you some of the best off-the-beaten-path methods for getting a blaze going without a lighter, matches or sparking tool.
While not all of these are practical to use in a survival scenario, they certainly are a cool way to impress your friends & family.
5 Ways to Start a Fire With Water
The sun is a powerful ally when it comes to creating fire. Makes sense, right? This video will show you how to make fire using a light bulb, plastic wrap, a picture frame, a juice bottle or a sodium/water reaction.
Gum Wrapper & AA Battery
The perfect option for the Urban Gum Chewer Survivalist. This is one fire making hack that we could actually see you using in an emergency. Raid your penlight for a AA battery, and grab a stick of gum…you are ready to make fire!
Steel Wool & 9-volt Battery
Steel Wool is a fantastic fire starter. It’s not a bad idea to keep a bit in your EDC bag. We’ve seen similar results using a cell phone battery as well.
Sandwich Bag Firemaker
You’ll need to recruit the sun for this fire starting hack as well. Unlike the odd components needed for the 5 Ways to Start a Fire With Water video, you might actually have a sandwich bag on you when you need to get a fire going. This video also provides a step-by-step process for taking your fire from burning ember to full on blaze.
Flashlight Firestarter
If you have a flashlight on hand, you can remove the reflector and use it to get a small piece of tinder going. With a little patience, you can build this up to a full-blown fire.
Aluminum Can & Chocolate Bar
Using a chocolate bar or toothpaste as a polishing agent, you can turn the bottom of an aluminum can into a reflector to harness the power of the sun.
Final Thoughts
All of these are pretty cool hacks for getting a fire started. With that said, in an emergency situation it is better to be prepared. Check out this article on Building a Complete Firestarting Kit so you’ll be able to create a potentially life-saving fire in any condition.
