How To Make an Emergency Oil Lamp

Having a lamp is of great benefit when you are in an emergency situation. You might be surprised with how much good it would do, providing you with plenty of light, some heat, and maybe even some protection from wild animals.

The problem is, many of us will not have a lamp when we are in such a situation. Even if we have one available in our bug-out bag, that doesn’t necessarily mean that we are going to have it with us at all times. What can you do if you need a lamp and don’t have yours with you?

A lamp can easily be made from an aluminum can and some oil. It does not take a lot of effort to make one, but understanding the basics can really make a difference in your being able to have light and heat at the right time. Here’s how to get started.

First of all, you want to cut the can in half around the middle. Try to keep the line as straight as possible, because you will be fitting the can together into a single piece.

Next, cut the can from the top down a few inches three or four times around the outside of the cut area. This will allow you to slightly bend those cutpoints in or out, which makes it much easier for the can fit together.

At this point, it’s time to fit the can together but you will first need to cut a hole in the lid beside the hole that already exists. That is the hole that will be used for pulling a small piece of cloth through that will be used as the wick.

Fill the bottom of the can was some type of oil. If you have lantern oil, that will work best but you can even use olive oil or another type of commercial oil with nothing else is available. Soak most of the piece of cloth in the oil container and then string part of it out of the top of the can.

When you push the top of the can down into the bottom of the can, it will shrink in size to be about the same height as half of the can. It will now be full of oil and have a wick that is soaking in the oil.

When you light the wick that is sticking out of the top of the can, it will use the oil as fuel. It will not burn the cloth quickly but will burn the oil off of it as a continually provides you with light and heat.

Watch it being done for yourself in this video: