If you are a survivalist, you probably already know where candles are in your home. Then again, you also realize that you can never have too many candles.
We use candles for a variety of reasons in a survival scenario. For one, they can provide a ready source of light when there is no electricity. In addition, a good candle can provide a source of heat if we need to warm our hands over some fire.
If you happen to get stuck in a situation where you don’t have candles, all is not lost. In fact, you can make your own candle out of some crayons and a lighter. It’s easy!
This particular tip does require that you have crayons and if you have a new box of crayons, it is even better. If you happen to have older crayons, you can always peel some of the paper away from the top to get started. Otherwise, grab the box of crayons and a lighter and get started.
The first step in the process is to hold the flame from the lighter over the end of the crayon. It will melt the wax and you can allow the wax to drip down onto a plate.
This is not actually creating the candle but rather, it is creating a base that will hold a candle securely in place. That actually makes it safer to do so, and you want to make sure that you use a plate that will not burn, just in case the candle falls over.
While you have the lighter, continue to hold it on the end of the crayon until the paper begins to burn. It is only going to burn at the top, and it will continue to fuel the flame as the wax inside of the crayon melts slowly.
Now that you have a small fire going on the end of the crayon, turn it so the flame is up and put the bottom down into the melted crayon on the plate. It will hold in place if you do it fast enough.
This may not be an ideal situation but if all you have is some crayons, you can certainly have a fire. A box of crayons will last a very long time because each individual crayon will probably burn for an hour or two.
You may even want to consider putting some crayons in your go bag. They help to make a makeshift candle but at the same time, they also allow you to do something creative and fun while you are riding out the apocalypse.
Watch a crayon candle being made in the following video: