Monday, April 12, 2010

Tinder: Petroleum Jelly Cotton


The ultimate goal of being self reliant in the bush is to be able to walk in with tools and be able to take the things you need to make life possible directly from the forest. The trick of course is to do this in a way that is not destructive to nature, but that is another talk for another time.

While learning, it's hard to just walk right in and start fires using what nature has to offer. To that end, most people will begin by taking modern or home made tinders into the woods and then progress from there. Even when you become experienced it makes good sense to carry sure fire ways to start a fire in the case of an emergency or when the tinders you normal count on are not available.

The goto home made tinder for most people is just simple cotton balls (or cotton wool) which is lightly coated with petroleum jelly. When ready to use, the cotton is pulled gently to reveal the soft fluff which readily takes sparks from a firesteel or flame from a lighter/match. The petroleum jelly acts as a flame extender creating a pseudo candle which gives you plenty of time to get a fire going, even in wet weather.

To store or transport the cotton balls, a simple film canister will do, and will keep the balls waterproof. Added security can be achieved by covering the seal with tape.

All in all, if you're starting out this is a good tinder to start using thanks to it's cost effectiveness, availability and reliability.

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