Making a Char Cloth for a Nice Fire
If you want to make a fire with a flint and a fire striker, you need a char cloth. Char cloths are quite easy to make yourself. A good alternative for a char cloth is a wax fire starter, also known as a wax cloth.
Making Char Cloth
What do you need?
-fabric made of 100% natural, plant-based fibers
-scissors
-small tin
-nail
-hammer
-heat source
How to make char cloth:
Step 1:
Use a nail and a hammer to make a hole in the lid and the bottom of the can.
Step 2:
Cut your fabric into pieces. The pieces must fit in the can without needing to be folded.
Ensure the fabric is made from 100% natural, plant-based fibers. Cotton canvas is very suitable for this, but other cotton or linen can also work fine.
Step 3:
Place the pieces of fabric in the can and close it. Do not stuff the fabric pieces into the can but place them carefully on top of each other with some air between the pieces.
Step 4:
Place the closed can on or in your heat source. Red-hot coals in a fire pit work very well, but any heat source can work. A wood or camping stove also works fine, but they burn hotter than an open fire pit, so you need to keep a close watch on the process to prevent the fabric from actually burning.
Step 5:
Watch how the smoke comes out of the can. Once no more smoke comes out of the can, turn it over. Wait until the can also releases no smoke from this side.
Step 6:
Remove the can from the heat source and let it cool. Do not rush to open it, as the cloth can still catch fire if exposed to oxygen too quickly.
Once the can has cooled down properly, you can open it to take out and inspect the cloth.
Perfectly made charcoal cloth is completely black, still somewhat soft, and not brittle. If the cloth is not entirely black, you can simply cook it again. If the cloth is too brittle and falls apart, it is overburned and unusable. The cloth will shrink a bit during the cooking process, making your charcoal cloth smaller than the pieces you placed in the can.
Making Wax Fire Starters
What do you need?
-fabric of 100% natural, plant-based fibers
-scissors
-beeswax or candle wax flakes
-heat-resistant container
-water
-pan
-stove
-aluminum foil
How to make wax fire starters?
Step 1:
Place the wax in the heat-resistant container. You can use an empty (and clean) vegetable can or a thick glass bowl, for example. Fill the pan with enough water so that the heat can be transferred to the container, but ensure the water does not enter the container with the wax.
Put the pan on the stove and wait until the wax has melted.
Step 2:
While you wait for the wax to melt, cut the fabric into smaller pieces. Ensure the fabric is made from 100% natural, plant-based fibers. Cotton canvas is very suitable for this, but other cotton or linen can also work well.
You can also use cotton pads.
Step 3:
When the wax is completely melted, dip the pieces of fabric into the wax so that they are as covered with the wax as possible. Be careful not to put your fingers in the wax, as this can cause burns. For safety, you can always use a tool like tweezers to hold the fabric.
Step 4:
Place the wax-treated pieces of fabric on some aluminum foil to cool and dry. Wax generally cools quickly, so this doesn't take long.
