Project Information
I posted a blog entry on making these and naturally someone asked for pics. I decided to post this as a project with instructions and pics. Hope this is useful to someone!
SUPPLIES LIST:
1) Here are the materials I used. Since my wife makes candles we've got plenty of wax around the house - I'm using a few melting tarts, an old jar candle and some various scraps. I also have a melting/pouring pot and some votive cup molds.
2) Next, it's time to melt the wax. NOTE: Wax is flammable (duh…) so it's best to use a double-boiler if possible. Otherwise use low heat and keep a close watch on the wax until it's melted.
3) After the wax is fully melted it's time to add the sawdust, mix enough in to make a heavy sludge. It should be pretty thick when mixed together.
NOTE: Pouring these can be very messy, it's probably best to let the mixture cool down some and thicken. Then, when pouring, you can use a spoon or stick to make the process a little neater. I prefer to have a lot of sawdust and enough wax to bind everything together.
4) Now it's time to mold the starters, simply pour or scoop them into whatever you're molding into.
5) After a couple of hours these will set up, if you've used a metal mold you can pop them out now - if they stick a little you can put them in the fridge for a few minutes and they should come right out.
6) Now you can finish these if you want to. I like wrapping them in brown paper and tying the ends. You can stack these by the fire and they look nice.
7) When you're ready to get a fire going just drop one of these below the wood pile. Light both ends and the center and it should burn for 15 minutes or more - plenty of time to get the fire going!
SUPPLIES LIST:
- Wax (old candles work great)
- Sawdust
- Something to melt wax in (double-boiler method is best and safest)
- Something to mold them in (paper cups, paper egg carton, cupcake cups)
- Craft paper and string if you want to wrap them.
1) Here are the materials I used. Since my wife makes candles we've got plenty of wax around the house - I'm using a few melting tarts, an old jar candle and some various scraps. I also have a melting/pouring pot and some votive cup molds.
2) Next, it's time to melt the wax. NOTE: Wax is flammable (duh…) so it's best to use a double-boiler if possible. Otherwise use low heat and keep a close watch on the wax until it's melted.
3) After the wax is fully melted it's time to add the sawdust, mix enough in to make a heavy sludge. It should be pretty thick when mixed together.
NOTE: Pouring these can be very messy, it's probably best to let the mixture cool down some and thicken. Then, when pouring, you can use a spoon or stick to make the process a little neater. I prefer to have a lot of sawdust and enough wax to bind everything together.
4) Now it's time to mold the starters, simply pour or scoop them into whatever you're molding into.
5) After a couple of hours these will set up, if you've used a metal mold you can pop them out now - if they stick a little you can put them in the fridge for a few minutes and they should come right out.
6) Now you can finish these if you want to. I like wrapping them in brown paper and tying the ends. You can stack these by the fire and they look nice.
7) When you're ready to get a fire going just drop one of these below the wood pile. Light both ends and the center and it should burn for 15 minutes or more - plenty of time to get the fire going!