Styrofoam also releases toxic fumes when it burns. So as a firestarter, it's great in an emergency. For a campfire, don't sit too close or cook your marshmallows on it.
this post was submitted on 29 Jan 2025
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You can offset some of the health risks by using leaded gasoline instead. It's a lot better for your valve seats. You can still get leaded gasoline at many GA airfields.
Fair point! But you have to be standing right over the fire, huffing the fumes, to catch any smell. Get it rolling and step away.
Got me thinking, the dried version is not nearly as smelly. Harder to produce though.
Oh yeah, it's the generally safe at a short distance, but people do stupid shit all the time, like light fires in enclosed spaces, or cook over a tire fire.
"Napalm" is usually considered as a weapon. What you meant is probably just "emergency firestarter", or as I would call it, turbo-tinder :D
I personally prefer using cotton pads, that are soaked in liquid candle wax. When it's cold, it hardens and the whole pad gets stiff and hydrophobic.
Instead of having to lift a glass jar, you can just slip a few of those discs into your pocket or a small bag.
And because the wax is hard, you don't have to worry about storage, and they will stay that way forever. With your polystyrene goo, you have to remember that the jar will never be 100% gas tight and it will evalorate over time.
The pads even work when wet (because they won't get wet) and can be used with a ferrocerium rod.
Also, styrofoam releases toxic gases when ignited, wax won't.
This
If you've ever smelt burning styrofoam vs burning cotton the difference is night and day.
I like my emergency fire starters to keep forever as having to remember to maintain them means I'll forget to.
Tbf the point of this is to try and make a big pile of trash into something more useful. It's not great but it's something.
How do you make those? Is it just dipping cotton pads in wax?
The key thing is to only slightly coat them. If you smear too much on them, they won't ignite that easily.
But yeah. The wax should be very runny and hot, so it gets soaked up by the pad. And then heat it, so it re-melts, for example with a very hot heating gun or baking oven.
And when you want to use it, just tear the cotton apart a bit, so the fibers get exposed, and it will ignite instantly.
I like it more than petrol jelly, because it's hardened and not as sticky.
Put a couple of fingers of unleaded in a pickle
Okay, now what?
Jar
Measuring liquids by finger is done with drinks, like whiskey, etc. They're saying to pour roughly 2 fingers (measured with your fingers stacked on top of each other) worth into the jar.
So I eat the pickle or?
I'm very confused. Now I have pickle juice and gasoline in my carpet. This seems like a waste of pickles.
what's a finger
What was the point of adding fingers to the napalm?
What else am I going to do with all these fingers?
I read "put a couple of fingers of undead..." and didn't even wonder...
Note: Many people refer to the weapon as "napalm" and the above product as "jellied gasoline". You can call it whatever you like; doesn't much matter.
Also remember styrofoam is just extruded polystyrene, which you can find in other common items such as soda cup lids.
If you dry it out aren’t you just basically making plastic kindling? Gasoline vapor is the thing that is flammable. If you can’t smell the gas it isn’t there.
Edit: a word
Nope, you can dry it on a cookie sheet as I described.
Dryer lint and petroleum jelly works, too.