Let There Be Candle Light By Orvan Ox
After the last post about the simpler (no pressure or mantle) kerosene lamps and lanterns, someone suggested a post about candles. This seems a bit strange, at least initially. Candles are rather simple things and who has not used one or at least seen one used even if merely for a few moments atop a cake? And yet… there are various sorts of candles, some better for light and some better for heat, as well as various holders and lanterns. And even so, while the modern era might go on about lumens for brightness, it’s candlepower that seems more readily understandable.
There are certainly many sorts of candles, but for “grid down” the purpose is light, heat, or both. It’s not about ambiance, entertainment, or who knows what else. This constrains things. The “birthday candle” doesn’t last long enough to be practical. The scented candles might be alright now and then, for some, but for any duration they can get overpowering. The big pillar candles might be alright for a while, but are subject to having the outside become a light-filtering wall as the center burns down. If they have multiple wicks, though, this might be mitigated and allow for a bit more light.
What it comes down to, at least for me, is unscented tapers, thinner pillars, and tea light candles. The tapers fit into various candle holders and even candelabras and, like the thinner pillars, are for providing light. Tea lights are made to keep things warm, and some can last several hours. Tea lights do provide some light and there are camping lanterns that use such. These are rather small and so the wall of the thing is close to the flame, thus it gets quite hot.
A few examples:
First, the tapers. A nice looking candelabra, with five candles so plenty of candlelight. And in the back a very simple candle holder. These are both “set it place and leave it alone” sorts of things. Moving them means the liquid wax at the top of the burning candle is apt to spill… possibly onto you. For paraffin and soy waxes this is annoying enough. Beeswax has a higher melting point/range and burns are all too likely. The ancient looking holder with the finger ring lets one carry the candle and any wax spills are caught by the brass, not the hand or arm.
The pillar in front is another simple holder, meant to be left where it was set and lit. The pillar contained all in glass can be readily moved around, just only grip well under the flame. The candle with the glass envelope does flicker some, but surprising little much of the time. It also seems to last quite a long time.
A couple candle lanterns. The one with the glass chimney is nice, but the lack of air intake (as manufactured) other than via the top of the chimney means it flickers quite bit. That’s unmodified. It was not unusual for a person to (with chimney removed!) poke a few nail holes in the base to let air in. One could also drill holes, of course. The other is a sort of “flashlight” and with the design of the handle, it can be hung on a nail or such. That’s a nice, fancy(-ish) thing made to look fairly nice. A larger soup can and some time with a metal snips and a bit of work to deal with sharp edges and it might not look as nice, but would also serve.
A tea light lantern. It’s not super bright (what candle is?) but there is some light.
But where the tea light really does well, is to provide heat, even if not very much. But if one provides some heat, more than one can provide more heat. An ideal heat source? Not really. Right, proper heaters certainly do better. But in a pinch something like this “dubious slapdash heater” might be enough to keep a small room if not comfortable at least tolerable.
This is a 5 by by grid of tea lights on an old cookie sheet, with a ‘cooling rack’ holding up a copper plate and a heat-powered fan to spread the heat around the room. The copper plate is admittedly expensive (fancy thing for using cast iron on a glass top range without worrying much about it) but aluminum is also a good thermal conductor – if it was not, why are most heat sinks aluminum?
There are some specialty tools for dealing with candles, which are not really necessary, but I’ll be complete and mention them. There is a wick adjuster, a wick trimmer, and a snuffer.
The wick adjuster might seem to be something to keep a wick straight up, but that can be the wrong thing to do. A taller flame is a brighter flame, true. A too tall flame is a sooting flame, however. Self-trimming candles have wicks that curl some and thus the end of the wick is burned away. If the candle is not self-trimming, adjusting the wick to have it burn off might be called for.
The trimmer is a fancy scissors that can catch the trimmed wick. Trimming is done before the candle is lit (or after it is extinguished). The wick should start about ¼ inch high.
And the snuffer is just that. A little bell to cover the flame and snuff it out. This has the advantage of not getting burnt fingers from pinching out the flame, or possibly spattering wax from blowing out the flame.
If you really to delve into things candle, there are plenty of texts on how to make your own or how they are made. For “what’s going on” there is The Chemical History of A Candle by Michael Faraday. You can find that on Project Gutenberg.
According To Hoyt 
When I was a kid, for some reason (Mom’s idea? Scout project, don’t recall) we were making homemade candles. We’d melt paraffin in a saucepan (never had a fire, thank God) and would use milk cartons for molds. At that time, the cartons were made with waxed cardboard, and we could use anything from 1-cup to 2 quart cartons as a mold. For a semi-practical candle, a 1 cup or 1 pint carton should work. Not sure how well the plastic coating will deal with hot paraffin. I’d stay away from molten beeswax for that.
I don’t recall what we used for wick; nowadays it might be available at Ye Craft Shoppe. For coloring the wax, a sacrificial crayon would do the trick. Unmolding meant tearing the carton apart, and some of the candles were decorated with semi-solid wax whipped up into a foam.
I haven’t needed paraffin wax in close to forever (tried some mixed with shortening as cast bullet lubricant with so-so success) so have little idea of the price. Cylindrical candles could be cast using tubing like plumbing tail pieces (I’d stay with metal; not sure how well the plastic ones would do with paraffin) and the result pushed out of the tube.
(Side note: we’d also do some candles with a craft version of beeswax comb base. It came in sheets and slightly warmed, could be rolled around a wick. I don’t recall anybody actually using a candle made like that, though…)
The joys of 1960s crafting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve seen a double boiler setup called for, but that’s of late. Considering some the things of… shall we say the pre-1980’s… might be considered “Before safety was invented’ I could see… issues.
LikeLike
I did it in the 70s with a doubleboiler.
LikeLike
I remember doing the same thing in the 60’s. Open a 1-pint milk carton all the way, set a 6-inch candle in the middle, fill around it with broken ice cubes and then pour in the melted wax. You want irregular chunks of ice that leave large spaces between. Made a really interesting sort of Swiss-cheese candle after the ice melted out.
We also made emergency road flares. Take a tuna can, or a flat cat food can. Cut strips of corrugated cardboard slightly narrower than the can height, roll them into a cylinder that just barely fits inside and fill with wax.
LikeLiked by 1 person
In the last few years I’ve seen such things suggested as “emergency” cookers. How much they’d actually cook rather than merely warm, I’ve no idea.
LikeLike
ooh, I remember both of those things! It’s been ages since I thought about the ice-cube candle that we had in our china cabinet.
LikeLike
Did couple of wax projects for couple of different reasons. Wax poured over dryer lint, plus wick, in egg cartoons (both cardboard and styrofoam) for fire starter. Wax poured over cardboard, plus wick, into wide chicken or tuna 1″ cans, for cooking on. GSA (’60s) and BSA (’90s – ’00). Sister’s girls, in GSA, did the honey mat roll candles (’90s).
LikeLike
Back when we cleaned out Mom’s house, we found a stash of 64 color Crayolas that she had bought to do stocking stuffers with, and lost track of where she had put them. She tended to do that…
All of the grandchildren were essentially out of the crayon years by then, so we decided to make some “psychedelic” candles out of them.
Plastic plumbing works fine – but cut it in half and tie or tape the halves together for the mold. ALSO line the inside with something, wax paper works fine (something we found out after the first one, the wax binds quite well to the plastic).
By the way, they were rather pretty, if quite random. But as candles, they were a bust. Too much other stuff in the crayons, they didn’t burn worth a darn.
LikeLike
Summer camp “nature crafts” taught use of a small bit of crayon to dye paraffin or beeswax for candle dipping or casting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Candle dipping is a good way to color without all the bother. Once when the stores had NO pink and purple candles for Advent, my mother did it to provide for ours.
(Our church ended up using white candles and tying purple and pink ribbons on them.)
LikeLike
you can set a candle in a pink or purple glass. Odds are that someone in the congregation can come up with them.
Ribbons were a good answer.
LikeLike
I think it was that we made the whole thing from crayons, not just to add a bit of color.
Ah, well, it used them up – and I didn’t have to store them for who knows how many more years. (Would have done something like Toys for Tots – which reminds me to do that on my next shopping run – but they weren’t “unopened.”)
LikeLike
People used to use cotton from old clothes. That would be rather difficult to do in a survival scenario these days with almost everything being synthetic.
LikeLike
I had a candle making kit as an under-12 kid in the mid 70s. It contained some blocks of wax, some stearic crystals and coloring agents It used plastic molds, in the shape of balls, mushrooms (!) and one other shape I can’t recall. Why I got the kit, I don’t know. I don’t remember ever asking for it, so my parents must have figured I’d enjoy it (along with the paint-by-number projects). I guess I did it safely, although I bet I had mom’s help heating the wax.
The 70s were a strange time, even for kids. ;-)
LikeLike
There must have been a candlemaking fad in the late 60s. My sainted, crafty mother made a few out of canning paraffin, with balls of paraffin dye from the crafts store for color.
I have never made a candle. I did melt some paraffin, dyed it more yellow than red, dipped a finger in icewater, towelled it dry, and then, as fast as humanly possible, dipped it in and out of the hot wax. Repeated dippings built up a wax sheath sturdy enough to survive careful removal.
Pouring it full of plaster of Paris, then melting the wax off, left a waxy, jaundiced finish on a shockingly convincing severed finger.
I was that kind of kid.
LikeLike
A need-of-the-moment candle holder for a long taper candle can be made from a standard coffee mug: hold the candle against the bottom of the cup and fill the cup with sand or clay cat litter. The mug provides a stable base, the sand / litter will hold the candle vertical and catch whatever wax drips and the finger ring on the mug allows for easy transport.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Cat: “Why did you make a litter box too small to use, and put that thing in the middle?” :-D
LikeLiked by 2 people
Cat’s response to using their kitty litter for driveway and garage oil and fuel spills: “Yuk!”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Candles unless watched don’t mix with cats, small children, fools, or living in an earthquake zone.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nor overly curious dogs. Kat-the-dog was very interested in a hacksaw I had for a patio paver project. So much so I had to move the saw so she couldn’t get her nose on the blade.
Kat and candles? Er, no. Not without serious protection.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have done the recycle wax thing.
Had some pillars and decorative in small glass holders that left behind plenty of good wax so I collected that wax, bought some wicks from a local hobby store, melted the wax and poured it into a cleaned out glass holder. Voila, new candle.
LikeLike
I checked Amazon for supplies, and no shock, they have a fair amount. Paraffin seems to be running $3.80 a pound in 10 pound lots, or for the same price, soy based wax. Wicks readily available in quantities. A few molds for various diameter (including slender) cylinders and lots of fancy molds.
When power goes out, we have a couple of battery operated Coleman lamps that use 4 D cells. They put out enough light for most noncritical operations. Being rural, we have flashlights everywhere, it seems. Strategically located flashlights help me get to the extension cords for emergency power. We have candles, but prefer to use them as a last resort.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have a number of flashlights. Most, though not all, rooms have a flashlight that plugs in and will switch on (with the correct switch setting) if the power goes out. These can last a night or most of one. More than enough time to get another source set up. Another electric light light of some sort (various… from the 4 or 8 D-cell Coleman to the LED cap on the 9 volts from smoke detector cycling), or kerosene, or…. propane or butane. And, of course, candles are an option. I like having choices.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What to do with those partially charged smoke detector 9v batteries?
Pak-Lite!
https://www.9voltlight.com/
Its the size of a 2×6 Lego brick. 2 LEDs, and a lo-off-hi switch. Clip on the battery and you have an instant flashlight. Bonus, the plastic can be selected glow-in-the-dark, making it easy to find.
The 9volt batteries last for a very long time. Months of casual use.
Not cheep. But super useful, and a great way to have an ultra-light long-life emergency flashlight.
LikeLike
Exactly
LikeLike
It’s coming up on the annual battery swap (the Sunday we go to Standard Time). I use a lot of Ds and AAs (over 30 for each), some AAAs (most aren’t on the schedule; swap as low-bat is triggered), but maybe 6-8 9V batteries.
Most of our flashlights are in specific, consistent locations, though I have to figure out where the recently (almost) revived 4D Maglight went to. Looks like it needs a switch transplant, and I need the supplies and the round tuit. OTOH, the LED works well.
I might not be able to find all my clothes in the dark (shirts tend to wander) but weapons and flashlights? Yes, for sure.
LikeLike
Small flashlights we use all the time we keep batteries in. The Colman type battery lanterns have batteries in a bag tapped to them.
The battery swap on Daylight/Standard Time for fire alarms. So my mom said her house ones weren’t working. (Duh, batteries went bad.) So we went to Costco for new ones. The new ones are battery, but not replacement battery. Fire and Carbon Monoxide. 10-year guaranty use. Put them up and forget for 10 years, unless they go off (then get out).
LikeLike
The other bit included in Pak-Lite, justifying the $20 cost, is a “Joule Thief” circuit, to extract the last possible bit of power from the battery.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joule_thief
You can find bargain lights of ths type that lack it, but battery life will be much, much less.
These are serious tech in a very small package. I find most high-tech modern Tacti-Cool flashlights way too bright for camping casual use. These little Pak Litesa re perfect for around camp, in tent, bedroom, “Was that the cat going ‘thump’?” “Meerrowp!”
LikeLike
I recently got lights that plug in and double as a light or emergency device power source if power goes out. Also act as motion activated night lights. They do not come on if there is already enough light.
We too have a number of flashlights, including a couple of Colman style popup battery versions. We also have the propane versions (although those we tend to lose the glass surround too easily to shattering). If we were starting out camping now, we wouldn’t have the propane versions. I always have a pack, or two, each of AA, AAA, and 9 volt, batteries, the Costco pack size (we are not going to be without batteries).
LikeLike
I bought a rechargeable emergency light back in the Aughts, but it raised hell with the radio I was using in the shop. The power supply was the noisiest damned thing I had.
LikeLike
C4C
LikeLike
Oh, CANDLES. Having lived without electricity for a few years, I can speak with authority on this.
The glass “seven-day” candles? They work, for a given value of “work”. They don’t last seven days, the light given off is sometimes minimal, some of them tend to drown the flame, some of them really reek badly, and lighting them once the wick is down a ways is a bugger.
Straight white tapers give the best and brightest light. Most commercial candles anymore ARE made with the self-trimming wicks, although with cheap tapers sometimes you get an off-center wick that drips everywhere.
You can convert lanterns designed for tealights by embedding a stub of a taper into a tealight cup. Much better light.
As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, you can heat liquids over a candle flame to a high simmer. Use a small metal pot with a lid, no more than a pint (possibly a can with aluminum foil in an emergency). Put it on a frame or hang it four inches above the flame. It takes half an hour to forty-five minutes to heat it up enough to scald your tongue. Which WILL make instant coffee, tea, soup, and other hot stuff.
As for candleHOLDERS, avoid wooden holders unless you’re going to be HOVERING. They catch fire. Bad things. Glass holders are almost as bad, since they tend to crack once the flame burns down. The ideal holder is the “antique” one with the saucer to catch drips and the finger loop. Look for mirrored metal sconces to double the light, or in an improvised situation just set the holder before a mirror.
Craft stores stock wicks. You must be careful to match the size of wick to the size of candle. (Yes, wicks come in sizes.) A too-small wick will drown itself. A too-large wick will burn too fast and melt all over the place.
LikeLiked by 1 person
“lighting them once the wick is down a ways is a bugger.“
The long matches for pilot lights help some, but the extender grill lighters do better. Especially the ‘torch’ flame type… but, yes, even those can be challenged.
LikeLike
Had some glass encased candles as a kit that included a 6″ wire match holder.
(Add paper match to the clip, strike, light)
LikeLike
I have that exact same stove yiu are using to stage your candles. I LOVE it. So easy to keep clean.
Back in my Girl Scout years, we made emergency camp stoves with tuna cans and cardboard cut slightly narrower than the can and tightly coiled to fill the can with very little space, then pour paraffin in the spaces to make a candle. The stove part was a coffee can placed over the top of the candle. To prepare the coffee can you punch holes all around the top and bottom sides of the can for air flow. This type of stove creates a lot of heat and you need to place it on a very sturdy heatproof area and not plan to move it for any reason until it cools.
You can put tin foil on it and fry things or use a small pan to heat soups or water. It gives off a fair amount of light through the vent holes but it will be hard to see what you are cooking on the top of the can.
Paraffin is currently selling locally for $9.99 for a one pound box. So if you can get it somewhere else cheaper, go for it. You can make at least 2 , probably 3 with one pound of paraffin. Makes sure the paraffin is in between all the spaces and up to about a 1/4 inch or so from the top of the can.
I’d imagine melting old candles would work too. Not sure how hot they get.
Also, if you are planning to make these for a future use, it’s a good idea to light it and let it burn for a bit before storage. They don’t smoke as much after first lighting and are easier to light.
LikeLike
I was going to mention the stove, as I too have the exact same one. I hate it. :) It doesn’t respond very quickly or accurately to temperature adjustments, and anything that spills gets hard-cooked onto the glass. Doesn’t help that the thermostat on the biggest burner is borked, so its only temps are high and surface-of-the-sun.
LikeLike
After a ‘runaway’ event we swapped out the oven “brain” and all is well… or well enough. I suspect the original was better calibrated as before if something said bake for N minutes, that was right. Now it’s best to bake for N-1 minutes.
LikeLike
Check the manual for calibration instructions. Our gas oven got a bit weird (I suspect the temp sensor is nearing end of life after 12 years), but a check of the manual showed how to calibrate. It seems to differ from model to model, so generic instructions (as found on the web) might not get you anywhere.
I bought an electronic meat/air thermometer for $20-30 from Amazon, plus a bimetal one from the mini-box store. Seems temps near the door are odd compared to the center, but with the procedure (preheat, then check three times at 5 minute intervals. Go to the calibration setting and input the correction. Frigidaire says you can calibrate up toe 30F. I needed 10. Our range has 5 degree intervals for tweaking.)
LikeLike
For really cheap wax, look at thrift stores and garage sales for pillar candles. People light them once and then get rid of them. Just sniff to check for awful perfumes.
LikeLike
I was surprised at how much light a few tealights in a Danish butter cookie tin put off.
Also, Danish butter cookie tins make surprisingly effective improvised reflectors.
LikeLike
And you can pick up “emergency” candles at hardware stores, put them in ziplock bags (and matches, etc.) and have a travel kit to keep in the trunk, just in case.
LikeLike
Oh, and put the bagged stuff in a tin so it doesn’t get crushed by… stuff.
LikeLike
I was a fire guy. Tiki torches, candles, fireplace, etc…
After luckily not burning down the house by going to bed with candles burning, I’ve become an LED guy. I also have a cat who frequently forgets that he has a tail. I still have candles – and wax, molds, wicks for making them – but it’s rare that I light one.
The strap of an LED headlamp hangs over a door handle. I’ve got one on each outside door and several closet doors. Even with AAA batteries, they last a long time – especially when rarely used.
LikeLiked by 1 person
There is good reason I have multiple smoke detectors/alarms, CO detectors/alarms…. and am actually rather paranoid about flame devices of any sort.
There are two or three radioisotope items in the place, and those are of MUCH less concern. They are very well-behaved and utterly predictable.
LikeLike
Commercial candles tend to trigger my asthma, even the white tapers. Suggestions on what to look for? I would love to keep a stock of candles, but that breathing thing…
LikeLike
There are paraffin, soy, and beeswax candles and all sorts of variants of each. You might be best off with batteries and LED’s. If you figure EMP is an issue [unlikely, but devastating if it happens] then rig a Faraday cage or three cage for some to survive that.
LikeLike
Thanks, I’ll look into those options (and stock more LED lights).
LikeLiked by 1 person
If one has chemical sensitivities, I recommend Beeswax. Easily available online, prices vary. Best deal is find a local beekeeper/apiary, and see if they have any wax to sell / get rid of.
When I was getting into blackpowder flintlock rifles, I found one can make patch lube with a mix of wax and other stuff. I found a local beekeeper’s site, and ordered what I thought was 8 ounces of semi-filtered beeswax (quote: “possible contaminants include bees knees”) at a very good price.
Nope. Pounds.
Eight -pounds- of wax.
Made what is proving to be a lifetime supply of patch lube from a half-pound. I gave much more away to friends who did leatherwork and/or archery. Made wax stuff for other uses.
Still have pounds of it.
Wonderful stuff.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You bucky lastard.
LikeLike
pushes glasses up
That oul fashioned thing is called a chamberstick. Garret Wade usually has them for a reasonable price for iron ones, others can easily be found on eBay. I have a brass one, I need to get more.
For the candle sconce, every book on country furniture I have seen has at least one small plan for a wooden sconce, along with modifications that came from people who only had them – like metal linings, multiple holes so it could be raised or lowered, etc. They are easy to make, which is why I haven’t done any yet – 4 small boards, easy enough to use cheap pine or tulipwood.
LikeLike
Re: The Demolished Man — I just found out what a “tenser” is.
A tenser is a resident of a city who isn’t a citizen there, but whom is allowed to do business and live in the city by paying an annual fee to the city.
It’s in the Middle English Compendium online. Also spelled tensur or tensure.
Usually the person was warned after they’d lived in a city for a certain length of time, and after making a certain amount of money, that the person should hurry up and become a citizen. If the person refused, they would have to pay. Sometimes this was seen as a fine/punishment, and sometimes as just something to pay.
LikeLike
There are three versions of “The Demolished Man.” There was the magazine version, which differs somewhat from the book version, and the original version that was considerably longer, and cut down to make the magazine version. That one was published in “The Re-Demolished Man” anthology.
I like the standard book version the best. The earlier versions were wordy and wandered; whatever editor tightened everything up did a good job.
LikeLike
That is much simpler to deal with than the product of matrices with not-product-compatible dimensions.
LikeLike
Figuring out the bribe is
Tensuer Calculus
“Until the next time….”
LikeLike
have been trying to find an old school candle lantern, cant seem to locate any really, aside from some that use only a certain type of proprietary candle, just want one that can be carried, can go outside and that is easy to access the candle.
sometimes progress aint
LikeLike
I have (had?) a couple from my camping/backpacking days. One used proprietary candles, while the other used “plumber’s candles”. I think I got the latter on at REI, but it was 30 or more years ago. (Amazon has them, under “backpacking candle lantern”. They also have decorative lanterns. That’s with a minute or so of searching. Might have something there.)
LikeLike
thanks for the info folks, the ones im looking for look like hurricaine lanterns, we had some when i was growing up, they had a cylindrical glass chimney that slid up and out, worked real well, only been able to find reproductions that are patinad, but are ridiculously expensive. Will keep searching, found a few reproductions of other designs, just really want the other ones.
LikeLike
Look at reenactment suppliers. Most tealite-lanterns are convertible, as I mentioned–mine are mostly from thrift stores.
LikeLike
I should mention that NEW candle-lanterns are expensive, but they do fill your requirements. (I just popped over to Samson Historical and their candle-lanterns are $45 and up. Oh, and don’t get a pierced-tin one: they give just enough light to keep you from falling into a hole, but not enough to do anything useful.)
LikeLike
It is better to light a dozen candles for heat, than to curse the Biden Administration’s attack on fossil fuel. (Although it is a good question as to where the candle “wax” came from.)
LikeLike
As a kid, mom put a clock in the living room that came with matching sconces for decoration and she kept decorative candles in them, never lit.
During power outages I’d swap them out with generic candles (no idea of what type or material, this was in the 70s) to give some light in the living room. The dining room and kitchen had kerosene stoves that provided enough light and we had a propane gas stove for cooking.
LikeLike
Here in Western WA, there is a rebate possible if you take out your old wood stove and drag it to the proper government authorities. Wood burning is dirty and nasty and makes Gaia cry, and stuff, so why don’t you join the modern age, citizen?!
Having experienced a couple of winter-time power outages (of short duration, the longest was a day), I laugh at them and pat my woodstove fireplace insert on its black iron head.
We very much appreciate our heat pump (installed about 10 years ago, with rebates from the local power), but when the electricity is down, it’s nice to have an alternative source of heat. We could even cook on it as needed.
We do have a supply of various types of candles which we have fired up for light when the power went down. And flashlights, of course, kept in easy to find places. It’s not fun to be rummaging in the dark cupboards, in the dark, looking for a flashlight that works, so you can find the candles, so you can have light…
LikeLike
I wish Oregon had a rebate for wood stoves. Would take ours, and mom’s (whose is grandfathered in for all that it beats “official” stoves to hell and back for clean output; an old Fisher), take the rebates and put in natural gas replacements. The natural gas have backup batteries to run fans for when power goes out. Plus you can use generators to power the batteries if needed. Problem locally (not just age) is getting wood to burn. It is both labor intensive, and expensive (we used to have sources to get firewood free, still paid the labor costs sawing, hauling, splitting, and stacking, for us and mom).
LikeLike
You need somebody like my neighbor who works for CalTrans. He has a lot of firewood from tree removal, which means things like oak. And we do *not* live in fireplace country; between lack of colder weather and “spare the air” days, you can hardly have a fire.
LikeLike
We are in wood burning territory. We had ceiling heat. In addition, our firewood was all but free, until the last 6 1/2 cord.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I realize this is neither Ox’s or our hostesses intent, but that we are now discussing candles tells me how much our overclass have succeeded in making us a Marxist country.
Now, my real question:
Can you elaborate on this? I was unaware of a cast iron risk on a glass range and have been doing so on and off since 2/2023.
LikeLike
When we had a glass top range (since swapped out for propane), $SPOUSE was concerned about the cast iron skillets scratching the glass. Salvation Army’s thrift shop got mine, though when we went to gas, a Lodge 8SK (10″, despite the model number) followed me home shortly thereafter.
(A search on the web says that scratching is the big concern.)
LikeLike
Well, given how scratched the one at the old place and this place were when we moved in I doubt the management company cares.
LikeLike
https://theprepared.com/blog/can-a-flower-pot-and-tealight-candle-create-enough-heat-to-save-you-in-a-cold-emergency/
LikeLike
Did you ever see that post from someone who discovered that there are little heaters for teapots that you use with tea lights? Their astonished delight at finding out why they were called tea lights was fun.
LikeLike
Nice, high quality tapers are getting very hard to find. We used to be able to even find some beautiful fluted tapers back in the day. Unfortunately, the stores that sold them either went out of business or quit carrying them.
LikeLike
Some things on candlelight and other lights. Invest in a couple cheap solar led garden lights. They will give a night’s worth of enough light not to trip over furniture when the tab is first pulled. Look for wax candles at thrift stores and rummage sales. Any kind of candle. The wax can be melted down as previously described. Also, there or at a dollar store get two (larger and smaller) cheap kettles with handles for a double boiler. Wax melts at the temperature of boiling water, but after one use, you will never get all the wax out of either one. At the same time, look for small straight-wall cake pans to place the candle in. It will bring security and peace of mind when (not if) the candle drips or tips over [even more reassuring if a kerosene lantern is used – the burning kerosene will be in the pan rather than on the coffee table and living room floor]. Wicks can be salvaged from the melted down candles. Otherwise, any cotton (not synthetic) cord can be used. As noted, tuna cans can be turned into big tea lights. The easiest way is to cut a section of an appropriate diameter candle with a saw, then dig the wick out to light. It gets hot enough that the top of the wax melts and fills it (and they don’t tip over easy). Gasoline and propane lanterns give a lot more light, but the hissing sounds like a time bomb getting ready to explode.
LikeLike
I’ve not used a (white) gas lantern, but the kerosene version does indeed hiss considerably. The propane lanterns roar. Butane, lower pressure, isn’t as loud but it’s still there. The wick & mantle Aladdin is quiet, but can be a bit finicky.
LikeLike
After many years of disuse, I used our two Coleman lamps when I was building a pumphouse shed. Could not get a steady output (unlike 20 years beforehand…), but to be fair, I had not replaced any of the usual prone-to-clog parts. They make a gentle hiss, though I must admit to rather poor hearing, particularly at higher pitches. ($SPOUSE says the coffee maker’s “I’m done” beep is loud. I can hear it with my right ear if I’m close, but it’s a lost frequency for the left.)
I’m not sure I have an Aladdin lamp any more. Some years ago, the wick and mantle assemblies disappeared from the farm & ranch store’s inventory, and at that time, Amazon was still mostly selling books. When I get the round tuit, I’ll see what I have and whether an order is called for. Definitely finicky, but when it’s working right, it throws a lot of light.
LikeLike
Aye, ’tis a very good light. And a fair heater, too!
LikeLike
Has anyone forwarded this to our Fraternal Socialist Freinds in Cuba? Their electric grid failed about five days ago, and they are probably getting a bit frantic lately.
LikeLike
By the way Orvan, I suspect that is your likeness at the top of the article.
Quite handsome in a rough sort of way.
A bit envious I am…. :)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Not quite. Orvan is blue-eyed.
LikeLike
The fellow pictured… is so much better looking. -GRUMP-
LikeLike
Or at least exudes more “Do NOT mess with”…
NOTE: “Mess with” and “mess around with” are two VERY different things. Alas, well.. uh.. yeah. Daggnabbit
LikeLike
Amazing.
Amazi how fast this went from ” my engine sounds odd” to “I’ll bet when I get it to the shop it’s “need to rebuild engine”.
Tomorrow may be …. expensive.
Folks, this is a perfect example of why one should pay down debts and build up an emergency fund. This Charlie Foxtrot screws up my plans, not my life.
Keep on keeping on.
LikeLike
Anyone got a recommendation for ~v6 sporty SUV? I am replacing one that ran a 250HP v6 on 3100 pounds dry. so Quick!
LikeLike