How to Make a Candle Heater
With the cold season coming to a close I wanted to share one more survival craft that you can do in order to provide some off-grid heat to a small insulated area with just a candle!
I got this idea straight from the HeatStick.com site, where instead of ordering one of their “Kandle Heeters” I decided to make my own and share with you guys how you can too (it cost me about 15 bucks to make compared to 30 dollars (plus shipping) if you were to buy one).
How it Works
The basic purpose of this heater is to capture the heat given off of a candle flame and to concentrate it into a steel and ceramic radiator assembly. After some time, the ceramic surface will act as a thermal mass and begin to radiate the captured thermal energy into your room or office. Here’s how heatstick.com describes it (image and description c/o heatstick.com):
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Putting it all Together
The process for putting together the candle heater is very simple:
What You Need
- one 4″ ceramic (not glazed) pot
- one 2″ ceramic (not glazed) pot
- one 1 1/2″ ceramic (not glazed) pot
- two 1 1/2″ x 1/4″ washers
- three 1 1/4″ x 1/4″ washers
- three 1″ x 1/4″ washers
- eight 3/4″ x 1/4″ washers
- seven 1/4″ nuts
- one 3″ x 1/4″ bolt
Assembly Instructions
I think that the easiest way for you to learn how to put one of these heaters together is to follow the cutout image (to the left) I used from the heatstick.com site:
Just place the washers and nuts in the right combination as the image and you’ll be good to go. Looking inside, it should look something like this:
Making the Stand
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I found the simplest stand to make is to purchase three 4″ corner braces. |
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Then just put the three braces together with the middle brace facing the opposite direction and bend the outside two just enough to support the heater. |
Test Results
I decided to test out the heater with the bacon-grease candle I had made (check out Homemade Lamps from Everyday Objects to learn how to make your own). Since the homemade candle jar was a bit bigger than the 4.5″ stand I made, I added 6″ corner brace extensions to support the larger candle.
After burning the heater for around 6 hours it seemed to be putting out only a small amount of heat (a decent amount of heat was pouring out from underneath though). However, since the weather has been warmer around here I wasn’t able to give this little heater a fair shake (and besides, how much heat output are you really expecting from a candle anyways?).
Despite the less-than-optimal testing conditions, still, in no way would it heat up your home (or even a normal size room for that matter), but in an enclosed area like your car I could see it having some benefit. Again I haven’t been able to truly test it so this is only conjecture.
Even though the heater doesn’t seem all that effective, making this contraption was far from a waste of time. I learned some important principles as well as came up with other ideas of how to convert a flame source to radiant heating (just think of a larger version of this heater combined with the rocket stove I reviewed and you’ll get what I mean).
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- Posted in Urban Survival, Winter Survival
Very cool how to article. It looks like a simple enough project, but kind of expensive for what you get.
It seems to me that if you have these things already, you could make them, and if you have to burn the candles for light, you might as well use it as the heater too and get a tiny bit of heat if at all possible.
I’m interested to hear more about your larger version. You mentioned the rocket stove, but what about a homemade alcohol stove as the power source? Cheap and easy to find fuel.
Lucas,
You’re absolutely right. Although it’s a cool idea, I’m not too impressed by this heater. The alcohol stove/thermal mass heater idea is a great one and I’ll see if I can incorporate it into my future testings with a larger version. Thanks for the great comment!
- Erich
The concept is true and it is a sufficient amount of heat to survive but alcohol is a much better and cheaper way of heating since it burns hotter than a candle. Doug Strawn
I agree Doug. I’m planning on incorporating an alcohol stove in my future testing.
Nothing like copying someone elses idea is there? I bet you wish you thought of it first. I’ll have to give it to you at least you stated where you gleaned the info. There is a much better way to make a candle heater however.
We’d love to hear it. Feel free to chime in any time for the benefit of all.
Place 2 bricks on each side of the candle that is sitting on a brick and 2 in the back, like a little fireplace,Put the Terra cotta pots on top of the bricks. It works great. It actually does give off heat. .
Awesome tip Lisa, thanks!
I’ll be trying that one soon.
In the end, you’re not increasing the amount of heat given off by the candle.. that is pretty much set (unless you modify it to burn more efficiently). You’re localizing the heat and slowing its release into the surroundings. The heat may be in a better place (near the floor and your feet) compared to if it rises to the ceiling though.
Something a little off track but still with a candle. If outside and you have a candle and a poncho, sit on something insulating like a pack. Put the poncho over you and light the candle. Hold it in your lap while keeping the poncho away from your chest. It will warm you right up.
That’s a fantastic tip. I’ve done this method of heating with my wool blanket while doing winter survival excursions — very effective. Thanks for bringing it to everyone’s attention.
I just wanted to let your readers know that I placed a post on the tiny house blog about indoor air quality in tiny houses. I discussed this open flame heat inside small spaces.
Any open flame or fire inside of a home that is not vented is flirting with danger.
I’d encourage the readers using fuel to cook, heat or heat hot water inside of a home, RV, tent of living space to find out all you can about CO. A silent and deadly killer.
Here is the link:
http://tinyhouseblog.com/tiny-house/tiny-houses-and-indoor-air-quality-part-1/
Stay safe
J C
I would think that 3 of these could warm a small, closed off room. will experiment.
Jeff,
Do let us know how it turns out.