I’ve been offline for a few days due to a huge storm hitting West Virginia. We lost power at 4:23 am on Saturday morning. We had power restored at 11 am on Monday. It was a long few days. We were able to stay in our house. Thankfully no pipes broke and there were no major events other than the power outage.
I want to really encourage you all to be prepared for such emergencies. We have moved twice in the last year and had let our supplies dwindle. We had no propane for the camp stove. We had no firewood. Not a good situation to be in. We did have some knowledge though and that helped us to get through until we were able to get wood and propane.
You can make your own “Sterno” at home for heating water. It is an open flame. By that I mean OPEN FLAME! Especially when initially lit. The flame starts out tall and then gets shorter. I found this to be true each time it was lit (not just the very first time). 
Never to be put where it can tip over, get knocked over, be around children (we have 5 of those), etc. I decided to clear one side of my sink and put the can in the sink to hopefully minimize any accidents. The flame is burning off alcohol so it can not be put out with water. I wanted to be clear that I put it in the sink not so I could douse it with water, but in case it tipped over I would at least not have flame rolling across my floor. I was also careful to clear the area around the sink of anything flammable. This homemade cooking/heating gave us some hot water and our first hot meal (Spaghetti-o’s) in 24 hours. Having a way to heat food & drinks really boosted our moral.
Supplies:
- Large metal can & its lid
- Roll of toilet paper
- Isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol)
How To Make:
Clean The Can: You need a large clean metal can and it’s lid. In our case, I emptied a can of crushed tomatoes into a bowl, cleaned the can and lid (be careful of sharp edges) and dried them. Do NOT throw away the lid!
The Toilet Paper: Remove the cardboard tube from the toilet paper roll. Fold the TP roll in half length wise and then in half again (you’re crushing the roll and making it as compact as possible). Insert the roll of toilet paper into the can. Wrap additional toilet paper around your hand (making a mini-roll of TP) and compact in the same way you did the large roll – use this to fill in any spaces. Repeat until you have the can tightly packed with toilet paper.
Adding Alcohol: Slowly pour the isopropyl alcohol over over the TP in the can until the TP is saturated. This took nearly 2 bottles in my case.
Use:
Hold a match to the alcohol. It should light right up. This will burn nicely for quite some time. To put the flame out simply lay the lid on top of the flame. I am told that snuffing (eliminating any source of oxygen) is the only way to put this flame out. That is why you need the lid. I used tongs to put the lid on because I had them available. Make sure the flame is out and keep it out of the reach of children.
After several uses you see a bit of charring on the TP & some blue candle wax from lighting it (we were conserving matches).
You will need to hold the pot above the flame (resting the pot on the flame will put it out). I used an oven rack across my sink.
**Please know that I am sharing this in the hope that it may come in handy one day to you or your family. I am in no way a survival expert. YOU are 100% responsible for your safety should you choose to try this. I can make no guarantees on how well or how safe it is. As with any open flame; you must make sure there is proper ventilation. Keep yourselves safe! I used the canned heat several times before we were able to obtain propane for our camp stove and I had no problems using it. I made sure my children were no where near me when dealing with the can in any way.
22 comments
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Sam
December 22, 2009 at 9:48 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Thank you for sharing, Amber! I am only sad that we live in a day where so many disclaimers are needed. Sam
Kris
December 22, 2009 at 11:31 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Wow, this is a brilliant idea. Thank you so much for sharing.
Katidids
December 22, 2009 at 11:38 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Wow, With winter upon us that is a great Tut! I’d be ok as long as I had coffee! LOL! Glad your power is back & Thank u again! Have a wonderful Christmas
Mama K
December 22, 2009 at 11:43 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Thanks! I have never heard of that. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to have some sternos on hand for just such an occasion. I don’t have a camping stove.
Beth
December 22, 2009 at 11:59 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
That was very smart of you Amber! We thankfully did not lose power (and I am surprised!) but we were ready if we did. We lose power a lot here, we learned the hard way the first winter we were here. Glad you have your power back now. Merry Christmas!
Loretta
December 22, 2009 at 3:51 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
That is awesome thanks for sharing
Jen
December 22, 2009 at 4:29 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
That is so cool!!! good to know!
kateweb
December 22, 2009 at 6:59 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
this is soo cool I just had to digg it
Kim
December 23, 2009 at 9:34 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Wonderful post, thanks for sharing! We have wood stoves so heating and cooking isn’t a worry right now. But you never know when you might need an alternative.
I have cooked on top of a kerosene heater, it works quite well!
haley
December 28, 2009 at 7:26 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
What a great idea! We lost power for several days during the big windstorm in WV. I wish we had known about this then.
One question though, how would I go about storing this in between uses? Will the alcohol naturally evaporate?
Amber
December 29, 2009 at 5:24 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Haley – I called my family in Montana who taught me this a few years ago. They say they just keep them covered with foil and over time they do dry up. I have had mine sitting on my counter with the lid on. I’ll probably move it to my pantry. I would just be sure not to store it near any heat source.
Allie
September 15, 2012 at 3:53 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I’m about to spend my first winter in Minnesota (moved here from Texas), and I’m so glad I found this. I will be sure to have these items on hand before the first frost!!! Thanks so much for the tips!
laura
September 25, 2012 at 4:36 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I used pint size paint cans – the lids are great and they are thicker. Then I tape a matchbox and a quarter (to open the can) to the top. I then keep a clean gallon size paint can to put the ‘heat’ to help the the ‘tipping over’ possibility!
Nicole
November 1, 2012 at 10:28 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Oh, a WV gal! =) I love the idea, i have seen the one with Crisco. I think i like this one better!
atruebeliver
November 24, 2012 at 9:34 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Great idea .Thanks for sharing.
Caribou
November 26, 2012 at 7:41 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Great idea! Actually water will put out an alcohol fire. Water and alcohol are completely missable. Below about 50% an alcohol/water solution will not burn. That is why you see the Indy cars get a spray of water around the fuel cap after they are fueled with alcohol. Gas and oil will float on top of water and continue to burn.
Amber
November 26, 2012 at 8:31 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Good to know! It sounds like using the lid to put out the flame will ensure you don’t get too much water into the mix then.
Elizabeth
November 27, 2012 at 12:31 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Very cool idea. Thanks for sharing. I’ll be sure to keep this in mind if I run out of butane canisters for my camp stove.
Dave
November 27, 2012 at 8:35 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
You are better off using denatured alcohol in place of the Isopropyl alcohol. Denatured burns with out smoke or soot. The only down side is that the flame is invisible. I use this fuel when backpacking to boil questionable water when a “fire” is prohibited. It can be found at any hardware store in the paint area. Best of Luck.
Abigail Wanlass Robertson
December 7, 2012 at 7:01 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Awesome! I was just thinking last night, how if we lost power due to snow or something similar that would keep us from being able to safely go in and out, we’d have no way to cook. This solves that problem! Awesome and thanks! Now I need to stock up more on isopropyl alcohol.
Rosa Lopes
December 7, 2012 at 8:58 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Have you not heard of the rocket stove .Instructions can be googled and it is very easy to make.
Julie Amos
March 2, 2013 at 12:34 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I believe that a survival expert named Papa Bear from Colorado who is now dead came up with this, when asked by the Armed Forces to create a heater that could be used in a closed confined space like a vehicle to keep someone alive stranded in the winter. I was told by Papa Bear at a sportsman show that it would keep a person alive for around 10 hours. You only use 70 % so the flame doesn’t get high, as I have kept these in the trunk of my car for years. I like using this for a stove also
Emergency canned heat
November 25, 2012 at 8:28 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
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