EMERGENCY CANDLES · DIY METHODS
Homemade candles. What actually works.
A wick in fat. That is all a candle has ever been. When the commercial ones run out, or when the budget does not stretch to a store, these methods work. Some of them work well. Some are internet novelties. This guide tells you which is which.
THE UNDERLYING PRINCIPLE
A candle and an oil lamp are not the same thing.
Both produce light from a burning wick. The difference is the fuel state. A candle uses solid fuel: wax, tallow, or solid fat. The heat of the flame melts a small pool of fuel around the wick base, and the wick draws the liquid upward by capillary action to feed the flame. An oil lamp uses liquid fuel: vegetable oil, olive oil, or another liquid fat. The wick sits in or floats on the oil and draws it upward the same way.
Many things called "homemade emergency candles" on the internet are actually oil lamps. This matters because liquid fuel can spill. A knocked-over jar of burning oil is a different emergency than a knocked-over wax candle. Both are fire hazards. One spreads faster.
The other critical distinction: fuel choice. Vegetable cooking oils are appropriate fuels for improvised oil lamps. Gasoline, white gas, rubbing alcohol, kerosene, diesel, lamp oil, paint thinner, and solvents are not. These fuels produce dangerous fumes, can ignite explosively, and require purpose-designed equipment with proper ventilation. Never substitute them into a jar-candle or cooking-oil design.
RANKED BY USEFULNESS
From useful skill to internet novelty.
Every common homemade method, assessed honestly. The top three are worth knowing. The bottom four are demonstrations, not lighting systems.
Crisco/shortening candle, mason-jar oil lamp, floating-wick oil lamp
Tuna-can oil lamp, wax-scrap candle
Butter candle, orange-peel lamp, cardboard-wick fat candle, salt-and-oil lamp
TIER 1: WORTH KNOWING
The Crisco candle. The one that actually works.
A Crisco candle is a makeshift candle made by placing a wick into vegetable shortening. "Crisco" is simply the brand name most often mentioned; any solid vegetable shortening, lard, or similar cooking fat works the same way. The wick draws melted shortening upward, where the fuel vapor burns. It is the same principle as any commercial candle: the wick delivers fuel, the fat is the fuel.
It works because shortening has a high enough melting point to remain solid at room temperature but low enough to liquefy from the wick's heat. The result is a slow, steady flame that can burn for a long time depending on the amount of fuel and the wick diameter.
How to make one safely
Transfer shortening into a stable, heat-safe metal tin or thick glass container. Do not burn shortening in its original cardboard or plastic packaging. The container needs to withstand sustained heat without cracking, melting, or tipping.
Use a commercial pre-waxed cotton candle wick. Push it into the center of the shortening so it stands upright with about half an inch of wick exposed above the surface. A wick tab (the small metal disc at the base) helps anchor it. Do not use unknown synthetic string, yarn, or twine.
Place the container on a noncombustible surface with 12 inches of clearance from anything that can burn. Light the wick. Allow it a minute to establish a melt pool.
Supervise continuously. This is an open flame in an improvised container. All the rules from our candle safety guide apply: never leave it unattended, extinguish before sleeping, keep away from children and pets.
About the viral burn-time claims. The internet says a Crisco candle burns for 45 days. Treat this with skepticism. Runtime depends on wick diameter, number of wicks, fuel quantity, draft, altitude, and how many hours per day the flame is actually lit. A narrow wick in a full-size tub of shortening will burn for a long time. How long depends on your specific setup. Test yours and record the real number.
One honest tradeoff. A Crisco candle consumes edible calories. In a long disruption where food supply is uncertain, burning food for light is a real cost. If you are stocking supplies in advance, dedicated lighting fuel and battery lighting are better investments. The Crisco candle is most valuable as an improvisation skill for when the dedicated supplies are gone.
TIER 1: WORTH KNOWING
Oil lamp variations. The liquid-fuel methods.
Mason-jar oil lamp
A metal lid is pierced for a cotton wick, then placed on a mason jar filled with vegetable cooking oil. The lid supports the wick and reduces the exposed fuel surface, making this more stable than an open-dish design.
Fuel: Canola, olive, sunflower, or other vegetable cooking oil.
Strength: Relatively stable layout. Common household materials. The jar is heavy and harder to tip than a shallow dish.
Caution: The oil is liquid and will spill if the jar breaks or tips. Glass can crack from sustained heat. Use on a metal tray.
Floating-wick oil lamp
A small floating wick holder supports a cotton wick in a thin layer of vegetable oil floating above water in a jar or bowl. The water layer provides a safety margin: if the oil is consumed, the flame meets water rather than an empty, hot container.
Fuel: A thin layer of vegetable oil over water.
Strength: Uses very little oil. The water layer adds a measure of safety.
Caution: Small and easily disturbed. Produces modest light. Needs refilling for longer use.
The fuel rule for all oil lamps
Use only vegetable cooking oil. Never substitute gasoline, white gas, rubbing alcohol, kerosene, diesel, lamp oil, paint thinner, solvents, or other flammable liquids into a jar-candle or cooking-oil design. These fuels produce dangerous fumes, can ignite their vapors explosively, and require purpose-designed equipment with proper ventilation. A commercial oil lamp with the correct lamp fuel is a deliberate, engineered system. A mason jar with kerosene is an accident.
TIER 2: SITUATIONALLY USEFUL
Useful in specific circumstances.
Tuna-can oil lamp
A cotton wick inserted into an opened can of oil-packed tuna, drawing up the existing oil as fuel. The can is stable, low to the ground, and the fuel is already there.
It is routinely mentioned in preparedness circles as a quick improvisation. The light output is modest, and it is best regarded as a temporary contingency method rather than a planned part of your lighting system.
The tuna is still edible after the oil has been burned. Whether that appeals to you is a personal decision.
Wax-scrap candle
Saved candle stubs, broken candles, and reclaimed wax melted and poured around a commercial wick in a tin or heat-safe container. This is recycling, not improvisation: you are making a real candle from real candle materials.
If your household already uses candles, saving the stubs and recasting them into a larger reserve candle is practical and costs nothing beyond the wick and container.
Use a double-boiler method to melt wax. Never heat wax directly over a flame or stovetop burner. Wax can ignite if overheated.
TIER 3: DEMONSTRATIONS, NOT SYSTEMS
Social media favorites. Honest assessments.
These get shared widely because they are visually interesting and use common household items. That does not make them practical emergency lighting. If you enjoy the craft, try them on a calm afternoon. Do not depend on them in an outage.
Butter or ghee candle
A wick placed in butter, clarified butter, or ghee in a small dish. It works, technically, because butter contains enough fat to sustain a flame. But it is messy, it smells, it consumes edible food, and the melt pool is wide and shallow, which makes it easy to spill. A traditional method in some cultures, but a poor preparedness choice.
Orange-peel oil lamp
Half an orange peel is used as a tiny bowl; the center fiber becomes a wick after cooking oil is added. It produces a very small, short-lived flame and is primarily a demonstration of the oil-lamp principle. If you need light and an orange is the only tool you have, it will give you a few minutes. It is not a lighting plan.
Cardboard or paper-wick candle
Twisted paper, cardboard strips, or paper towels used as wicks in shortening or cooking fat. These produce more smoke, an uneven flame, and less predictable performance than a cotton wick. If you have shortening, you probably have access to cotton string or a craft store. Use a real wick.
Salt-and-oil lamp
Salt is used to help hold a small cotton wick upright in a container of vegetable oil, sometimes supported by a toothpick. This is popular on social media but less stable and less predictable than a proper floating-wick holder or a mason-jar lid design. If you are going to build an oil lamp, use the mason-jar method instead.
EVERY METHOD, EVERY TIME
The fire-safety rules apply to all of these.
Homemade candles and oil lamps have more variables than commercial products: improvised containers, untested wick combinations, unfamiliar fuel behavior. The safety rules are more important here, not less.
Use only while awake, present, and able to watch continuously.
Place on a stable, level, noncombustible surface in a tip-resistant setup. Use a metal tray under any glass container.
Keep at least 12 inches from curtains, paper, bedding, clothing, furniture, and other combustible material.
Keep away from children, pets, oxygen equipment, gasoline, propane, solvents, and fuel containers.
Never use in a tent, vehicle, enclosed shelter, or while sleeping.
Extinguish before leaving the room. Keep a working smoke alarm and a suitable fire extinguisher available.
For the complete candle safety guide, including the NFPA fire statistics, every safer alternative, and the strict rules for supervised candle use, see our Candle Safety page.
RELATED GUIDES
The rest of the candle picture.
Emergency Candles Hub
The decision framework: where candles fit in your lighting plan, supply planning, and the household flame policy.
Choosing Emergency Candles
Every commercial type, fuel types, wick basics, and the ten-point selection scorecard.
Candle Safety
The NFPA data, every safer alternative, and the strict rules for when candles are all you have.
SOURCES
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). "Proper Use of Candles During a Power Outage." cdc.gov. Accessed September 2026.
- American Red Cross. "Candle Fires" fact sheet. redcross.org. Accessed September 2026.
- National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). "Candle Fires." nfpa.org. Accessed September 2026.