this post was submitted on 29 Jan 2025
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Save your Styrofoam to make napalm. And no, napalm isn't what you think. (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 days ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
22 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

First off, homemade napalm is in no way illegal, nor does it explode. You've watched too many Vietnam movies. What it does do is burn. Forever. More on campfires to come.

Put a couple of fingers of unleaded in a pickle (wide mouthed) jar, stuff waste Styrofoam in it. You can jam the contents of a 40" TV packaging in a quart jar.

That's it, that easy. Keep cramming the foam in until you get a taffy consistency. Too much and it's too hard to dig out with a stick. Too little and it slips off your stick.

I keep a jar at my campsite and one in the house for starting our little fire pit. A golf ball chunk will start soaking wet kindling.

PRO TIP: Spread the goo on a cookie pan, 1.4" thick, let it dry in the summer sun, cut into little pieces with scissors, put it in a little plastic box (that you had saved already, right?). Now you can pack it out with no mess, no smell!

Never goes bad, as far as I know, can't be too dry.

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[–] [email protected] 30 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (3 children)

"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.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 day ago

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.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 days ago

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.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 days ago (1 children)

How do you make those? Is it just dipping cotton pads in wax?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 days ago

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.

[–] [email protected] 41 points 2 days ago (2 children)

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.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago

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.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

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.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago

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.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

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

[–] [email protected] 16 points 2 days ago (4 children)

Put a couple of fingers of unleaded in a pickle

Okay, now what?

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

What was the point of adding fingers to the napalm?

[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 days ago

What else am I going to do with all these fingers?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago (2 children)

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.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 days ago (1 children)

So I eat the pickle or?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago

I'm very confused. Now I have pickle juice and gasoline in my carpet. This seems like a waste of pickles.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 day ago

what's a finger

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago

I read "put a couple of fingers of undead..." and didn't even wonder...

[–] [email protected] 12 points 2 days ago

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.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 days ago

Dryer lint and petroleum jelly works, too.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 days ago

Also remember styrofoam is just extruded polystyrene, which you can find in other common items such as soda cup lids.