5 Make-Shift Urban Survival Lights When the Electricity Goes Down

Over on Willow Haven Outdoor is a fun post about creative, makeshift lighting solutions you might need as a last resort. 

Sardine Oil Lamp

 

After you finish eating the sardines from your food storage, put a natural fiber wick like a cotton string from a mop head, into the remaining oil and slightly over the edge of the sardine container. Once the wick is fully soaked, simply light the end. As the oil starts to run out, you an top it off with some olive oil, or any cooking oil for that matter. 

Crayon Candles

 

You can just break the point off a crayon and light the paper label at the end. As the wax melts, the paper becomes a wick it will last about 30 minutes.
You can also get a little more creative and put a natural fiber wick (like a shred of t-shirt material or cotton string from a mop head) between three crayons that have been stripped of their labels. Bind everything together with two short pieces of wire. Paper clips work well. Then, simply light the wick. These can burn for up to an hour.

Headlamp Lantern

 

Make a lantern using a headlamp and a water-filled clear plastic milk jug (or any clear container filled with water). Invert the headlamp around the bottle so that the light shines toward the CENTER of the bottle. The water diffuses and diverts the light.

Bacon Candle

 

If you’re like my mom, then you have a jar somewhere with all that excess cooking grease. This grease makes the perfect improvised survival candle. Put in a natural fiber wick (like a cotton string from a mop head) and light. It’ll burn as long as any comparable sized candle.  You can also just use the bacon.  Tear off the fatty pieces and stuff them in a jar around a natural fiber wick.  This will also burn like a candle.
Note: Smear the top of the wick with bacon grease to get it to burn better.

Crisco Candle

 

Press a natural fiber wick (like a cotton t-shirt shred or a cotton mop strand) using a forked stick to the bottom of a can of Crisco and you’ve got one of the longest burning emergency candles on the planet. Rumor is these can burn for more than 30 days straight!
Note: Smear the top of the wick with Crisco to get it to burn better.