Each of us knows that an ordinary candle burns out very quickly. And usually an impressive supply of "paraffin lamps" is required. However, our great-grandfathers came up with many ways to make a candle on their own or to increase its burning time tenfold. As a result, such a light source can be used for days. So why not take advantage of the knowledge of our ancestors if they suddenly turned off the light, and there was no flashlight at hand or the mobile phone was dead.
1. "Potato" candle
Our grandparents also used this method. To ensure a long and bright burning, they took a potato, cut a circle about 1 centimeter wide, and made a small hole in its center. A piece of cloth or bandage, twisted into a tube and acting as a wick, was inserted into it. A potato with a wick was placed in a jar or saucer, where vegetable oil was poured. Such a homemade candle burned for several hours without fail. Conveniently, you can adjust the intensity of the flame by lengthening or shortening the wick. It is convenient to do this with tweezers so as not to get dirty and not burn yourself.
2. "Long-lasting" candle
First of all, you need the simplest candle. It doesn't matter what it is (thin or thick). You will also need a small container: a jar, a glass. A little paraffin is dripped into the container at the bottom and a candle is placed there. Then vegetable oil is poured to the level of the wick. The simplest sunflower is perfect.
You don't need to do anything else. As practice shows, for four and a half hours the oil remains practically at the same level as it was. Accordingly, the wick burns at the same level. As a result, a container with 70 milliliters of oil is enough for the whole night, and maybe more. After use, the oil can be drained into a separate jar and used for the same purpose in the future.
3. "Jar" candle
This method is similar to the previous one, only instead of potatoes we take a can of canned food, make a hole in the lid with an awl, insert a wick into it. It can be made from different materials: bandage, cotton wool, rags, threads, lace, etc. Oil is poured into the container and the candle is ready.
4. "Water" candle
To create such a light source, we need an ordinary holiday candle (for a cake), a wide glass cup, vegetable oil, a plastic bottle and a clerical knife. Cut out a small circle from the bottle (its diameter should be slightly smaller than that of the glass), make a small hole in it with a clerical knife. We insert into it the wick previously removed from the holiday candle. It is enough to make the upper part half a centimeter long. We fill the glass with ordinary water, about ¾ of the total volume. Pour sunflower oil into the water. Put the previously prepared plastic circle with a wick on top and set it on fire. While the oil saturates the wick, the candle will give light.
It will be no less interesting to know how to make an eternal flashlight from a plastic bottle.