HUNTERS' EMERGENCY HEAT SOURCE

Hey Everyone,

Jon DeVault asked about warmth options and I'm starting this new thread to leave this specific method open for comment. I learned this from the Colorado Hunter's Safety course a long time ago and it's worked very well for me.

Before you try this, pleeeease check with your company's safety department to be sure that this method is acceptable and within regulations.

Also, common sense dictates you must crack at least two windows down at least 1/2" each.

This method is good for serious situations, i.e., if you've broken down in the middle of a blizzard, at night, and you have no other option to keep you alive and warm enough while waiting for rescue crews to come get you. It won't keep you toasty warm like a fire in the living room but it will keep you warm enough to not freeze to death or lose fingers and toes to frostbite. It does have a bit of an odor, but not bad. It will leave a bit of a film on your windows, but that's a non-issue at this point in your survival. It is safe enough that you would be able to nap during its use and it doesn't produce carbon monoxide. I have used this method myself in my own, personal vehicle, I napped for a couple of hours at-a-time, and got through the night comfortably in sub-zero temperatures without a running engine. You should be able to survive for about 24 hrs using this.

You need:

1 large, metal coffee-can or coffee can-sized uh, ... can (I used a small, aluminum mini-trash can from Home Depot

1 metal lid, large enough to cover the coffee can or aluminum foil make-shift lid of the same dimensions

1 roll of toilet paper, cardboard center removed

1 large 28-oz fruit can, emptied and clean

10-oz isopropyl alcohol or more, if you want. Have 20 oz for a 24-hr survival period

1 pair of tongs or pliers

1 oven mit or pot holder (a clean, dry hand towel will do)

1 matches (don't use a lighter)

*Place large can in the center of the floor in front of the passenger seat

*Crack the two front windows 1/2" to 1" each, if your engine has died and you have automatic windows you still must crack open the doors (even if just a little) for ventilation

*Take your roll of toilet paper (you should have one on you anyway, if you're OTR) and force the center cardboard tube out of it. Don't worry if you lose some of the paper in the process. You won't need every inch for this. Squish the roll together so there is no longer a hole in the middle. Stuff this roll into the fruit can. Remove some paper if it's too large. The roll should be very snug inside the can and may even take up the entire interior of the can. This is okay.

*Soak the roll completely with several ounces of isopropyl alcohol without letting it overflow

*Before doing anything else, place the fruit can inside the larger can

*Screw the cap back on the alcohol and put it aside and out of the way

*Carefully light a match and light the contents of the fruit can that's already inside the larger can. Dropping the match onto the top of the toilet paper roll is ok, if you're anxious about lighting it for the first time. It does light up instantly.

*You need to have the fruit can inside the larger can first because it's very difficult to move it or put the fire out once lit. The large, outside can will prevent the fruit can from burning anything it's sitting on, like the floor mat, or from deadly cab fire if it tips over.

*Your metal lid or aluminum foil make-shift lid is for putting the fire out quickly when you need to

*The oven mitt and tongs are for moving either can or the lid, when you need to, without burning yourself

This fuel will burn for a couple of hours before you will need to refuel the can. The toilet paper will turn black but you can keep using it as such for 24hours. When you need to refuel, you MUST put out any flame before doing so, as the flame WILL travel up the stream of alcohol you are pouring, and blow up the bottle in your hand.

So ... put out the flame, suffocating it with your lid. Add a couple of ounces of alcohol to the fruit can without removing it from the big can, soaking the paper again. Then cover the alcohol bottle with its cap, put it aside and out of the way. Re-light your (now black) toilet paper with a match, and you should be good-to-go for a couple more hours.

With the sleeper curtains closed, your cab will be fairly warm and you can sleep a couple of hours at-a-time, not having to worry about carbon monoxide poisoning as CO is not a by-product of burning isopropyl alcohol.

Again, make sure this method is acceptable to your company. It's as safe as any fire, as long as you use common sense. But it does warm up the cab when temperatures are deadly, outside.

Remember to keep your spillage to a minimum as a drop or puddle of the alcohol will burn and flame-up on its own, without a "host" place to fuel, like a wooden log, or paper, etc.; so be careful not to spill it on your skin or clothing as it flames up anywhere.

Brett, if this recommendation for fuel seems too risky to leave up, I won't take it personally if you remove it, but I do believe that compared to other forms of fuel, this one is the safest, inside a vehicle or cab.

Further comments/question are welcome. It worked for me in my personal vehicle, when no other option was available with a non-running engine.

Stay warm.

-mountain girl

P.s. I'm assuming, in this survival mode, you will be napping in your driver's seat, with no one in the passenger seat, fuel cans on the passenger floor, not touching anything around it. If you do have another driver with you, you could have the curtains open and one of you could be in the back. One of you needs to be in the driver's seat to sleep with one eye opened, for survival or to put the fire out quickly, if need be. The fuel should still be enough, even with the curtains open, to keep you both warm enough to survive.

-mountain girl

This is basically a build-your-own Sterno can, isn't it? It is a good emergency survival idea, but you might be able to buy a kit that would be designed for it.

Yeah, pretty much. I'm partial to my homemade version -it's cheap and it makes me feel cool.

-mountain girl

Yeah, pretty much. I'm partial to my homemade version -it's cheap and it makes me feel cool.

-mountain girl

Lemme rephrase that.

It's cheap and it makes me feel like I got it goin' on.

-mountain girl

Yeah, pretty much. I'm partial to my homemade version -it's cheap and it makes me feel cool.

-mountain girl

I hope it didn't seem like it was saying bad things about it. It's a good plan for an emergency, if you have the materials.

This is a very old tried and true method of keeping yourself warm when in an emergency situation, or as Mountain Girl pointed out, it has been used by hunters for many years. Just reading her post brought back some forty plus year old memories of being in a cold wet duck blind as a young boy with my dad. We would make use of these hunting heaters as we called them way back then. They do work well and can keep you nice and warn in a pinch. I'm not real favorable toward an open flame inside the truck, but I do remember that there is just something about being able to see the flames that just made you feel even warmer when using one of these home-made heat sources.

No, Farmerbob. It didn't sound like you were saying anything negative at all.

Thanks, for the endorsement, OS. Glad that brought back "warm" memories.

-mountain girl

Thanks MG, that's great information even if you may not be able to use it in a company truck.

Unlike Old School who is about my age and even living in NH all my life I didn't have as much of the real life experience. My dad only took me bird hunting on day trips and never out in the woods for any length of time. I just never got in to it on my own after that.

Anyway Farmerbob1 might be right about there being kits but I sure like the idea of crafting this myself with things I may have or can get that have had another life first.

I actually Googled this and it is very well documented as a safe (when directions are followed) and effective Emergency heat source. As a bit of a heads up, one site recommended using a New, empty, metal 1 gallon and 1 Quart paint can, available at any Hardware or Home Improvement store. The advantage to this is that they come with lids, and can be nested together and easily stored. I will be picking up the necessary supplies when I am home next week. This sounds like a must have for any Driver. Thanks for the great post Mountain Girl!