DIY Candles for UCO Candle Lantern! 

Great job Lilly, I like the fact that you didn't go spend a bunch of money on molds but instead used what you had around you. Very ingenuitive!

To reduce the 'piping' effect, you have to slow down the cooling rate where the wax meets the metal tubes. Try insulating around the tubes by adding a boxed-in top to the mould stuffed with cotton wool or old rags. You could always try casting the candles bottom-up, instead of top-up, though that would complicate the mould.

UCO Candle Lantern USA: amzn.to/3otdCJ5 Warning: My method of heating the wax works, but if the wax gets too hot, it can catch fire. For safety reasons it is better to use a waterbath for melting the wax! Also, the wick I used in the video is a bit too wide in diameter. Make sure you use a really thin wick otherwise the flame will get too big.

If you heat the exterior of the metal tube with a hair dryer after they are cool, then the new candle will slide out easier. Great idea! Thanks for the inspiration.

Hello from Oklahoma! Good Video! This is what Bushcraft is all about. So happy to see you doing this! Thanks for all U do! God Bless!

The cost of the candles is exactly why I haven't pulled the trigger on getting it. Great video Lily. Appreciate you doing this.

Nice video Lilly. Something to check into for wicks are 100% hemp wicks, they tend to burn slower than standard wicks also echo friendly. :)

Most candle wicks are made with braided cotton at 1/16" in diameter for candles under 2" in diameter. The next size larger is 3/32" in diameter and is designed for candles 2" to 4" in diameter. Beeswax has almost the same energy density as all common candle waxes but when burned in the UCO candle it last 33% longer due to it's higher melting point and as a result a lower heat output and lumen output.

Add Stearin (Stearic Acid) to make candles burn longer with a steadier flame and and also makes them droplets. Also soaking your wick material (not waxed) in Boric Acid and salt solution and then drying to make a longer and better burning wick with less soot and ash. Also makes for a brighter burn too!!!

When I went to buy one of these a couple years ago, I saw how expensive their proprietary candles were and went looking for a different lantern. I pretty immediately discovered that they make one that just uses tea candles, so I got one of those, and a 300 pack of 8 hour burn time tea candles for like $35. For anyone who doesn't want to pay for the expensive UCO candles, and doesn't want to make your own candles, it's a great option.

I have been having a go at this too. I tried 32mm PVC waste pipe with beeswax, but it was impossible to remove the candles after drying. I tried freezing and reheating to get a quick change in expansion/contraction but this did not work. Nor did a mallet and a piece of 1 inch dowel. I had to saw them in half in the end. Some of the wax stuck to the inside of the pipe, so the candles came out somewhat broken. I am going to try metal tubes, and I found a great source for the pipes - a vaccuum cleaner extension tube. For a well known small brand, this is exactly the correct diameter - 32mm!!!! I will report back. I am also using 40mm push fit plugs which look like the ones Lily is using. They fit with a similar bit of taping.

Oh man. It is amazing to search for a topic, click on a video, and then I hear “Hi guys, my name’s Lilly!” You are so cool. I would love to spend two weeks in the bush with you. I realized in my last survival gig I had become lazy with my tactics. I was teaching primitive survival so the basics were our main focus. After a few stays I realized I wasn’t building to my primitive pack. I had plans at the beginning to make some rabbit down socks and turn them into camp slippers as I had time to collect and tan some thicker hide. I never even attempted them. I would hike, teach, and rest. My gear stayed at about two weeks of work, which was partially on purpose because students often didn’t like when the teachers gear was better. Anywho. I’m trying to say I love your continues quest in the field. And I really enjoy learning from others with different experiences and knowledge. Thanks for the always great content Lilly.

Great project! A couple of tips... when melting candle wax, always use a double boiler for safety. Wax can flash fire very easily. If you get some either some food grade silicone spray or high temp baking spray like Pam and grease your pipes with it before you pour, the candles will slide right out of the pipes easily. Also, you will LOVE their 3 candle candelier lantern. You can actually put a metal cup on top with a lid and boil water on it! Plus, 3 times the heat and light. I really recommend getting the neoprene cases for the uco lanterns to protect your investment from damage. Especially if you get the three candle candelier.

I want to get the UCO Candelier - the one with 3 candles in it. It's $40 US, and the natural beeswax candles are $64 US for 20. Very expensive. $30 US for 20 of the white candles. You did a fantastic job making new candles, Lilly! They are perfect!

A friend makes her own ,she adds peppermint oil ,it helps repel mosquitoes. Excellent video as always Lilly!

You can use modeling clay to cap off the pipes, much easier. Just make a clay patty (like a tiny hamburger) and poke your wick through the center. Lower your pipe onto the clay pad, with the wick through the center, and embed the pipe into the clay. Self standing, re-useable, and releases easily.

Saving all of your used cooking oil is good too. Making oil lamps out of bacon grease and cooking oil after you filter it is VERY cost effective…. Just need jars and coffee filters.

i found i little glass bottle with a metal lid who fits inside the candle tube. i managed to install a little metal tube in the bottle lid as a wick holder - now it is a dual use lamp works perfekt as oil lamp and also with candles. with lamp oil it burns much cheaper than with candles, even cheaper than with homemade candles. your candle project gives me an idea to make some candles for an other candle lantern who also needs special size candles - the swiss military folding lantern.

Also burning the beeswax has been shown to provide other health benefits. Thank you for sharing.

that's probably the best build I have ever seen you do.

Fantastic video Lilly! I loved the breakdown of how to complete the project and the cost savings. It is crazy how much those candles would cost you to buy new in Europe. It was very wise to look at making them yourself.

I keep my UCO in my winter emergency survival car kit. They give off enough heat to eventually warm up the interior of a midsize car. UCO is expensive here in North America as well, but not as expensive as Europe. The prices have never gone down after all these years being on the market. You're a very good DIYer btw.

1st an electric hot plate would be a much better choice than an open flame for melting wax. 2nd you should use a double boiler to melt wax. 3rd candles can be picked up pretty cheap in secondhand stores (in the US anyway) if they are not the size you need, they can be melted down and recast to what you want. All that said you have sold me on the idea.

Well done! I've tried making my own and here is my big discovery: the candle doesn't need to be the exact same shape at the top, what is important is that it fills the diameter of the tube to prevent molten wax from flowing down or IT WILL go through the side opening and create a major fire hazard (at least a horrendous mess if you catch it on time like I did). Secondly, I learned that modern candle wicks are "self-trimming", meaning they will burn out past a certain length. If you use cotton twine, the wick may keep growing longer and require you to trim it by hand on a regular basis or it will create a lot of soot.

Great job Lilly!👍👍👍👍👍

Wie immer sehr schlau gelöst liebe Lilly! Danke fürs zeigen! Beste Grüße Sepp

Poke holes towards centre of wick while it’s still cooling so it helps prevent as much shrinkage and you can see where you need to fill and have no holes in the middle 💕🇨🇦

Great project Lily!! Awesome savings in the long run and so simple now that you’ve got it all set up.

That's awesome!! Great video Lilly 📹!!

Brilliant idea & excellent execution!

For this particular UCO lantern, there is also a "hack" using a small red bull can instead of the aluminum tube that normally holds their proprietary candle and then using a stack of tea light candles with a circle of cardboard under the burning one to keep the one under the burning one from melting.

Thanks for showing us Lilly! 👍😁

I use an old crockpot to melt wax. Put an old tin can in it with my wax, set it on high and wait. It doesn't take too long once it warms up. I use old toilet paper rolls for forms, or sometimes mini cups (Dixie cups) But believe we have the same wicks. Great idea on the clothes pins.

I always get the hole or shrinkage with beeswax. Mold release spray would make the candles come out easier. A heated knife makes trimming the top easier for the beeswax.

Thank you so much Lilly! A couple of days ago I just ordered more UCO candles, which have gone up very much in price, and they were expensive to start with. Now I can make my own! I have a few UCO candle lanterns, and someone got me the candolier for Christmas. I had never got it for myself because it takes three candles. Now I love it, and I don’t have to worry about the candles.

These are the kind of videos that made me watch Lilly in the first place. These and the survival shelter videos.

I love making things by myself even if are just common things you can buy. It's so satisfying

I just purchased the uco candle lantern. Thanks for sharing this great idea for making your own candles.

Another great presentation, thanks Lily!

This is by far the most unique prepper project I’ve ever seen! Thank you!! Amazingly useful! Various uses.

I like how creative and self sufficient you are. Thanks for this idea.

G'Day Lilly that is a nifty Candle lamp and good on you for making your own candles I keep a small amount in one of my prep boxes of odds and ends lol. Stay safe mate and good to see you.

Excellent DIY project. Absolutely worth your time, especially when you add in the enjoyment factor. Thank you for posting

Thank you for saving us a bunch of money!! Well done! Keep the great videos coming!! 🎉

Great job Lilly with a great result. Thanks for posting.

Excellent presentation Lilly, thank you.

Me and my son watched this and are amazed at your ingenuity! Thank you for showing this! Great idea!

Amazing idea!!! It’s hard to get good quality one now they are cutting the wax with something other then paraffin now to make them cheaper but have jacked up the price. Totally love love love this tutorial and will be making my own now‼️ Thank you Lilly

lubricate your candle mold, with silicone it'll come out easy

I am so impressed. I can't wait to try this. I bought wax years ago and probably have all the pipes here except the bottom. Loved this, thanks. You saved a ton of money..

Awesome project, great results. Thank you for sharing.

You're the best Lilly! Thank you for this awesome video.

Great job Lily, I’ve been considering doing this for a while now.

Looks doable! Thank you for sharing this, Lily!

I use some Chapstick or FIXIN wax or even Antibiotic cream to lube the inside of the tube. I find it helps to let the candle slide a bit easier as it burns.

Hi Lilly: I wish you had put this video up a few weeks ago. I just bought Three more of the UCO lanterns with three extra candles each. I bought my first one in 1984. Now I will use your trick to make my own candles.

Necessity is the mother of Invention! Good job lily

Wow excellent video....thanks for sharing Lilly

I’ve been making my own candles for years but this is really cool that they r perfect size. I was a little concerned u would have a problem getting them out without using a mold release but it seems they worked perfectly! Good job and great video!

Just watched you on coming to America naked and afraid. And by far you two were my favorite of all time. You guys really had each other's back. I live in the states so you guys rocked!! 😊

Great video. I like your DIY projects. The traditional way to make candles is to tie a small weight to the end of a wick (I use a small nut) and dip the wick over and over in the melted wax until it reaches the desired thickness. This sounds inefficient, but if you tie 20 wicks to a stick you can dip a wick, move to the next, and so forth. This requires no mold and it is how candles were mass produced in the 1600s in colonial America. Since you have bees' wax, you can make a diy wood finish by mixing it with olive oil. I use this to waterproof the handles of my custom landing net handles.

Beautifully done!

Very creative DIY. Thanks for the idea!

Good work! Excellent way to stay ready and also save money. Thank you for the video.

I have several of these lanterns. 2 of them are solid brass. They do very well for camping and for emergencies. You did a fantastic job on this video. Thank you for sharing your discovery.

Nice job on showing how too make the candles!!! Nicely done on video! Thanks for the idea. 🇺🇸🪓🔪👍👍

Excellent video! Thank you for posting!

Hey lilly,i own couple of these candle lanterns and can agree that the candles are expensive, citronella and bees wax especially,until this point it was just easier to purchase new 1s after your video it seems quite simple and cost effective to make your own so im going to give it a try and make my own 😁thanks for this awesome tutorial, your awesome!have a good day and god bless from 🇺🇲🇺🇲

Hi Lilly Love your videos, quite a few candles I bought at yard sale a while back. Will need to get pipe and wicks today. Its a rainy day..... a perfect day for making candles. Going to insulate the tubes(as was suggested by other folks} and see if it will help with the hole issue. Cant wait to get started.

We’ll done Lilly, another useful video! I have the UCO lantern also and I am going to try making my own candle now

Been meaning to make molds for a while. Beeswax are great and don’t forget some insect repelling candles for outdoor emergencies/camping. Thank You for the video.

Super Lilly!!!

Great video. Cooking spray works well as a release agent. Just spray the inside of the tubes and let it dry. The candles should slip out.

I love these kinds of videos 😍. When I make my pillar candles I use the cardboard tube from paper towels and toilet paper. I oil them good inside. It works very well.

Great job Lily!

Thanks to you Lilly, I am no longer living under a rock!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Also you can buy candle molds to make these candles.

they turned out beautiful!! when i do this i will probably add some citronella or peppermint oil to the wax to deter bugs!! thanks for doing this, i wasn't going to buy the uco lantern because of the price of the candles!!!

I love making candles. I make my own soap as well. If you know anyone who keeps bees you can get wax from them. I get my wax from a friend of mine. Thank goodness. Great video as always Lilly😁

The residue is from when you did the second pour, that's the separation point between the two pours. Try doing the pour using a small metal funnel to make it easier getting the hot wax into the moulds. Good video. Try buying the beeswax in blocks instead of granules it works out cheaper. If you have the 3 candle UCO lantern you can use the three tubes as moulds and do a mass production using them and then revert them back to being used in the lantern until you need more candles.

Most excellent Lilly!

Great job, Lilly! You are a woman of many talents. 🙂

I don't think that this degree of DIY will suit my needs personally, but I do thank you for reminding us over in America about how costly some things are for you. We're going through some inflation of our own right now (I've experienced it today more than once), but we still frequently need to be reminded that our experience of cheap consumer goods isn't typical of the rest of the world.

Wow Lilly! You are right , candles are expensive in Europe. You figured out a great fix.

Brilliant build Lilly! Great money saver , nice!

Thank you. This is extremely helpful.

You can convert these to use oil fairly easily. You can search online for vids on how to do so. Makes these lanterns even more useful.

Well done Lilly! I always admire a neat workshop with a wide assortment of tools. You can't beat making you own stuff. I keep my eye out on trash collection day for people throw out useable stuff, last week it was a vacuum cleaner that had a 20 foot three-wire cord I cut off and saved from the landfill. Thank you for the great tips!

You are very creative and handy in many ways. good for you!

That’s a brilliant little invention

It's just fantastic, very creative.

You are so creative!

I’ve thought about buying one of these lanterns but have always been put off by the cost of the replacement candles. This video solves the problem. Thanks for the really helpful info. 👏👏

Good job Lilly!

Você é o Máximo, adoro sua inteligência!

I'm glad you did this video. I usually go to the dollar store (In the U.S.) and buy candles. They are over size and very soft wax, I shave the diameter down with a knife. It doesn't mater if it's perfectly round, when the candle melts it will fill in the imperfections.

That's pretty awesome!

Excellent, thanks for sharing😊

Wow, I would have never thought of making them myself. You could add Citronella oil to your wax to help keep the mosquitoes away.

You're a genius! Very impressive work

You can increase the amount of light given of by building a framework that can hold a couple of mirrors to reflect the light of the single candle.