How To Improvise a Tent Heater / Bushcraft-Survival Video, Winter Bushcraft 

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Taro, thank you for this video on the tent heater! A long time ago I was hitch-hiking and got a ride with an army captain. He shared with me that I should always carry a candle as a survival measure. I held onto his advice and it came in handy during a car trip in winter with my ex-husband to be and our children. We were packing the car for the trip and he saw me putting a candle into the glove compartment, and remarked, "That's stupid." and promptly took the candle out. When his attention turned elsewhere, I snuck the candle back in. OK. Fast forward. We're on a trip, it's snowing like crazy, very cold, and surprise! We've run out of gas! The kids and I are stuck in the car while he has to walk and find a gas station. How on earth are we all going to keep warm in the car in a snowstorm? Oh hey! I've got a candle! And a book of matches! Well, it worked. I cracked one window open a tiny bit to ensure oxygen, and the heat from the candle kept us all warm. That experience roused my interest in the power of candles. When you mentioned the clay flower pots as heaters, yes, that's been one idea that's interested me also. However, to me, your idea with the metal cooking equipment makes more sense. I would just have to make sure that the whole set up is stable and secure. Over here in Norway, they have ten hour tea candles which are really great. So once again, my sincere thanks! :-)

I live outside in Ohio (houseless) and im hearing a huge snowstorm is coming this season. This advice may save my life. Thank you. Ill come back and edit this comment when it gets to that point and let everyone know if it helped or nor.

Cool idea. My personal favorite way to heat the tarp tent is to have a hole dug in the center of the tent and when I'm ready to go to bed i put hot rocks from around the fire in the hole and fill it in then set up my bed.

I live in the snow belt in Muskoka and learned a long time ago the cold is not something to mess with. I’ve got a diesel heater, electric heat with a generator, stove for wood and coal, buddy heater on propane, 12volt electric heater for the car, paraffin wax emergency heat light, clay pot candle heater, single burner propane camp stove, 12 volt plug in blanket, real fur throw blankets, real fur gloves and hat, zippo hand warmer, cold weather military sleeping bag, foot away mini wood stove. I also make sure to keep an eye on humidity levels. I’m never getting hypothermia again, enough said… 😂 you can also use sand and make a sand battery

When I was in the US Army almost 50 years ago, we slept in the two man pup tents. In the middle of winter, I used a couple of candles to heat up the tent. It made a big difference. In a small area, the candles, along with body heat will raise the temperature up noticeably. I would sometimes get a can, (our food came in cans back then), turn it upside-down and punch several holes in it with a bayonet. The candle is placed under the can. That would help it radiate, keep the flame away from things and keep the light dim.

Very impressive! I would have guessed that having the candles closer to the heated mass would have been more efficient, but obviously it did not occur to me that it would affect the candles. My experience is that the candles burn from 2.5-5 hours, depending on the type of wax. That is an awesome setup that only requires extra candles (I carry one in my pack). Thanks for sharing your work!

Just take a cheap thermal flask, 1,5l, you know, the one that does not keep your drink hot for too long time due to bad insulation and leaking temperature. Fill it with hot water, stick between your legs, close to where the big artheries are and it works great. I slept like that with a not so good sleeping bag, under an a frame tarp when it was -5 degrees celsius. Not great, not terrible. Still woke up due to strong wind making the tarp flap, but i was warm. in the morning i woke up and just drink the same warm water, not tea, not coffe, but just the warm water and it was enough to get the day going. you know the dilemma of not wanting to come out from your warm sleeping bag.

You're the first of these tea candle heater RU-vidrs to share the safety info, that I've seen. Thanks!

This would no doubt be an excellent survival method in surviving being stuck in a blizzard with your tent! Your easy setup could be stored easily, and very compact! Thanks for sharing!

Simple, straightforward, and safe. That's gonna save some lives.

Hi! I’m in California USA. I used to live in the Tennessee mountains. So I tried this by using, larger candles with wooden wicks. It did very well

You are a true inspiration, you are persistant and try new methods and in a quite scientific way. Love it!

Just a couple of observations on an outstandingly informative video. 1st, make sure your stones are sourced from dry areas, rocks containing moisture can explode when heated! 2nd, in freezing or very cold climates, keep your tea lights or candles in an outside pocket of your rucksack, they will burn much longer when cold. I freeze mine and keep them in my cool bag with my perishable foods when on extended hikes.😊

I really like that idea, the use of the cooking pot and pebbles to retain some heat rather then let it rise and disappear out through the vent

Excellent. If the candle has a thicker wick, the power increases quickly.

Great idea. Could do the same think with pre heated stones/ rocks/ unused coals. 🎉

Because I’m a quadriplegic I can’t just grab a tent and hit the bush anymore. But I do still get to enjoy these things thanks to Videos like these. So Thank you 🙏

Hello from Texas. This was so cool to watch. That forest looks like a beautiful place to do an overnight hike.

I have never committed on any of your videos but now I want to thank you. I am an African American, of noble blood meaning German, Irish and Scottish decent. Lol 😂 I have been trying to illustrate the effect of improvised heating systems. In a Just-in-case circumstance. Showing different, but effective stoves to make such heaters. I got groupies some of which I can care the less for but this is for my daughter and son. And other Facebook families I share with. Now is the time to let them know about you and others from foreign countries in a proper setting. They did not know I had all this skill learned from childhood and various military training. It’s making them sick to try and understand where my mind is and how I got to do all this stuff. But now they know about you as well. Keep up the good work brother. They seem to forget that it’s the Swiss that taught us all the techniques in such situations. Lmmbo SEMPER FI

Very creative I appreciate that you shared knowledge with me

Super :-) It would be also possible, to heat up some stones in a fire and put them into a pot / pan. But in Your way I can imagine, the heat stays longer. Nice idea.

Hi wouldn't be easier to use a couple of handwarmers inside your sleeping bag. It will be much safer. Or, better still boil some water inside your canteen, and use it as a hot water bag.

this is really smart, thanks for sharing this I wonder about if the large pot was filled with pebbles instead of the pan so you had more thermal mass how that would go also it would be fun to experiment with smaller pebbles vs larger ones I am thinking smaller ones have more surface area so might heat up quicker and might be able to pack more of them in great video!

Hey taro, love watching your videos. You might want to re-do your experiment with only the 8 tea candles - no "heater" construction - to see what the difference is. Personally I think you might find the result is virtually the same or slightly better without going thru the "heater" construction. Those heaters capture/concentrate/localize the heat within the device which makes it radiate concentrated warmth close to the device. Whatever heat is still captured in the device has not been yet released to warm the ambient air. (10C difference is about 18F difference)

Grüezi in die Schweiz tolle Idee. Mit 8 Stunden Gastroteelichtern hält das auch über Nacht👍

Thank you for emphasising the dangers of paraffin wax candles. I have not used them as heating but those I know have done so have had bad experiences and lucky for them they had fire extinguishers. Their experience has put me off trying it altogether. I know of a guy who powered an engine with paraffin wax vapour 😮

The version using clay flower pots became popular in the UK during last year's fuel crisis; unfortunately, several fires occurred: in general, most people have lost fire safety sense, and many didn't figure on how, hot, or how liquid (and inflammable) tea lights get... They can spontaneously combust!

2-3 degrees already make a difference in winter. Imagine 10 degrees! That's great!

Aside from warming up the inside of the tent a few degrees, the other main benefit of a candle burning is it keeps the tent drier than the outside so it's easier to feel that small difference in temp

Nice! As long as it's far enough from sleeping bags and other flammable materials, a neat way to improvise a tent heater. I am fortunate that I have a tent with a flu- jack and a titanium wood burning stove. But, it's not that practical if you are hiking any distance or high terrain, because of the bulk and extra weight. I don't hike these days, (terrible knees😢) but if working from a car/ truck, it's a wonderful and comfortable way to still camp in winter! Thanks for the great video. Very clear instructions. 😊

brilliant solution, congratulations. When I was young, I carried a can of oil that I heat in more or less the same way, the oil absorbs quickly and releases slowly! Then I put him in the sleeping bag

Wow I wouldn't have imagined such candle would give that result. Awesome thanks 😎

That sounds like a great tent heating method without carrying much more weight of a propane heater and fuel canister. Thanks for sharing sir

For me here in TX. where we don't use C. but F. 55 seems to me as warmer than 10 C. But 55 inside is something I can live with. I did enjoy your video, and the safety tip was great. I know I make a little joke about the C and F but I totally understand. When in the Army stationed in S Korea, we had 2 man pup tent. We would use a candle about 2-2.5 inches in dia. about that high as well. When we got up in the morning, I would reach out from inside my sleeping bag and light it and by the time we were both up and dressed it was pretty toasty in there. Sure made it colder outside, but our clothes were warm and boots because they were in our sleeping bag. It's always better to stay warm sleeping in just your underwear and let the body heat out into the sleeping bag. and when you got up and out the heat would transfer to the inside of the tent. Sorry I like to talk!!😉😁😁

Great idea Taro! I must try this. Nothing like crawl into a warmer tent when its cold outside. This makes a pretty good difference in comfort. Thanks for sharing your ideas!

I also saved this video. I'm sure it will come in handy one day.🥰👍

I LOVE this DIY. Thanks! If we can do emergency heat with a candle under a poncho, we can do this. I would try a shallow pan of water under the rocks. Yes, the air would be humidified, but heat capacity of water greatly helps retention of heat, as demonstrated by winter room humidifiers. Humidity is more of a problem in summer where it lays on you. But dry winter air is actually helped by moisture, demonstrated by that critical heat threshold inside a tent when your breath actually helps hold heat under a flimsy mesh roof, and suddenly even your nose is warm again.

You sounds like Schwarzenegger. We all want you to say: "I'LL BE BACK!". Great video btw👍

I honestly did not believe it was going to work!!

V good 👍 I've heated my flat with the tea candles and flower pots.

Very interesting concept. Thumbs up.

Super Video und sehr geiles Titelbild wie ich finde!

Thank you, Taro! Stay warm, friend!

Great video. I have been looking for an alternative to expensive tent stoves and i believe i have found it. Thank You soooooooo much for this.

Super Idee!! Danke fürs zeigen. Muss ich unbedingt mal ausprobieren. Beste Grüße!

Lava rock for a gas grill would be ideal for holding the heat and would work fairly well and not a lot of weight in the pack. I get the pebbles on the trail .

Cool system! Hot rocks are awesome too if you wanted to start a fire outside then bring them into the tent. There's a episode on Greg ovens rocky mountain bushcraft where he's sleeping in his truck and just by putting hot rocks on the floor the ice was melting off the windshield. Also boiling water in a stainless steel bottle and putting it in your sleeping bag works

I prefer simple solutions. Well done.

I love their accent and their friendlyness . Still human

Great advice. An increase of 10 degrees is very useful also there is no fumes coming out from those candle witch makes it a great improvised tent heater.😮 Thanks

In the military we used this type system using the large cans we could get from mess but we would bury a canteen in sand where you used stone. Warm water is a luxury in cold weather.

Thank you. Very useful information, and I enjoyed your video. Be safe, and I will be watching for more.

Thank you for the American temperature captions.

Thanks for this video, I live on the road and have just been looking for a heater for my waggon...found this by chance! Great idea!!!

An ingenious way to create improvised heat in an emergency.

You could bring a metal bucket or more, source materials like rocks, pebbles, sand, or even soil near the campsite, heat it on a campfire or stove, and place the hot bucket(s) in your tent. If your tent has a fabric floor, put the hot buckets on something heat resistant. Just leave the bucket contents behind when you leave the campsite.

Good idea. Thank you.

I love this idea! Thank you!!

i have yet to do any winter camping with it, but built a strong heater from a round wick german kerosene burner, that was once used for the tail lights of a steam train. they are very bright, burn with no smell, and put out a ton (about 2-5kW) of heat. when using liquid fuel, these patent burners might be the perfect solution. you just RELLY wanna use some kind of exhaust

I like the pebbles idea.... but i feel like setting up a double boiler to avoid deforming your cookware and just running the stove like normal to heat the pebbles would heat them up faster and then transfer them to the sock. Plus the double boiler would give you a known temperature of 212⁰f

I really like your channel Taro. You're always nice and never try to be a hot-shot. "the cooking grill, I stole from my wife" LOL This being said: SPACING You're right, it needs space to allow the influx of oxygen. But I still believe there's too much space between the candles and the pot. I'm saying this based on similar experiments I did (not the exact same as your tho!). I think people needs to experiment to see what's best. It also depends on the ambient air temperature and the type of shelter you have. The best is with less candles, but bigger ones. CANDLES Those tiny candles doesn't last much and doesn't produce much heat (32 watts maximum). There are bigger candles, a bit larger in diameter, and about 10-15cm high. ROCKS Bigger rocks will take longer to absorb heat, but they will also retain and dissipate heat for a longer time. HEAT You are 100% right in saying your body is also producing heat. Well done! Not many knows about that. A human body is producing an average of 100watts. Keep coming with your videos, they are great!

I put tealights under my cot. A light sheet laid down on it first traps the warm air. Good for almost 5 hours. A cot that's a bit higher off the ground is best. I have a few scorch marks on my cot. Beeswax tealights are better than wax.

Very clever, Taro. Love it. Keep smiling, my friend.

You can also use a can of crisco with a standard candle vs tea lights and it will burn all night

🍁 Thank you.

Very interesting. I’ll have to experiment . We keep chafing fuel for emergencies. Curious if they would increase the temperature. Some that are 2 hour and some that are 7 hour burners . Thanks for sharing this . Have a great evening

Thank you so much for this great video Taro. Who would've thought lol. Thanks for sharing.👍

Candle heaters are great, but are invariably demanding. They go out on a common basis, the wax stays liquid next to the other ones still lit. A cookie sheet or other tray under it will mitigate this spillage if your impatient. If your ok with a less effective unit you create, let it exhaust itself of fuel and cool off. I built and used a six tea light terra cotta pot design and it worked very effectively heating and entire small living room very cheaply.

Wow !😊

Very cool idea to heat a small tent. I’ll have to give that a shot some day on a cold outdoor weekend.

Brilliant! Thank you!

Looking forward for more of your instructive and positive videos. As always such a good vibe 👍

i love your channel. i'm glad your making videos again. i miss them.

You could also fill the rocket stove underneath witj dry sand. Not that heavy compressed, and it will retain and radiate the heat longer than the stones.

Here is an idea: puncture a can full of holes, then place it above the lit mouth of a can of Sterno. Heats a small splace well!

just put the pan of rocks on the fire then move in to your tent when hot will be a much bigger heat output

Very interesting! Makes good sense.

brillant realy thanks a lot

No open flames in tent. Build a wall behind the tent to reflect heat and build a fire using large solid logs of wood and not little cute split wood and dry branchs.

Something else I'd add to that would be a rolled up bit of chicken wire that could be fashioned into a fireguard

Great idea. Would it work in a tarp shelter? I mean, do you think this system would have a big enough effect in varous tarp setups, to be worth the effort, or does it depend on being in a totally enclosed space?

cold as a witches teet out there...

Excellent. Ingenious

Thank you.

Extra 4C - 6C won't help me, I'll still be a popsicle 😂

Very interesting and useful idea thank you.

Super Lager

TARO, this was a great tip and looks like it works very well, Ty for sharing..

Great post, thank you for sharing.

Hello Taro Movies, I am very happy to see you back on YT! I hope that all is well. This was a very useful instruction. Thank you for presenting it! Stay safe.

As usual, another great video, thank you.

Well I sure hope after you came off the mountain you stopped by the store and got a nice bundle of flowers or since you swiped something out of your wife's kitchen you may be looking at the jewelry store to get out of this one. But I did enjoy it and I think the information you gave is great.

very interesting test and im glad about your saftey instructions! But even with them, i would be to much concernd about the danger of fire from the amount of candles. When i'm using candles in such an enviroment, i choose those grave-candles. Not for the heat radiation, just for the light. last thought about your test: maybe it have been even more effectiv without the pot, just the stones at the friyng-pan abouve the candles, so that an increased amount of heat can effect the stones?

Thanks nice and useful experiment

A very neat heater! You explained that well.....thank you!

I think you should make a vent hole on te top of the tent where carbon monoxide can escape.

sweet strictarn tent!

Thanks Taro, that's a great idea.

Very good setup! David Tice has a documentary coming out soon titled "Grid Down Power up" so your heater could be used in the basement of my home if I close off a small area. Instead of rocks I have some heavy scrap metal to use. Thank you for the tip!