If you’re spending your summer in the great outdoors, you have to know this hack.
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There is never an excuse to throw away your coffee grounds—especially if you’re in the mood for a DIY. You can use them as cleaning agents, cook with them, or even compost them for a greener garden. And according to a new viral TikTok video, you can even turn them into a fire starter.
“Don’t throw away your used coffee grounds,” @woodsboundoutdoors says in a TikTok video that now has 2.5 million views and over 143,000 likes. In the caption he wrote: “Making a coffee flame puck. Great for camp cooking 🔥☕️🏒”
@woodsboundoutdoors Making a coffee flame puck. Great for camp cooking 🔥☕️🏒#foryou #foryoupage #camping #outdoors #outdoorcooking #hiking #lifehack #diy
To make his clever DIY fire starter (which really does resemble a hockey puck), the creator starts by drying out his coffee grounds. He doesn’t show how he does this, but you have a few options: Spread the grounds in an even layer on a tray or baking sheet and dehydrate them by letting them sit under the sun or put them in your oven on a low heat setting.
Once you have your dried-out grounds, put a candle in a pot and create a double boiler to melt it down without getting it too hot. “You just want to keep it on the stove until it’s all liquid,” @woodsboundoutdoors explains.
Related: Aldi’s Genius Hammock Chair Is Just $50—Plus More Affordable Camping Essentials This Summer
After melting the candle over the stove, remove the wick and mix in the coffee grounds until a paste forms. Once you have your paste mixture, pour it into a mold. The creator uses an empty roll of tape in his video, but you can use whatever you have around (like an ice mold or bowl).
Then, let it sit for a while until it cools down—a couple of hours until it’s solid again.
Once you have your coffee-wax puck, wrap it up in a sheet of wax paper, twist up the top, and you’ll be ready for the next time you need to start a fire.
Related: The 7 Best Smokeless Fire Pits of 2024, According to Our Testing
“Keep this in your pack for an emergency or if you just need an easier way to get a fire going in bad weather conditions,” @woodsboundoutdoors says. “This thing should burn with a big flame for about 45 minutes to an hour, depending on how much wax you use. It’s even wind-resistant.”
Plus, because it smells like brewing coffee, it’s rumored to help keep the bugs at bay. Happy camping season!
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