DIY An Emergency Lamp With The Help Of A Common Cooking Essential

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Power outages can happen suddenly and be a bit unpredictable. Some may resolve quickly, while those caused by heavy winter storms or hurricanes can last for days or weeks. Your hurricane preparedness kit should have a flashlight in it, but if you're worried about the batteries running out, a simple DIY emergency lamp filled with vegetable oil can help light your living room for minimal cost and effort. This can help you to save your powerful, pocket-sized flashlight for when you need to move around your home or go outside or (when the storm's long over) down to the basement to check for any damage.

Many people turn to candles to solve this problem, but an oil lamp actually has several advantages. Lamps are typically brighter than candles, and the larger oil reservoir means they last longer than many candles as well. However, both can be fire hazards if used incorrectly, so be sure to keep your lamp or candle on a flat surface away from flammable objects and never leave it unattended. While you can use an old-school kerosene lamp, there's another solution probably already sitting in your kitchen cabinets. Vegetable oil, olive oil, and canola oil can all be used as a substitute in a pinch. 

While it isn't as efficient as traditional lamp oil, it can help your house stay lit during an emergency. If you already have an oil lamp that's empty and unused, adding vegetable oil and a new wick is a great option. However, the average person usually doesn't have an unused oil lamp sitting around. That's where the DIY part comes in.

Start by gathering your supplies. You'll need vegetable oil or olive oil, a heat-safe container to hold it, and something to serve as a wick. Glass jars and tin cans made for canning or jarring preserves are a great option, as they are made to withstand heat. For your wick, you'll need some thick cotton string and wire, or to be even more prepared, order a box or two of Ner Mitzvah round floating wicks to have on hand. Or braid strips of cotton fabric together if you don't have string.

Curl one end of the wire into a tight spiral. Secure one end of the wick in the spiral, then insert the wick inside the spiral. This helps keep it upright, so that it doesn't slide to the side and submerge in the oil. Position the wire and wick in your container, then add your vegetable oil. Don't fill the jar completely! Alternatively, since oil and water don't mix, fill most of the container with water, then layer the oil over that (this only works if you have a floating wick, but is potentially safer). About 2 ounces of olive oil can burn for almost 5 hours, so it doesn't take much.

Leave enough of the wick above the oil to light it — an inch or two should be enough. Wait a bit to let the oil soak into your wick before lighting it. Finally your vegetable oil emergency lamp is ready to use! Be careful when holding it, as the container may get hot. If you have a bit more time to prepare, you might consider trying to make this DIY solar patio lantern out of a belt and a jar for additional light.