Making a Traditional BuddyBurner
If you grew up in Girl Scouts, the chances are good that you made a Situpon or a BuddyBurner. The BuddyBurner is a fun and useful project to create with the kiddos. Not only does it make use of common items that would normally be tossed into the trash, it becomes a useful item for preparedness.
You will need:
- An empty tuna can (save the lid if possible)
- Corrugated cardboard cut into 1-inch wide strips across the corrugated grain
- Broken crayons, wax remnants from used candles, or paraffin wax
Open the tuna can with a safety opener that leaves no sharp edges. Regular can openers can leave sharp edges that you must be doubly careful of. No matter the method be careful of sharp edges.
Coil up the 1″ corrugated strips tightly. Continue adding strips until you have enough to tightly fill the tuna can. If you have extra space cut a few small strips and slide them in spaces until the can is completely filled with the coil.
Melt the wax or crayons and pour into the can. Allow the wax to fill the spaces in the corrugated cardboard. The cardboard becomes a wick and the wax become the fuel.
The saved lid can be used as a quick way to extinguish the flame and preserve unused fuel.
To use, place the burner on a fireproof surface, where it may remain when it becomes hot. This is an activity best done outdoors. Simply light the cardboard wick. The burner will become very hot.
A larger can with holes punched in it for airflow may be placed above it to heat water or food.
For a bit of a walk down memory lane, go to http://www.girlscoutsla.org/documents/6_Griddle_Skillet_Buddy_Burner_Recipes.pdf and enjoy some Girl Scout fun. Don’t forget to support your local Troop with a donation of money or purchase of cookies!