These days with heating costs continuously on the rise we’re setting our thermostats lower in order to cut heating costs. Oh sure wearing an extra sweater is good but when you need a little extra warmth an you’re in a relatively small room then this actually works!
What you’ll need:
- Tea light candles with beeswax (Amazon) – better for you and the environment
- Two clay pots (Amazon), one smaller than the other so the larger one fits over
- Loaf pan (glass or metal). This 1.5qt loaf dish (Amazon) will work perfectly.
(Important – the small clay pot must not have a hole, if it does stuff it tightly with aluminum foil. The larger pot must have a hole.)
Instructions:
In the loaf pan place four tea light candles and light them. Position the smaller clay pot over the pan and then place the larger clay pot over the smaller one. The gap between the two pots enables a flow of air that then passes warm air around the room.
CAUTION
For safety, please proceed with caution.
- As with any candles, never leave unattended. Always blow out the candles if you’re leaving the room longer than a bathroom break.
- If the tea lights you use are not beeswax then remember that paraffin is toxic! I highly recommend these candles (Amazon).
- The clay pots and loaf pan will become VERY hot! DO NOT TOUCH THEM without oven mitts otherwise you can burn yourself.
It’s that simple! This even works if you’re in a larger room and you’re in one position – like watching television or surfing the net! It won’t heat an entire large room but it adds warmth to where you are!
Let me know in the comments whether you tried this DIY emergency room heater or if you have any questions.
Karen, I have often questioned the efficiency of this device… just how effective is it? :) Wouldn’t mind making a couple myself!
Hey Patrick,
My office is in my basement and even though the upstairs of my home is comfortable it gets mighty chilly where my desk is. I have two of these and they have helped keep the chill off which is great. (I do two because the area I’m in is relatively large.) The only drag thing is that I have 2 cats so every time I have to leave my desk for anything I have to blow the candles out! :)
Have you considered placing the heaters inside small metal animal crates with doors that latch securely? Of course, some cats are incredibly adept at getting themselves into trouble, so this may not work for you. Just a thought
In anticipation of an ice storm that thankfully didn’t materialize as expected, I gathered 8 pots, 4 smaller and 4 larger. Just to see how this would work for me, I set up two “heaters” in my living room (12.5’× 16′). I used a simple bed sheet for a curtain to the hall, to hold heat in the one room. It’s 33º outside, and I’m comfortable in a long sleeve tee, and light lap blanket, same as if the electric heat system was on.
I’m here to say I’m a believer! Thanks, God Bless, and Merry Christmas.
This definitely has promise! How long would it take to heat a small room this way?
Karen made this and posted about it so I (Erica) can’t tell you for sure, but she told me, and so have others, that it’s less of an alternative heat source and more of an emergency heat source for when you have nothing else. It’s not going to make the room good and toasty, but it will for sure keep the room warmer. I’m told around 65 degrees in a couple hours. :)
My hubby is on his way to Menards right now to get some stuff to try this…
That’s so cool! We pinned and shared with our FB readers.
Hello Karen
What would happen if I used a metal pan instead of a glass one? Also Does there have to be a gap on the outside sides of the larger pot between the clay and glass? Won’t the heat just come out the top hole of the large clay pot like a chimney ?
I like the idea, but don’t know about using my glass baking dishes for this idea.
Thanks for sharing and look forward to your comments.
Hi Kim,
You can use a metal one as well and it will still work! I used glass because it’s all I had!
Yes – there needs to be a gap so that it helps to convection of warmth.
Enjoy!!!
Karen
It doesn’t work. We have no power outlets in our bathroom and its freezing! I’ve been trying this for two weeks. I wish it made a big difference. Or even a small difference. We ended up buying extension cords and space heaters.
ok, this is the 2nd time I had to post this so if it comes up twice you’ll know why. Sweetheart, please don’t give up. Check out this other site if you haven’t already begun searching. My husband & I have been without ‘real’ heat for 4 years here in New England. It does get mighty cold. We’ve had to use electric heaters & our electric bill jumped to $4,000. We couldn’t afford the gas as it was, so this really didin’t help us. But, keep searching for something that will work. CHeck the utube video that’s available & check this site here : https://www.lifeadvancer.com/a-diy-room-heating-on-the-cheap
I hope it helps you. Again, babe, hang in there.I’ve gone 4 years now. No it isn’t pleasant & isn’t what I ever invisioned for us, but it’s where we are right now & I’m trying to cope with it as best as possible. So you can do this. It won’t be happy usually, but you can do this. I love you, God bless.
~ Ginger
Hi! Great idea! I always live in drafty cheap apartments, so this will be great. One question: Does this need to sit on top of a trivet or something? Or will it be safe to sit directly on top of a wooden coffee table?
Do not put it on wood, no!!!!!
Do not use this in any situation except an emergency such as – a multiple day power outage after a blizzard. And for heaven’s sake, put it on metal or porcelain (such as a sink or bathtub) or stone or a brick (fireplace hearth) surface.
-Girl Scout Leader
Would this work with one of those soda can stoves instead of candles? Are paraffin wax candles more toxic than using one of these?
https://www.thesodacanstove.com/alcohol-stove/how-to-build.html
That might work. Try it and let us know how it goes. :)
Paraffin can be toxic, which is why we like beeswax.
Does the tea candles need some air to keep them burning. Maybe tilt the smaller one a little to get air?
They get plenty of air because the pot sits on the edge of the baking dish and lets air in around the edges.
Not sure if noted but it is real important to put a coin or piece of foil on the smallest pots hole to seal it ..not the large one.
Why does the hole in the smaller pot need to be plugged?
To keep the heat from escaping too quickly. :)
What size pots did you use for the loaf pan? How much air space do you need between the two pots?
Updated response:
I hate to say this, but this heater would only make for a little hand warmer. If you think about it, every source of fuel only has a certain potential. There is no free lunch in physics. Below I will compare different fuels and the amount of btu’s produced. ( a BTU is the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature 1 degree C. ).
#2 fuel oil – 134,000 btu’s /gallon
Kerosene – 134,000 btu’s /gallon
Propane – 91,600 btu’s /gallon
Natural gas – 1,000,000 btu’s /thousand cu.ft
Hard Wood – 24,000,000/cord
Parafin wax – 18,621 btus / per pound
I don’t know how many tea lights would equal 1 lb of wax and I also don’t know the weight of the metal for each tea light. But looking at the figures above. You would have to burn 4.919 lbs of paraffin wax to equal the btu’s of 1 gal. of propane ( 91600 / 18621 = 4.919).
I know you guy’s are wanting to argue that the tea lights conduct and hold heat in the clay pots to radiate into this cold room making the btu figures much higher for wax than with other forms of heating. But my radiators hold heat for quite awhile dissipating heat after the furnace as shut off. So the argument is non sense.
As of 10/26/16
10 lbs paraffin wax cost $26 on Amazon.
There is 5 gal of propane in a standard 20 lb. propane tank for under $20 refill.
So to get comparable btu’s from a propane tank, I would need to burn 25 lbs of paraffin wax at a cost of $65.
Someone is going to want to argue that soy candles or some other wax base material has higher btu output than paraffin wax. I don’t know and will not argue the point but it can’t possibly differ by much.
If you want to have an emergency heat source I would certainly think hard about the choice you make. I’ll stick with kerosene and propane. Both fuel sources will last unused until need for a long time. And I could store quite a bit for an emergency.
Now, to benefit the most from a heating emergency you should be insulating a room the best you can to take advantage of any emergency heat source you plan on using. I certainly don’t plan on heating the whole house in an emergency. But I have installed a Dyna Glo 20,000 btu natural gas ventless heater in the back of the house to warm and keep the pipes from freezing in the winter. It has 3 heat settings of 12k, 16k and 20k capable of heating up to 700 sq. ft. It will work without electricity to create heat. It will continue to work as long as the gas lines are running. In a grid down situation the gas company here powers the station with their own generators to keep pressure up in the lines. And in a worse case scenario I’ll then switch over to kerosene or propane.
And Yes, I have multiple CO2 detectors in the house.
Another option:
I’ve been thinking about this flower pot nonsense for awhile. And I know that people in general are looking for cheap way’s to have heat in an emergency in winter during a power outage. So I put a different idea to the test. I’ve owned several cheap oil lanterns from Walmart and have never been content with them. I previously used kerosene in the lanterns and they do stink.
I read about cold and hot blast lanterns here https://www.lanternnet.com/faqs.htm and decided to purchase two Dietz #8 cold blast lanterns. Because these lanterns have 7/8″ wicks You can’t use paraffin oil in them because it will gum up the capillary action of the wick and eventually ruin the wick. Since my wife doesn’t personally like the smell of kerosene, I decided to try a kerosene substitute called “Klean Heat” in the Dietz Lanterns. Klean Heat can be purchased at a big box hardware store for around $11/gal. This makes it 3 times as much as regular kerosene, but we’re talking about emergency heating. The lanterns put out approximately 1400 btu’s per hour each and a gallon will run these two lanterns 24/7 for 2 day’s.
I initially filled the lanterns with fuel and let them sit for 30 minutes to let the wick saturate with fuel before lighting. I then lit the lanterns on a back porch and let them warm up for about five minutes with a low flame. Over the next few minutes I slowly increased the height of the wick till they started to smoke and then backed it back down to eliminate the smoking.
I brought them back into the house and placed one in the bathroom and one in a bedroom.
Here are my observations.
1. The lanterns had that kerosene smell when I first lit the lanterns and also when I blow them out. So do this on a porch or out side.
2. My wife and daughter thought they worked well because they did not smell anything in the bathroom and bedroom even after 2 hrs burning.
3. After two hours both rooms were considerable warmer ( 81 degrees in the bathroom and 76 degrees in the bedroom ) than the rest of the house. I keep the temp on the thermostat at 66 degrees to save money.
4. The lanterns aren’t as bright as some people claim they are. I’m going to guess that they are about a 25 watt bulb. Certainly wouldn’t want to read a book with this type of lighting.
So, what did I learn.
That in an emergency these lanterns could provide some heat and vital lighting if needed. If I had to choose between tea lights and lanterns I would go with lanterns. Even thou Klean Heat is 3 times more expensive than regular K-1, not dealing with the smell and wife getting a headache is worth the cost in an emergency. As expensive as Klean Heat is, You would have to burn over 7 lbs of paraffin wax tea lights to equal the heating capacity of one gal of Klean Heat ( 134,000 / 18621 = 7.19 ). For the cost of 10 lbs of paraffin wax you could purchase 2 gal of Klean Heat and still have change.
According to Wikipedia, a single tealight has an energy output of about 100 BTU/ hr. To equal the heat output of both of these lanterns you would have to burn 24 tea lights at a time every 4 hrs. In a matter of 16 continuous hrs. you would use up 96 tea lights ( the price of one gal of Klean Heat ). And the gal. of Klean Heat will keep these lanterns going for 48 hrs. Before you spend the money to make 4 or 5 of these silly tea light flower pot heaters, spend that money and just purchase two lanterns for heaven sake’s. Haven’t tested the lanterns in a grid down situation during 20 degree weather, but I’m positive you’ll be more comfortable with the two lanterns in an insulated room. If you live in a small home you can certainly find space for a couple of gallons if that’s all you can afford for an emergency. And if you live in an apartment two lanterns and a gal will certainly help to keep you more comfortable folks. And again, use a carbon monoxide detector when burning any type of fuel in your living space..
Mistake above, you would need to burn 28 tea lights at a time to equal both 1400 btu’s for the lanterns. Which now translates to 112 tea lights burned in 16hrs. Me thinks I’ll buy two more lanterns post X-mas if they’re on sale. Peace be with you all, and me.