Candle's in tent's

santaman2000

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Jan 15, 2011
16,909
1,120
68
Florida
Did you manage to take any data Graham, or was it the fact that the tent felt warmer?.....

Isn't that enough?

To answer the OPs question. I can find no recorded death online due to CO from candles, either multiple or single. This does not mean it is safe......

Yeah, my only real fear would be fire itself.

I've been out in that desert, just north of Tombstone....the wranglers wouldn't even let me smoke a cigarette! Too be fair it was very very dry :)

LOL. Exactly!

Agreed, the flame of a tealight candle will flicker and die before you do.

Sure there are better alternatives to a candle for more heat in a tent (better sleeping bag, zippo hand warmers, Jennifer Connelly...) but candles will work.. In fact candles are excellent to use in primitive debris shelters (because candles are common place in 'survival tins' and debris huts are well ventilated)....

I'd think twice about the debris shelter though; again mainly because I'd be afraid of the fire danger, not CO poisoning.

Don't rely on piezo ignition for stoves or lanterns, they are very prone to failure, pack a couple or three Bic lighters to be on the safe side.

Never had one fail yet, but yeah, I do carry matches and/or lighters.
 

Paul Webster

Full Member
Jan 29, 2011
316
1
Stroud
If there's all this fuss over a tealight the safety sallies heads will melt over this.

After using a frontier wood stove in our bell tent for a few years I started to look for an alternative. The stove was great, but only being 2.5kw it really needed constant tending. I bought an old 70's paraffin heater as a replacement which is great. 5 litres burns for 18 plus hours, gives off loads of heat and the top comes off to reveal a burner ring for cooking. It doesn't give off any smell at all and turned to a low setting will last up to 3 nights. I was curious about co emissions also but I have a co alarm and always have a fire extinguisher in the tent.
This is in a 5m bell tent that's well ventilated.
e18ddf99d033be404b4823cd2f9ebe1d.jpg
f8128fedbac9b42a209da927be34ec7d.jpg
 

Paul Webster

Full Member
Jan 29, 2011
316
1
Stroud
No flue or hotplate, just the top that unscrews and comes off to reveal a pot stand. We mainly use that for boiling a kettle in the morning for our first cuppa.
 

big_swede

Native
Sep 22, 2006
1,452
8
42
W Yorkshire
I've used a multifuel stove inside a tunnel mountain tent on several occasions. If you are careful it's not a problem. Would I sleep with a lite tea light in a tent? No.
 

ozzy1977

Full Member
Jan 10, 2006
8,558
3
47
Henley
If there's all this fuss over a tealight the safety sallies heads will melt over this.

After using a frontier wood stove in our bell tent for a few years I started to look for an alternative. The stove was great, but only being 2.5kw it really needed constant tending. I bought an old 70's paraffin heater as a replacement which is great. 5 litres burns for 18 plus hours, gives off loads of heat and the top comes off to reveal a burner ring for cooking. It doesn't give off any smell at all and turned to a low setting will last up to 3 nights. I was curious about co emissions also but I have a co alarm and always have a fire extinguisher in the tent.
This is in a 5m bell tent that's well ventilated.
e18ddf99d033be404b4823cd2f9ebe1d.jpg
f8128fedbac9b42a209da927be34ec7d.jpg

I remember one of those heating my grandparents bath room, still got it in a shed somewhere too. Our old neighbour used one for heating his living room and a smaller one to cook on until he moved out last year with no ill effect
 
Jul 30, 2012
3,570
225
westmidlands
One thing that's occurred to me is that any combustable fuel and heated water produces a lot of condensation. In a little backpacking tent this is bad and ventilation is the only way, so much for heat and tent insulation, you just have to ventilate. You need a bigger tent preferably canvas to heat it. An idea with the wood burning stoves is to draw air from out side for the firebox.
 

MongooseDownUnder

Tenderfoot
Jul 15, 2013
98
1
Perth, Western Australia
One thing that's occurred to me is that any combustable fuel and heated water produces a lot of condensation. In a little backpacking tent this is bad and ventilation is the only way, so much for heat and tent insulation, you just have to ventilate. You need a bigger tent preferably canvas to heat it. An idea with the wood burning stoves is to draw air from out side for the firebox.

Wouldn't this also aid combustion due to the density of the cold outside air.

Sent from my GT-N7105T using Tapatalk
 

BCUK Shop

We have a a number of knives, T-Shirts and other items for sale.

SHOP HERE