(VIDEO) Survival Hack: How to Start a Fire With Sugar and Without Matches

starting a fire with sugar

If your matches are wet, your lighter is out of fuel, it's a cloudy day, making your magnifying glass useless, and you don't have hours to waste trying to get a friction fire going.

Sounds like a pretty rough weekend in the woods. Luckily, if you've ever spent some time in a high school chemistry class, you can whip up a pretty handy little fire with just some regular household sugar and some potassium permanganate.

This is an easy trick that utilizes the chemical nature of the two ingredients to erupt a nice little flame that's more than hot enough to ignite any tinder you manage to get your hands on.

Check out just how easy this method is with the video on the next page.

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333 Comments

  1. Matthew Travis Marshall said:

    Out of all the hacks I’ve see “the crazy Russian hacker” do. This was by far the most helpful and coolest.

  2. Mackenzie Haines said:

    If your lighter somehow broke, and your matches somehow got wet, don’t worry all you need is potassium permanganate and sugar…..oh you don’t have those….

  3. Jake Gardner said:

    Yeah what the.. Potassium pomegranate? This is the most useless site to follow. I learned more useful$#%&!@*than this in 6th grade science class. Try posting things that 99% of people will be able to accomplish not 1%. It’s cool but it sure as hell isn’t useful in a “shtf” situation. $#%&!@*hitting the fan means you are standing in front of a fan and$#%&!@*is being thrown into it….change the group to “when you are prepping in your bugout bunker, make sure to gather a bunch of$#%&!@*you probably won’t need” in case you$#%&!@*up.

  4. Michael Lee Mosby said:

    I’d much more likely find a bic lighter in my pocket than a pack of sugar and potassium pomegranate?

  5. Randy Lacey said:

    Yes, with greens and filters. If you mix it with antifreeze it will spontaneously combust

  6. Larry Norfolk Jr said:

    You know we used to stock that not sure if we still do if so I’m gonna have to get some!

  7. Randy Lacey said:

    Potassium permaganate! It is a very useful product. Research it

  8. Jack Smith said:

    And that’s a controlled substance…. Obtainable but have fun explain ing it.

  9. Bonnie Sinclair said:

    Really I think just carrying matches and an extra lighter in a ziplock bag would be easier that lugging that around.

  10. James said:

    also dip your strike matches in wax before you go

    • James said:

      also dip your strike matches in hot wax and let dry then your matches wont get wet

  11. Robert Ross said:

    Let me get this straight, your going to carry around sugar and salt peter rather then a bic in a bag?

  12. Robert Ross said:

    There seems to be a wide spread confusion between survival skills and cool back yard science tricks

  13. Mario Candino said:

    You guys don’t all carry a bottle of potassium mogandanamunits(or whatever he said) in ur backpack. ..lol

  14. Michael Ernest said:

    Glycerine works well too. Old fashion chemical fuse! For those who do not know what potassium permanganate is, purple crystals and one use is to soak your feet to kill germs. Turns your feet brown temporarily from manganese dioxide deposition. My daughter used when she had a bad case of athlete’s foot.

  15. John Williams said:

    Yes, I always carry a bottle of potassium permanganate with me where ever I go. And sugar. Oh wait, I’d have to crumble up one of my Ho Ho’s. No way. Bring on the cold.

  16. Stan Breidigan said:

    Yea, a person always has potassium permanganate laying around or takes it camping! Lol !!!!!

  17. Richard Westlund said:

    Potassium permanganate is also readily available at hardware and home improvement stores. It is not some difficult or expensive product to buy. Also, rather than crystal sugar, try glycerin, (available in the bakery supply isle). Mix those two and you will have a spontaneous fire.

  18. Richard Westlund said:

    Potassium permanganate is also readily available at hardware and home improvement stores. It is not some difficult or expensive product to buy. Also, rather than crystal sugar, try glycerin, (available in the bakery supply isle). Mix those two and you will have a spontaneous fire.

  19. Tony Meyers said:

    Note to self: …….. Instead of always carrying matches or a lighter…………..always carry sugar?

  20. Jeremy Beyer said:

    It seems to me it took a rather large amount to start a fire that burned out pretty quickly. I don’t think it stayed lit long enough to get a campfire going, considering the fact that we are assuming things are wet.
    Fun little chemistry lesson, but impractical for real use.

  21. Jeremy Beyer said:

    I googled it and found literally dozens of places to buy it pretty easily.

  22. Michael Metzger said:

    Funny, reading mcmanners “wilderness training manual” right now, he suggests it for water treatment and to treat fungal infections.

  23. Jack Smith said:

    Ok … Cool ..but it also came up as a nsa watch list as a class 3 material ( what ever that means) … Or am I miss reading this

    Or is this along the lines of 1 lbs of fertilizer is cool .. but if you have 50lbs .. you better be a farmer…

    As I’m trying to pay attention to the laws as they come up … It seems more confusing and ambiguous as to what’s ok and what’s not … Or maybe that’s the point , to make everyone an offender if you do anything but work, pay taxes and watch Tv

    I remember when you could buy salt Peter and sulfur over the counter at the drug store… A lot has changed

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