This one will be a short post driven mainly by a coincidental experience I just had with my outdoor torches. Hopefully it will help those of you who have asked me this question in the past. The question being, "why won't my tiki torches light?"
I thought I'd covered this topic fairly well in my post explaining some reasons why a tiki torch won't light in response to a comment I'd received. But then I had one of those wonderful 'learn from experience' moments that I'll share with you today. Because it isn't just the wick and fuel type matters I covered in that earlier post that might be preventing your garden torches from lighting. Instead, it could be the spoil of your oil!
After 12 days of near constant rain, I finally woke up to a brilliant orb glowing in the sky today. If I remember correctly, we used to call it the Sun. Thrilled at the prospect of an evening grilling and dining outside, I topped off my garden torches (they've been dormant all through the winter and early spring), let them soak a bit and then test lit them.
I should say I tried to test light the tiki torches because they simply wouldn't light.
I am using the same oil they burned before the winter so my problem certainly wasn't the result of using a different fuel with the same wick. Frankly, the uncooperative torches were a mystery. And then I had an idea. I poured a small amount of oil in a cap (don't try this at home, folks) and tried to light it. Nothing.
I then tried pouring a few drops on a metal surface (sometimes a liquid won't light but the evaporating gas will) and tried lighting it again. As before, nothing happened. Folks, I think I could bathe in this stuff and run through a fire without doing more than singeing my hair.
The jug of oil I'm working with was an inexpensive brand that spent the winter in a shed and it was carefully capped. The bottle has no discernible leaks but the problem is obvious. The oil has lost its volatility.
So add this to your list of reasons why your outdoor torches might not light. If you are using an old bottle of tiki torch fuel, it simply may have spoiled and it's time to buy a fresh supply. It's my recommendation you also pick up some spare wicks while you're at it.
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[...] I’ve posted an update to this issue in a new post covering another reason your torches might not light. You can read it at: My Outdoor Torches STILL Won’t Light! [...]
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