As Bonfire Night festivities commence, some individuals are realising that their sparkler-lighting technique might have been incorrect for years. Commonly, people ignite their sparklers at the top, which causes the flame to burn down towards their fingers.
However, social media posts have sparked a debate on whether this method is flawed. A TikTok video by @archie.five put the traditional method to the test by comparing two ways of lighting sparklers—one from the bottom and one from the top. In the clip, a man and a woman each light a sparkler simultaneously to determine the superior approach.
The woman lights her sparkler from the top, while the man ignites his from the bottom. Although both sparklers burned in roughly the same amount of time, the top-lit sparkler was more difficult to light and the flame moved down towards the holder’s fingers.
Conversely, the bottom-lit sparkler ignited swiftly, with the heat ascending away from the holder’s fingers. “Yours was so much cooler – it was going away from your fingers, and it was faster,” the woman commented to the man in the video, reports the Mirror.
Despite this, some viewers disagreed in the comments, with suggestions ranging from lighting sparklers in the middle for an even burn to steadfastly lighting from the top only.
Fire and rescue services across the country are reminding the public of safety measures concerning sparklers, with the West Midlands Fire Service warning: “Sparklers are often thought of as being safe, but they generate heat levels comparable to a welding torch.”
They added these helpful sparkler safety guidelines:
- It is recommended that sparklers are not given to under-5s.
- Make sure everyone who handles sparklers wears gloves.
- Sparklers should be held at arm’s length while being lit and only light one at a time.
- Don’t wave sparklers around close to other people
- Never hold a baby in your arms while you’re holding a sparkler.
- When the sparkler has burned out, place it, hot end down, in a bucket of cold water or sand and leave it there for several hours – they stay hot for a long time!