There will be moments in a stoner’s life when a fat joint is present, but a lighter is nowhere to be found. This tiny but highly essential tool is often lost—either misplaced by you or “mistakenly” placed in the wrong person’s pocket.

But believe it or not, you can ignite your bowl or joint without a lighter, or a match for that matter. This may sound like a practice from prehistoric times, but sometimes you need to make an unfortunate situation work for you.

Many of you out there are probably thinking: “How do you do this? Is it even possible?”. Indeed it is, and you have to read on to find out.

Make Your Own Fire

Yes, you read that right. When times are challenging and you’re holding a joint without a lighter, you have to channel your inner caveperson.

Easier said than done, though. For this one, you’ll need some old-school ingenuity and a lot of patience. You’ll also need to do this outdoors, where there are dried leaves and wood shavings to help catch a spark.

As for the actual ignition, one way to go about this is to use the firesteel method. In a nutshell, it involves creating friction and an eventual spark by rubbing two metal objects together.

Usually, it entails repeatedly stroking a knife onto a steel rod, as you’ll see in this video.

But if you don’t have these pieces of equipment, there's something even simpler. All you need is a regular AA battery and some aluminium foil. Place a small strip of foil connecting the opposite ends of the battery and you'll see a small flame starting to form that could help light up your awaiting joint. Just be careful!

Use a Magnifying Glass

Many of us likely did the magnifying glass experiment on a dried leaf or an ant. From that, we all saw the magic of creating fire using the one natural force that powers us—the sun.

Just like the first method, you’ll obviously need to do this outdoors. For this method, you’ll need a magnifying glass, a small glass jar, and your buds of choice.

To begin, place a fat nug into the jar. Next, hold up the magnifying glass at an angle where it catches the sun’s powerful rays. Aim it toward the glass, and make sure the rays shine through and hit the weed. Within a few minutes, you’ll notice your buds develop some smoke as a sign of ignition. From there, all that's left to do is take a monster hit, as if you were doing so from a wider-mouthed bong.

This is one of those times when a scorching sunny day would be a delight. But be sure not to expose yourself to the heat for too long—and wear sunblock!

Try a Toaster

A toaster works well as a trusty morning companion, especially for those who are always on the go.

But unbeknownst to many of you, a toaster can also double as a lighter when you don’t have one to hand. To do so, simply fire up your machine, wait until it heats up, and let your spliff touch its surface. In a matter of seconds, you’ll see glorious white smoke emerging.

Now, some of you are probably worrying about electrocution or hurting yourself in some way. You can take this off your mind, because this isn’t an issue with the toasters of today. Just make sure not to burn yourself by touching that extra-hot surface.

Grab a Car Lighter

This next suggestion needs no further context. For decades now, cars have been equipped with a built-in lighter for whatever purpose you may need it. In this case, it can come in handy when you need to light up a joint.

Now, of course, this option isn’t possible if you don’t own a car, or if you have a newer model. In the latter case, the lighter is often replaced with a USB port that requires purchasing a lighter separately. But if your vehicle does have a lighter, the only downside is walking all the way to the parking lot to have a smoke.

Try the Stove

As children, we were all taught not to treat the kitchen stove as a plaything. That piece of advice certainly applies to this method, so proceed with the utmost caution.

This method is a bit unconventional, to say the least. Apart from the stove itself, you’ll also need an uncooked spaghetti noodle, a toothpick, or even a knife.

To start, place your stove on high heat. If you’re using an induction burner, you may need to wait a few minutes for it to heat up. Next, grab your intended device and place one of its ends into the fire or heat zone. Once you see it catch a bit of fire or heat, you can use it as a mini torch to light up your spliff. It can also work with a pipe or bong, but you will need to repeat the method multiple times.

No Lighter, No Worries

Having no lighter on hand is not the end of the world. With a little out-of-the-box thinking and some effort, you can still light up a joint. Go ahead and give any of these methods a try. But again, make sure to proceed with caution!