Refillable Butane Lighters

What makes a lighter refillable

A refillable butane lighter has a fill valve, a small spring-loaded opening on the bottom that takes the nozzle of a butane can. Push the can down onto it and liquid butane goes into the tank. A disposable lighter has no valve. When it's empty, it's trash.

That's the whole difference, and it changes how you shop. With a disposable, you're buying a fixed amount of fuel in a case. With a refillable, you're buying the case, the valve, the flame adjuster and the ignition, and the fuel is a separate purchase you'll make again and again.

The CPSC draws the same line in its rules. It counts a lighter that can't be refilled as disposable, along with cheap butane lighters below a set value, and disposable lighters sold in the US must be child-resistant. A refillable lighter above that value isn't covered by that disposable-lighter rule, so don't assume a child lock is there because it was on the gas-station kind.

Refillable lighters come with either flame. The jet kind, with its narrow wind-resistant flame, is covered on the torch lighters page, along with how jets work and how they behave in wind. This page is about the part that makes a lighter worth keeping for years: the tank and everything that touches the fuel.

The table on this page lists butane lighters their maker or Amazon listing states are refillable. It shows fuel, flame type, jets, whether the maker says windproof, body material, length, weight and pack size, with the maker's numbers first and the listing's where the maker is silent (marked as listing values). Windproof, length and weight are the maker's alone. A dash means neither states it.

What to look at when you pick a refillable butane lighter

Here's what changes from one refillable to the next, in the order I'd check it.

Find the fill valve and make sure you can reach it

The valve sits on the bottom on almost every refillable. You'll press it two ways: with the can's nozzle to fill it, and with a pen tip or small screwdriver to bleed it. One maker's instructions say to make sure the tool you use has no edges that could damage the valve.

So the valve has to be exposed. Check that a case, a clip or a pouch doesn't cover it. A lighter you have to take apart to fill is a lighter you'll stop filling.

A fuel window tells you when to refill

Some refillables have a clear window in the tank so you can see the liquid butane. Without one, you find out it's empty when the flame starts to flicker; one maker says a flickering flame during normal use means it needs a refill.

A window also helps you fill it right. One maker notes its tanks take only about 85% liquid, so a small air bubble in the window when it's full is normal. Another maker warns against cleaning its fuel window with alcohol or harsh chemicals, because that can damage it. I'd pay for the window. Guessing how much gas is left is how a fire kit becomes a paperweight. (I call that "an untapped market for windows." Nobody else at camp does.)

A flame adjuster you can turn with gloves on

Every refillable I'd want has a flame adjuster: a wheel marked plus and minus, or a slot you turn with a coin or screwdriver. One maker's how-to says to turn toward plus for a bigger flame, minus for smaller.

The adjuster isn't just for flame height. Makers use it in the refill routine. Two makers say to set it to the lowest setting before you fill, then turn it back up afterward; one says a quarter turn toward plus, then fine-tune. If the flame keeps burning after you let go of the button, one maker says it's set too high.

A wheel works with gloves. A tiny screw slot doesn't, unless you carry a dime in your glove. (I have. Walt says that makes it the most expensive dime in the cabin.)

Piezo or flint ignition

Many refillable butane lighters light with a piezo: press the button and it sparks at a thin wire next to the burner. Some soft-flame refillables use a flint and a wheel instead.

One maker's instructions spell out the difference that matters. Flint lighters don't self-extinguish, so you close the cover to put the flame out. Flints also wear down. That maker says to replace a flint before it's completely used up so it doesn't damage the wheel, and to clean the wheel now and then with a stiff non-metal brush. A piezo needs neither, but its spark wire has to stay pointed at the burner. One maker warns never to touch the piezo spark wire, because moving it can stop the lighter from working.

Torch jet or soft flame

The Flame column shows torch/jet or soft flame. On a refillable, both are common. One maker describes soft flames as gentler and suited to indoor use or calm outdoor conditions, and jets as wind-resistant.

For a deer camp fire kit, the jet is the usual pick because it fights wind. For lighting the cabin lamp or candles, a soft flame is easier to see and less fussy. If you want both jobs covered, buy two refillables and one can. They'll drink the same fuel.

Body material and weight show what you'll carry

The Body column lists the case material as the maker or the listing states it, metal such as zinc alloy or brass, or plastic. Length and Weight come from the maker. A refillable you keep for years earns a sturdier case, and a heavier one shows up in the Weight column.

Refilling a butane lighter without the hiss

This is where refillables earn or lose their reputation. Most "it stopped working" stories are refill stories. The routine below merges three makers' instructions.

1. Go outside or somewhere well ventilated, away from heat, sparks and flames. Don't smoke.
2. Make sure the flame is out and the cover is closed.
3. Bleed the tank. Press the valve with a pen tip or small screwdriver until the hissing stops. One maker says to repeat until all pressure is gone.
4. Turn the flame adjuster to the lowest setting.
5. Hold the lighter upside down and the can straight above it. Press the nozzle firmly onto the valve for the time your maker gives: one says 4 to 5 seconds, one about 5, one 5 to 6.
6. Don't shake the can. One maker says shaking pushes propellant into the lighter along with the butane.
7. Wait. One maker says to warm the lighter in your hand for 10 seconds, then wait 2 minutes; another says 3 to 4 minutes, so excess butane can evaporate and the gas can reach room temperature.
8. Turn the adjuster up a little and light it.

To check if it's full, one maker says to hold it upside down and press the valve; if liquid comes out, stop. If the lighter won't light right after a fill, the cause is often air trapped in the tank, which one maker calls vapor lock. The fix is to bleed it briefly and refill.

Use the fuel the maker names

This is my one opinion on this page: buy the lighter's recommended butane before you buy a second lighter. The reason is in the makers' own instructions. One says other brands' butane may carry unknown contamination and pressure that can clog the fuel system. Another says lower-quality butane has been known to clog lighters. A third names its own fuel and one other, because other fuels may damage the fill valve and cause clogging.

The fuel itself is simple stuff. NOAA describes butane as a colorless gas with a faint petroleum-like odor, shipped as a liquefied gas under its own pressure. OSHA lists its boiling point at 31°F. That number is why a lighter left in a cold truck sputters on a November morning, and why the torch lighters page spends a whole section on keeping butane warm.

Store the can like it's a little bit dangerous, because it is. One maker says a can can last up to 5 years at a controlled temperature, and warns against extreme heat, cold or direct sunlight for the can or the lighter. NOAA notes that containers may explode when heated.

Butane inserts and other refillable sub-types

Refillables come in a few shapes, and each has its own page on this site:

• Refillable torch lighters: jets for wind, covered on the torch page
• Pocket refillables: small soft-flame or jet lighters, see the mini torch lighter page
• Long refillables: reach for stoves and grills, see the long lighter page
• Butane inserts: a butane burner unit that drops into a fluid lighter's case

Inserts are worth a word. One maker sells butane torch inserts for its classic case and notes that some inserts may not fit every case of the same brand. If you want to keep an old fluid lighter's case and switch to butane, check the insert maker's fit notes first. Wick-and-fluid lighters themselves are on the windproof lighter page.

Care that keeps a refillable going for years

A refillable is the lighter you keep, if you treat it right. The point isn't that it's indestructible. The point is that it's serviceable: a lighter with a valve and a fill port gets refilled, cleaned and adjusted instead of thrown out.

• Burner: one maker says to clean it now and then with compressed air, the tip about 1 inch away, in three short bursts, then let it reach room temperature before lighting
• Alcohol cleaning: another maker says never light a lighter cleaned with alcohol until it's fully dry
• Long storage: one maker says to set the adjuster to maximum when it won't be used for a long time, then reset it when you use it again
• Flints: replace before they're used up
• Hissing that won't stop: don't light it; one maker says return it for service

One more care note that surprises people: one maker says not to mail a butane lighter, even an empty one, because shipping rules can restrict products that have held butane. If it needs warranty service, follow the maker's repair instructions instead of dropping it in an envelope.

Refillable butane lighter safety

Butane vapor is heavier than air. NOAA notes it can spread along the ground and travel to a flame or spark and flash back, so refill outside and away from the fire ring, the stove and the lantern. Hold the lighter and can away from your face while filling, and never try to light it during a refill.

A refillable may not have the child lock a disposable must have, so storage does that job. Keep the lighter and the butane can up high and out of sight at the cabin, which is what the U.S. Fire Administration asks of every lighter and book of matches in a house with kids.

If you fly to hunt, TSA lists butane as not allowed in carry-on or checked bags, and torch lighters as not allowed in either. Buy fuel when you land, and check TSA's listings for the lighter itself before you pack.

Who should skip a refillable butane lighter

Skip it if you lose lighters faster than you empty them. A refillable only pays off if it comes home. If yours tend to stay at the bottom of a tree stand or in a rental car's cup holder, a pack of disposables makes more sense.

Skip it if you won't keep a butane can around. No can, no refill, and the lighter is a disposable that cost more.

And skip it if you want zero fuel at all. Rechargeable arc lighters run on a battery instead, and they're on the electric lighter page.

For everyone else, a refillable with a fuel window, a wheel you can turn with gloves and the maker's own butane on the shelf is the lighter you'll still be filling years from now.