Pepsi can stoves....

j williams

j williams

Joined
Nov 14, 2005
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I smashed my old one, so I made 3 of these today....Ive always liked these things. Super light, and cheap. I recently scored an MSR whisperlite stove, and am liking it, I just like these a bit better. :thumbup:

What do you guys use for a pot stand/windscreen? I usually just use a Tin can with holes cut in it, but was wondering if anyone had a more compact setup.

Lets see the pics of your homemade stoves! Who likes these?

Oh....Also, I just got back from Wallyworld where they have HEET on red clearance. 4 bottles for 3.00. Bought me 16 bottles, so I figure im good for awhile. ;)
 
J I use heav yfoil for a wind screen Ifolds up real tight and hammer sticks into the gorund around the stove for a pot stand.... Just make sure there level
 
My stove stand/windscreen is an all metal peanut tin, heavy and bulky, I also made a change with how high the stove stands, I found a tin that holds the stove snugly but allows it to slide up and down.
 
I've always just used a piece of heavy wire mesh bent into a circle, with the top tines pointing down for a pot stand, and a the bottom out of a disposable baking pan for a windscreen. I'll see if I've got any pics.

Brandon
 
I use the stand shown HERE (scroll to the bottom) and it works great (and costs like $0.20)...

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One of the best stoves I have ever made is the simplest. Simply take a altoids tin, fill with insulation, and your done. I also have a commercial stove from minibulldesign, the blackfly 3 wick stove. It works better in the cold, but its alot slower.
 
Right now I'm using hardware cloth for a stand(comes in a roll at your local hardware store) and aluminum oven liner as a windscreen(cut to shape of course, with about 1/4" gap from your pot).
I'm trying to figure out a lighter pot stand though, and I have the aluminum flashing to make a caldera cone. I just need to experiment to see which is the best and lightest setup.

I've done the coat hanger stand, like the one above my post, but found it to be on the heavy side for my tastes. But it is quick and cheap if you're not counting ounces.

Which Pepsi stove did you make?
I recently did some experimenting with stoves, and found the zen pressurized alcohol stove with denatured alcohol to be the fastest, beat out 3 other stoves, heck it even beat my MSR pocket rocket, with a 3minute 10second boil time, using the thermometer on my Fluke meter to measure to 212F.
http://zenstoves.net/ConstructionStep2-FuelPort.htm#Step2bPressurizedJetStove

If you make this one, just go the threaded rivet route. Believe me, I tried all the other methods, and that's the only one that really works.
 
I made the potstand out of a coat hanger. I made a windscreen out of a piece of aluminized nomex cloth, stapled into a loop.
 
since we are talking about stoves...
i made one couple weeks ago out of arizona tea aluminum cans (my thinking was so i could make it flatter and hold a bit more alcohol)...

First time I tested it, it burned 1oz of denatured alcohol in 6 min (i got it from lowes... i thnk 95% ethanol)

I looked at the keyhole pocket stoves and with 1oz of alcohol they are burning for like 10 mins...

How long do your stoves burn for? What kind of stoves are you using (mine is a pressurize stove)? how many holes you have on them and how big?

I'll post pics of mine later when i get home :D
 
j williams said:
What do you guys use for a pot stand/windscreen? I usually just use a Tin can with holes cut in it, but was wondering if anyone had a more compact setup.
Click to expand...

More compact is easy - make a pepsi can stove that has side hole so you can sit the pot directly on top of it. Viola - no pot stand required.

For a windscreen you get some oven bags and slit them open, use some tape to attach the screen to sharpened sticks you have used as stakes. (a kind of kite screen)


I have a cheap butane stove that I like - it is fairly small & light (though not as small or light as a pepsi can stove) and you can turn the flame up or down. I can also use it for however long I need then turn it off and unscrew the butane canister. It seems to work well enough without a windscreen and it is its own pot stand. It is also fast - I can boil a kettle with 2 cups of water in under 3 minutes. Cleaner burning too - less blackening of the pot.

I have built a bunch of different alcohol stoves though - mainly because it was fun to make something that was useful and really worked. I have made super cat stoves & pressurised and unpressurised pepsi can stoves. My pressurised stove just uses a thumb screw (like what the PC cases often have at the back) to block the fill hole. Normally to boil 2 cups of water has taken 1oz of alcohol and around 5-6 minutes.
 
my stove boils 2 to 3 cups of water (using a regular kitchen pot) in about 4 mins and it burns 1oz of fuel in 6 mins...

I'll play with it tonite and time it... and we'll see :D
 
I have made a few "Supercat" stoves which I like for their simplicity. They do not require a stand, since putting the pot directly on top is what pressurizes them and forces the flames out of the holes.
 
Foilist said:
I have made a few "Supercat" stoves which I like for their simplicity. They do not require a stand, since putting the pot directly on top is what pressurizes them and forces the flames out of the holes.
Click to expand...

I'm going to be trying these out with my son this weekend. The cats have eaten well this week. :rolleyes: Had to get some cans from somewhere.
 
Here is the stove that works the best for me. Pop can with 16 outer holes and 8 inner holes with a thumb screw for a fill hole. Boils 2 cups of water in 4min 40sec and total burn time on
1 oz of heet is about 10min 5sec. Inside the can is a bit of fiberglass insulation to help vaporize the alcohol. Use with or without a stand!

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I love these things! Mine is a simple penny stove type design...like normal pressurised burners but instead of the wingnut, I just use a penny to cover the fill holes.

I used a large-ish tomato sauce can with 3 large V's cut out of it for a potstand (and priming tray) and heavy foil as a windscreen.
 
10 mins of burning time? that's pretty cool...

I don't know what's wrong with mine though...

I'll make another one and test it...

I thought the insulation was used so when the stove tilts it does not waste too much fuel...???

I did not even add any to mine...

And the flames on mine are like real jets...

I jb welded a nut to the fill hole on the inside of the can so the screw fits really good and covers the fill hole about 99% i'd say... I have 24 holes on mine but they are smaller than a push pin...
 
I used a supercat, so easy, even a kgd could build one. I cut up the tin that my family size lasagna came with and used that as a folded wind guard. Since I have my trianga though, the supercat doesn't get as much use. Just love how you can store about 15 min of fuel inside the burner itself. When going light, I use the pot stove that came with one of my sterno cans. Fits perfectly. When camping, I use the full burner/pot set up that trianga sells, its 27-series. It is a beautiful cooking set!
 
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