Stoves - What do you use?

[Lou Castle]

Got interested in alcohol stoves a couple of years ago. Alcohol doesn't have the energy that either gas or the canister stoves do, so it takes a bit longer to boil water for my tea, but it's convenient, can be found in any hardware store, and in a worst case scenario, can be put out with water. I found a stove made by this guy, www.minibulldesign.com to be ideal for my needs. I like his M4 - Droop top w/ a safety base. Boils two cups in about 5-6 mins.

I use a Ti Emberlit if I don't want to carry fuel but I hate the smut that it leaves on the pots.

 

[Codger_64]

Great Idea!

How do these newer gas stoves handle cold weather?

I have not messed with the newer ones, but my white gas stoves were very popular on winter outings, because the gas ones performed poorly in cold weather. If that has been overcome, you can't beat their convienence.

Cold and high altitude have never been issues for me, considering where I am located. But I would guess the same workarounds for Bic lighters also work for gas stoves. Preheat or protect the cannisters from cold. Like placing it in the bottom of your sleeping bag overnight. Set it on a foam pad instead of directly on snow or ice. Once going, a windscreen will heat the cannister nicely. Just don't overheat it of course. This is why some of the remote cannister stoves are popular in cold areas. Also, Iso-butane is a mixture of gasses. The ability to invert a bottle allows full use of the heavier part of the mixture in cold weather. But as I said, this has never been an issue for me personally.

 

[HikingMano]

[...]But I would guess the same workarounds for Bic lighters also work for gas stoves. Preheat or protect the cannisters from cold. Like placing it in the bottom of your sleeping bag overnight. Set it on a foam pad instead of directly on snow or ice.[...]

Codger's spot on. I've found that sticking a canister of MSR IsoPro in my puffy as I'm doing camp chores is enough to preheat the canister for a boil. Be aware that the evaporative process cools the canister as you use it (enough to get condensation), so if it's not warm enough, your flame will sputter out and die as the canister cools the gas and renders it less volatile.

Also be aware of the specific fuel mixture used. Fuels with more propane and isobutane vs. n-butane, at the mixture ratios available in the US, will perform better in the cold because of the lower boiling points (point of vaporization). Propane's boiling point (at sea level) is at about -44*F, Isobutane at 11*F, n-Butane at 31*F. In general, the more propane you have the better, and of the remaining percentage, the more isobutane rather than n-butane the better. Propane burns at a faster rate, so if you are ever left with just n-butane or isobutane in your canister, you want the more volatile one. MSR IsoPro and Snow Peak Gigapower are good cold-weather fuels. MSR IsoPro is 80% isobutane and 20% propane; an even better cold weather fuel would be 70% isobutane and 30% propane, but that isn't available in the US yet as far as I know.

Inverting, for example, an IsoPro canister works because it allows the stove to ignite with the lighter and volatile propane, then when you invert, the less volatile and heavier gases like n-butane and isobutane are better vaporized as they are warmed during the liquid feed. Coleman Powermax is a good one there, at 65% n-butane and 35% propane. For inverted liquid feed stove use, I don't think it matters whether the propane-complementing fuel is n-butane or isobutane.

ETA: Yes, definitely be careful when using a windscreen with a canister stove that isn't remote; it can explode if overheated.

 

[ROCK6]

I've got a Kovea Spider on the way.

Make sure to do a review. I like the remote set up and the lower stand allows a better wind-screen.

ROCK6