Vargo wood burning light weight stove

I've had a Vargo for a while now. I bought it because I was sick of carrying fuel, & the Vargo was available. Not a lot of choice in Australia.
It has always worked, sometimes better than others, but over the months I am learning its foibles & using it better.
It seems flimsy, but is tough enough.
I don't even wash it after use. By the time I have finished my meal, it is cool, I just give it a shake & pack it in the pocket. Perhaps a wipe on grass.

There are only 2 downsides, & they are manageble:
1. It works best with short, finger thick pieces. These burn quickly, so it requires constant attention.
2. Ventilation is minimal. There are no side holes, only bottom holes. The legs are short. If I place it on soft dirt, it often blocks air flow. If the door is left open, the structure easily loses rigidity. Putting it on a rock has solved the ventilation problem. Feeding short sticks in the top solves the door problem. I have used it with the door open & longer sticks, but this is less efficient anyway.

In short, I like it & it does what I need, but is a bit fussy. Things improve with practice.
 
just a heads up , the emberlit can be bought from their website , postage to australia from the US is faster than postage between sydney - perth , at least my experience with them .
Ive bought 4 or 5 :) I came into a it of cash and handed them out to friends , they get used regular , so its not a loss .
 
Two questions: are these contained enough to use when there is a ban on open fires?

Are they large enough to house an alcohol stove (essentially acting as a pot holder/wind screen for the stove) if one is not able to use wood at the time?
 
some tiny coals do fall out
IMG_20130916_154155_zps271704c7.jpg

this tho is the amount of fall out we had from boiling a billy and toasting marshmallows

its not much , but it is enough if you have flamables under it , that they can light up . common sense is needed as with any fire .

technically its not an open fire its a stove so fire ban doesnt mean stove ban ..

but total fire ban / vehicle movement ban means just that here too . the danger is just too high .

I have seen reviews of others who have used alcohol stoves inside their emberlits with reasonable success . I havent tried it myself , I bought it for the cooking with easy findable fuel , and the economy of fuel use that comes with it .

Literally a handful of sticks will provide a LOT of cooking , one good part about it too is that the size fuel it takes is what most people seem to overlook , so there is no shortage for me
 
Ulfhedinn , yes, the Vargo stove will hold a Trangia Alcohol stove. You could use it that way, but it's a heck of an expensive wind screen. I stopped using alcohol stoves years ago, and had to dig out out of the storage closet to see if it fit.

As to using the stove during a fire ban, I'd say probably ok to do so, with the caveats that Myal mentioned. Again, for me, it's a non issue, as most of the time, I'll be using the MSR Pocket Rocket, not a wood burner.
 
Mannlicher said:
hate to side track a perfectly good Emberlit thread though. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

You are absolved. Go and sin no more! :D

Eta: Being able to use other fuels (than twigs) is a good feature of most twig stoves. I've used charcoal, wood chips and waxy fire starter blocks. I suppose a can of sterno or trioxane/esbit could be used as well. Or even a gas burner but as said, it makes these stoves expensive windscreens. And I am doubting that twig stoves would beat fire bans. Will BLM, USFS, National parks go to the trouble to research them all and issue permits to allow them? I bet not.
 
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NOTE: A fire ban is not the same as rules disallowing campfires.

I realize most here know the difference, but I want this to be clear for everyone. Wood-burning stoves are allowed many/most places that do not allow "campfires".

During a fire ban, I would likely not even burn a candle lantern and definitely would not play with a firesteel. That's my opinion.


BTW, I use Nomadic Stove Co. Trekkers and also carry an alcohol stove, usually an Evernew Ti.
 
I wouldn't use the Vargo in a high fire danger. It has holes in the bottom & the door can pop open. It is not a failsafe fire containment device.
I haven't used a alcohol stove in it. My alcy burner would fit, but would block all the air holes in the bottom. I could probably leave the door open, or place the burner on some twigs to raise it off the holes.
 
Yes, around here, sometimes they will ban the use of any fire, even contained fires like the Emberlit or Vargo, even charcoal grills. However, "contained fuel" like propane, alcohol or MSR type stoves are allowed.

I use a gassifier stove that will fit a Trnagia, so if I get to where I am going and there is a complete fire ban, it's easy to drop the Trangia and bottle of alcohol in the pack and go. Just more versatile than buying completely different stoves.
 
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