Alcohol Storage

[andrwoo]

I was at Walmart today and saw these Slime Tire repair bottles in 16oz, 18oz, and 24oz options. I bought the 16oz bottle (under $5) to give a try. The green slime emptied out real easy into a Ziploc bag. With a little water all the rest of the residue came right out. There is a little spot on the side of the bottle for the plastic straw that it comes with. Don't know if that can be used for anything or not. I weighed the empty bottle with and without the straw and either way my scale only showed 1.3oz. The cap is neat. The main white part screws on tight. When it is turned upside down I get either a slow drip or no drip at all. Squeezed it and get a nice little stream. The black part screws on as well. I put the caps on squeezed the bottle pretty well while shaking it and got no leaks.

I think I got the pics attached. First post so don't know if doing this right. Just thought I would post this in case someone else can get a use out of this. I am going to field test this soon with my supercat.

[Kc Fiedler]

I find that 8oz mini water bottles work great.

[Dochartaigh]

I find that 8oz mini water bottles work great.

That's what I use as well (never weighed it though). For overnight trips I might use the ~0.8 ounces bottle my Caldera Cone system came with (fits maybe 10-11 boils of 2-cups water worth of alcohol).

[MuddyWaters]

That's what I use as well (never weighed it though). For overnight trips I might use the ~0.8 ounces bottle my Caldera Cone system came with (fits maybe 10-11 boils of 2-cups water worth of alcohol).

0.63 oz if its an 8oz "eco" type that real thin.

[Rocket Jones]

Whatever I use, I always put the bottle in a freezer ziplock and store it in an outside pocket. Never had a leak, but if I do it won't soak my food or gear.

[ken209]

Use a William's Electric Shave Bottle.

[yerbyray]

Kid's 8 oz mouthwash bottle from the Dollar Tree store. Comes with a measuring cup and total weight of 1.3 ounces. What I like about it is the somewhat odd shape and I wont mistake it for anything else.

[Odd Man Out]

I use the Packafeather Fuel Bottle Kit

http://packafeather.com/fuelbottle.html

This goes on a soda bottle. The rubber gasket makes it seal very tight. The pouring tube can be used to dispense, but also to suck up unused fuel. This is one of the biggest advantages for me as I don't want to have to guess the exact amount of fuel needed to cook my food. If I come up short, I have to refuel and relight the stove (a pain and safety concern). If I have too much I burn off and waste the excess. With this, I fill up the stove with more than I need. When done, I snuff the stove off. After messing with the food for a few minutes, the stove has cooled and I suck the excess fuel back into the bottle. No concern for me about using a pop bottle. The cap is so different, no chance of mixing it up. Besides, I don't carry any other pop bottles.

[Hikes in Rain]

Lately, I've been leaving it in the Heat bottle it came in.

[RangerZ]

Jack Daniels metric pint bottle. My wife needed some JD for Christmas cookies, I only had to empty out less than half. The flat pint bottle was attractive for fitting in an outside pack pocket rather than the round bottle that I had been using. Holds 10 oz, I think.

[CarlZ993]

Whatever I use, I always put the bottle in a freezer ziplock and store it in an outside pocket. Never had a leak, but if I do it won't soak my food or gear.

I do this as well. I found that a 12 oz coke bottle is really sturdy. I think my bottle lasted the entire trail. It will be slightly heavier than the ultra-thin water bottles.

[brybur208]

This seems to be more of a style preference than function. I have always just used a water bottle with a plastic cap and never had any problems.

[handlebar]

+1 on the Packafeather fuel cap & soda bottle. I use A&W root beer Boyle for its distinctive shape. Also use their Featherfire stove. The simmer feature really works.

[Kraken Skullz]

Walmart also has a set of about 6 or so smaller storage bottles in the camping section with squirt tops. That's what I use. Not sure that you would want to carry 16oz or more of fuel at a time due to the weight.

[andrwoo]

Not sure that you would want to carry 16oz or more of fuel at a time due to the weight.

I am sure you are probably correct about hiking the AT, I have not yet been able to. I guess I am thinking more primitive camping. I do a lot of back country camping for week or more at a time and I guess I was thinking of this larger container for that. I like to find a spot to set up a base camp of sorts then go wonder around for the day. I like to keep my weight down to minimal as possible, though I am sure it is still not light enough for the AT.

I like some of the responses I have seen from this and I thank you guys. Showed me some stuff I had not seen. Like that FeatherFire Stove and fuel bottle kit. I might just get that.

[Connie]

If long unsupported hikes, why not have a thread question: what is the most fuel efficient alcohol stove, boil or simmer?

I would think that could make a significant weight difference.

[Hot Flash]

I use a contact lens saline solution bottle. Nice squeeze top with attached cap, no leaks.

[Odd Man Out]

If long unsupported hikes, why not have a thread question: what is the most fuel efficient alcohol stove, boil or simmer? I would think that could make a significant weight difference.

For alcohol stoves, you have to look at the system (stove, pot stand, wind screen, and pot) and how they work together - Not just the stove. Powerful stoves are more likely to lose heat up the side (less efficient), but if you have an efficient windscreen (like a Caldera Cone) or a pot with a heat exchanger (like the Olicamp XTS, which is what I have), then that changes the equation to favor more power. But that efficiency comes with a weight penalty as my pot is not very UL. I've seen a variety of efficiencies reported for alcohol systems, but a bit less than 15 mL of fuel to boil 2 cups of room temperature water is the best I've seen. My system is in that range, and with boil times of a bit under 4 minutes, its also very powerful by alcohol stove standards.

You should also consider the efficiency in the field, rather than the efficiency in ideal test conditions. Here again the wind screen can be critical. If it is windy, efficiency can suffer without an effective screen. Also, the ability to snuff the stove out and recapture unburned fuel is key. What good is an efficient system if you always choose to use a little excess fuel to make sure you have enough and then burn off the excess. Also, if you have to prime your stove for 30 seconds before you can start cooking, then your efficiency will suffer.

[Swordpen]

I went to the pharmacy (Walgreens) & asked for the reddish-brown plastic medicine bottles they use for cough syrup. I keep the alcohol in that. No spill, different shape (so I don't mistake it), & is a completely different color than water bottles etc. They gave it to me for free.

[yerbyray]

This seems to be more of a style preference than function. I have always just used a water bottle with a plastic cap and never had any problems.

Don't hike alone.