Article: Canister stove/fuel FAQ

[plodder]

My unanswered question is the definition of "address." Local postal dude had some reservation about GD, might depend on the local interpretation. He suggested I bring in the box open, blah blah blah. Pain in the tookus.

[Jack Tarlin]

Nice post.

Cannisters are also available in Pearisburg (definitely the Wal-Mart and maybe the hardware store; the outfitter in Daleville (near Troutville); Front Royal; Port Clinton (definitely Cabela's in Hamburg or Appalachian Outfitters in P.C.);
Pawling, N.Y.; Cornwall Bridge; Great Barrington.

In addition to the stoves listed, I think the Snow Peak GigaPower is as good or better than the Pocket Rocket, and costs the same.

[Roland]

Clear, concise, and well organized. Nice work, Yellow Jacket.

[Oracle]

Two quick questions - do all canister stoves use the same fuel, or do different canister stoves use different types of canister fuel? Do all canisters have the same attachment fittings?

[tlbj6142]

updated earlier today. Figured I post this so existing subscribers could review the changes.

[tlbj6142]

updated earlier today. Figured I post this so existing subscribers could review the changes.

Ditto. Re-ordered questions and fixed links.

[The Solemates]

Excellent. This should go in the articles section if its not already.

[The Solemates]

yea i just realized it is in the articles section.

[chris]

The difficulty with testing how much fuel is left in the canister is a difficult one. The notion of a waterline test is not very practical in the field. I have found that I can give the cannister a gentle shake. If I feel something moving about in there, the canister is still charged. The more wiggle, the more fuel. This is akin to shaking a whitegas stove bottle to see how much gas is left. Not the best method, but you can get a reasonable estimate this way.

On the GDT, I carried some solid fuel tabs as backups, and I needed them.

[RockyTrail]

The hot-water method of measuring how much fuel is left is used on some gas-grill propane tanks. A temperature-sensitive strip (that turns color when hot) is permanently glued to the side of the tank. What you do is pour very hot water down this strip; the whole strip will turn color. The portion of the strip below the fuel "waterline" will absorb the heat quickly and the strip will quickly go back to normal color in this zone while the part above will remain dark. I have not seen this in camp stoves but I guess it could be done. Even though it supposedly is safe, I'm a bit nervous about pouring hot water on a pressurized can of flammable gas, I don't want to stress the metal or anything.

Personally what I do is weigh the canister on a postal scale and subtract what a "known empty weight" from an old spent canister. This is only useful when starting a trip of course...unless you want to carry the scale.

[dp the wonder dog]

I haven't tried this on a cannister stove, but it works on the big (20#) propane bottles. And it's not for the trail, but a good way to check levels at home. With the stove running (so you have evap/conversion cooling), use a non-contact infrared thermometer to scan down the side of the tank...you'll see a temp change at the liquid fuel level.

[tlbj6142]

Ditto. Re-ordered questions and fixed links.

One more time. Added conversation with my local PM.

[grrickar]

I haven't tried this on a cannister stove, but it works on the big (20#) propane bottles. And it's not for the trail, but a good way to check levels at home. With the stove running (so you have evap/conversion cooling), use a non-contact infrared thermometer to scan down the side of the tank...you'll see a temp change at the liquid fuel level.

\

Brunton sells stick on type thermometers that allow you to find the level of the cannister. They are single use only I think.

Here is a link to the Brunton site: http://www.brunton.com/product.php?id=274

We should add the Brunton Crux to the list of stoves. It nests in the concave dimple in the cannister, so it is very compact. Others have complained about the stability, but I have had zero issues with mine. I think it is 500 BTUs hotter than the MSR Pocket Rocket.

[tlbj6142]

One more time. Added conversation with my local PM.

Added Brunton and stove stability question.

[chris]

Something on the efficiency of the different kinds of fuel out there might be nice. I've noticed that, say, the Snowpeak stuff last longer than the MSR stuff, and both vastly outperform the blue stuff. But, this is coming from a month of use last summer. Others with more experience or scientific knowledge might be able to provide better insight and info.

[tlbj6142]

Something on the efficiency of the different kinds of fuel out there might be nice.

Wouldn't that be temperature and altitude related? Though, I guess I could add that to the FAQ.

[chris]

Wouldn't that be temperature and altitude related? Though, I guess I could add that to the FAQ.

Yes, for sure. However, at a given altitude and temperature, I think that the chemical compositions of the different brands leads to different performances. For example, in at 4000 ft and 50 degree ambient temperature, the Snow Peak should outlast the blue things by a large margin. Drop the temperature to 30 degrees and the same thing should be true, although it is unclear if the relative difference will stay the same, increase, or decrease.

[A-Train]

Great article and info. Most of the guys I hiked with had canister stoves (pocket rockets) and their stoves definately had more juice than my alcohol stove did. Still I can't get over the idea of wasting all those canisters. If there was a way to keep refilling the canister I'd probably use one, but I can't warrant throwing away all that material. Can they at least be recycled in towns?

[tlbj6142]

Yes, for sure. However, at a given altitude and temperature, I think that the chemical compositions of the different brands leads to different performances.

The bpl cansister stove FAQ hints at this a bit, and I don't believe they go into any more details in another ariticle (which is odd given their scientific approach gear reviews and comentary).

[tlbj6142]

Great article and info. Most of the guys I hiked with had canister stoves (pocket rockets) and their stoves definately had more juice than my alcohol stove did. Still I can't get over the idea of wasting all those canisters. If there was a way to keep refilling the canister I'd probably use one, but I can't warrant throwing away all that material. Can they at least be recycled in towns?

This is a major issue with canister stoves. I'm sure the material can be recycled, but I'd expect you'd need to make sure the canister was empty and punctured (Yikes!!) before dropping them in bin.

While I won't put this in the FAQ, I suspect allowing the stove to burn off all of the fuel on a warm day. And then, with the valve open, "church key" (or nail punch) the bottom of the can would do the trick in a safe mannor.