View Full Version : Snow Peak Giga Power Stove
Been using a Whisperlite, white gas stove but have been wanting to switch to a canister stove. Snow Peak claims "good cold weather performance at high altitudes." Sounds good but looking for some real world accounts, the good bad and ugly. Would a 20 degree morning in the Smokey's be pushing my luck with this stove?
ryanwflynn
04-12-2014, 20:01
No problems for me in the cold. I flipped from Gorham on my hike and it worked great for three weeks in a snowy Maine November.
Feral Bill
04-12-2014, 20:19
High elevation is an advantage to canister stoves in the cold, as the boiling point of the fuel is lower. The Smokies, however, are not very high.
HooKooDooKu
04-12-2014, 23:13
I don't have the Giga Power, but I do use the Snow Peak Lite Max (which I greatly recommend because of how small it folds up).
I recently took a hike in GSMNP last month where night time lows were in the low thirties or very high twenties. I had taken a canister that was about 1/2 full for a two night hike. Temperatures were warm enough in the evening to use the stove... but I couldn't get it fired up in the morning. So the next time I went back (about two weeks later), I went back to my wisper lite.
So I don't plan on heading back into the Smokies with a canister stove unless I know temperatures are going to stay above freezing.
Thank you all for the feedback!
Jack Tarlin
04-13-2014, 14:10
I've used this stove for years and years, and would suggest it to anyone. It's very similar to the ever-popular MSR Pocket Rocket, weighs and costs the same, but packs up smaller, and also has four "arms" instead of three, meaning it can handle a larger cookpot. Absolutely a great product. Those of you contemplating a cannister stove system should absolutely check this out.
squeezebox
04-14-2014, 00:14
the giga power has a nice looking wind screen. But Soto has a lighter windscreen , and stove is a tiny bit lighter
daddytwosticks
04-14-2014, 07:18
Got to agree with Mr. Tarlin. My standard Snowpeak stove is a real dependable workhorse. :)
the giga power has a nice looking wind screen. But Soto has a lighter windscreen , and stove is a tiny bit lighter
Is the wind screen for the giga power something you would recommend? How effective is it?
You might want to look at the Soto Stoves....
The Snowman
04-14-2014, 19:37
Just keep the canaster warm and you won't have a problem.
Old Hiker
04-14-2014, 20:25
Just keep the canaster warm and you won't have a problem.
Saw a review (the only 1 star) where the person used a homemade wind screen and the canister/stove blew up. Therefore, it's a dangerous stove !!!
People.
HooKooDooKu
04-14-2014, 23:47
Saw a review (the only 1 star) where the person used a homemade wind screen and the canister/stove blew up. Therefore, it's a dangerous stove !!!
People.
First of all, I ASSUMED that The Snowman's comment was directed towards the idea of keeping it warm before used.
Second, using a wind screen (which the stove instructions will tell you NOT to do) can lead to a canister blowing up... but that's not the fault of the stove, it's the fault of the user placing a wind screen around the canister allowing the canister to get too hot.
Third, so long as you do something to ensure the canister doesn't get too hot, you can use some sort of a wind screen with a canister stove... but you do so at your own risk.
I should clarify...I was referring to the wind screen made by Snow Peak for the giga power.
Starvin Marvin
04-15-2014, 00:21
Saw a review (the only 1 star) where the person used a homemade wind screen and the canister/stove blew up. Therefore, it's a dangerous stove !!!
People..
Yes, people making generalized statements that are incorrect.
The stove is not dangerous. It sounds like the people not following manufacture directions are the dangerous ones.
Snow Peak's wind screen mounts on the stove, just below the burner head. It actually blocks most of the heat from getting to the canister, while also protecting the flames from wind. Its a much safer approach than using a wrap around wind screen, which can trap heat and raise the canister temp to a dangerous level. ( as Old Hiker is referring to )
Toga, im not sure how effective the Snow Peak wind screen is, but it does seem heavy for its size. 2 ozs.
Starvin Marvin
04-15-2014, 00:38
Been using a Whisperlite, white gas stove but have been wanting to switch to a canister stove. Snow Peak claims "good cold weather performance at high altitudes." Sounds good but looking for some real world accounts, the good bad and ugly. Would a 20 degree morning in the Smokey's be pushing my luck with this stove?
Toga, here is a good site that has the info you are looking for.
http://adventuresinstoving.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-cold-can-i-run-my-gas-stove.html
Happy reading.
Starvin Marvin, Great blog! Really pulls together a lot of information and fantastic explanation behind the science. I've decided to pass on the Snow Peak windscreen (but did buy the giga power stove). One thing that appealed to me about the stove is it's weight and the windscreen nearly doubles that. Now for the fun part, getting out and using the thing.
Kerosene
04-15-2014, 12:23
I used the Giga Power for years on my Fall section hikes before I went with the LiteMax. Just put the canister in your sleeping bag and it should be more than warm enough to start up on a cold morning. I used the official SnowPeak windscreen several times, but frankly I don't think it was worth the 2-oz weight penalty relative to the performance I get when I use a large piece of aluminum foil as a partial windbreak.
MountainsCalling
04-15-2014, 14:36
Though different from the Giga Power, I have the Snow Peak LiteMax. Though I've never used it at elevation, the thing is a champ - despite me foolishly burning the snot out of my finger's once... I've been amazed with the power and quality of the product.
squeezebox
04-15-2014, 20:06
I'll try making an Al version of the giga power windscreen and let you know if it melts down.
The Soto stove looks good
I made a really good enclosed version of a wind screen for the pocket rocket,
On intelligent advise I threw it away.
Old Hiker
04-16-2014, 08:12
I'll try making an Al version of the giga power windscreen and let you know if it melts down.
The Soto stove looks good
I made a really good enclosed version of a wind screen for the pocket rocket,
On intelligent advise I threw it away.
I made a 12" x 20" windscreen for my pocket rocket by bending the rectangle into a "V". Had to buy a 10' roll to do it, but it works great. Enough circulation to keep the heat from building up, yet keeps the flames burning straight up. I also don't burn it for hours at a time, just long enough to boil my water. I'm not trying to capture heat, just keep the heat going up to the pot.
My previous post was a semi-snarky observation of people doing something totally wrong and then blaming the product for being "dangerous". If my canister blows because of my wind screen (and I have enough fingers to type about it), I'll be the first to accept the blame online.
It has been my main stove for 5 years or so now :) Never had an issue - at altitude to sea level.