How do you use your stove?

[SkeeterPee]

I have to pick up one last major piece of gear. a stove. I have been reading and it seems if I only want to boil water a jet boil may be the way to go because of shorter boil time, reduced fuel usage, built in windscreen, simplicity. Another option I was thinking of is a pocket rocket which with a pot is a little cheaper. And if I might want to go with an alcohol stove later for longer hikes or even with a white gas stove, I would already have pots.

So is boiling water all I should worry about for now? or should I be thinking ahead so that I could cook other meals? what do you do boil or gourmet?

[BirdBrain]

I just boil water and FBC like this.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzXZIH7SGYA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzXZIH7SGYA

[hikernutcasey]

My buddy and I both only boil water for FBC style meals. He has a jet boil and I have a pocket rocket. You are correct that the jet boil is marginally faster and maybe a little more efficient but the pocket rocket is a little cheaper and depending on your set up a little lighter. If all you are doing is boiling water don't stress yourself out over it. Either will work just fine.

[Turk6177]

Take a look at some of these. I have made my own cat can stove which worked fine with a wider pot. I bought a supercat stove from Zelph's Stoves when I switched to a more narrow titanium snow peak pot. It is hard to beat the weight savings. All I do is boil water and use freezer ziplock backs to reconstitute my food. http://www.woodgaz-stove.com

[BirdBrain]

As a huge alcohol stove advocate, I suggest a cheap isobutene setup to start with. Tinker and play with the alcohol setups at home. Read blogs. Get all the safety stuff down at home. Get the bugs out at home. No need for surprises on the trail, like leaky bottles, or dumping fuel into a stove you thought went out, or tipping over everything because you thought the stand was secure, or running out of fuel because someone exaggerated the stoves efficiency, or on and on. Don't get me wrong. I think an alcohol stove is a superior choice. I just don't think it is the choice for a person just starting out. You can learn fast. They are not that complicated (well... mine is :)). However, learn and practice at home. Read the horror stories and don't commit the same mistakes other people have. When you are ready to tinker, you might want to look at these discussions.

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php/111452-Which-stove-to-build

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php/110921-Alcohol-stove-efficiencies-designs-and-boil-times

[Uncle Joe]

I use an alcohol stove. It is slower to boil than a Jetboil but I'm not hauling a canister around that will have to be thrown away later. I used Ethyl on my first few sections but switched to Heet this past weekend. Big difference. Heet burns very well. I find the stove blooms much faster. I think alcohol has limitations in frigid weather and at altitude, though. Maybe someone can chime in on that. I haven't camped in the cold yet.

[BirdBrain]

I use an alcohol stove. It is slower to boil than a Jetboil but I'm not hauling a canister around that will have to be thrown away later. I used Ethyl on my first few sections but switched to Heet this past weekend. Big difference. Heet burns very well. I find the stove blooms much faster. I think alcohol has limitations in frigid weather and at altitude, though. Maybe someone can chime in on that. I haven't camped in the cold yet.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tlz--OZLGUg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tlz--OZLGUg

No need for the priming dish. Could use a few improvements to their system. Better cone maybe. Better pot maybe. Judging from the flame height, the jets seem a bit oversized. But ya', I think that video settles some things.

[Uncle Joe]

So it's less the cold and maybe more the altitude where alcohol struggles. I couldn't remember. That looks like it has more parts than it needs, though a tall windscreen is a good idea. I have a fairly shallow one.

[BirdBrain]

So it's less the cold and maybe more the altitude where alcohol struggles. I couldn't remember. That looks like it has more parts than it needs, though a tall windscreen is a good idea. I have a fairly shallow one.

There are no spots on the AT that approach the height of the spot of where the above video was shot. OMO also posted a thread that might be relevant.

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php/109363-Performance-Of-Alcohol-Stoves-in-the-Cold

I tested my stove while it was sitting on an ice block. I have tested it while buried in a snowbank. There are many myths attached to alcohol stoves. If the stove is properly designed and constructed, the stove will be limited mainly by the properties of the fuel. Regardless of what tests, videos, or proof is provided, people will always believe that alcohol stoves will not work in the cold or at high elevations. They provide irrelevant proof like how a different stove reacts in the those conditions. The failure is a function of the design, not the fuel.

In order to have an alcohol stove that functions properly in cold conditions, you need one that does not have thermal feedback and by extension does not rely on internal temperatures to run properly. Posted before, but here it is again. Here is my stove in my hand.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTr4kHkllzM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTr4kHkllzM

Okay. I will try to drift back to the OP now.

[Hangfire]

I went with the pocket rocket which worked perfect and I surprisingly never had a tip over or a spill using it (I'm a bit clumsy). One plus for the pocket rocket over the jet boil was that if you actually have to cook something beyond just boiling water it was much easier to control the burner and drop it to a simmer. This went the same for the alcohol stoves, they had just one speed, and if you boiled over you have to just remove it from the flame. Also I'm sure I wasn't the only one to witness more than a few near disasters after an alcohol stove gets tipped over on a crowded picnic table...yikes!

[garlic08]

...So is boiling water all I should worry about for now? or should I be thinking ahead so that I could cook other meals? what do you do boil or gourmet?

Only you can answer this question, and it might take a few hikes to figure out your traveling style. Are you a camp chef? Or an eat-simple-meals-and-run kind of hiker? Nobody can answer that question for you. My style, for instance, has evolved to the point I don't even cook any more and that has improved my hiking. I wouldn't expect anyone with a different style of travel to follow that example.

If you really don't know what kind of hiking you'll do, it may be wise to limit the money you spend on things that may end up unused. I haven't seen my old Whisperlite (neither of which is true) in years--I assume it's still around somewhere.

[MamaBear]

Based on experience and observation, most people just boiled water. There were some that got a little fancier and actually simmered their Knorr sides, but that was about it. That was easier with the pocket rocket/canister; our trail family agreed that Knorr sides need simmering and not just rehydrating. (That's a whole other post/topic!) In my trail family we had an alcohol stove, a jetboil, and a pocket rocket and in the end, it was all about being able to boil water. I used the alcohol stove and was happy with it, a Caldera Cone system (http://www.traildesigns.com/stoves/caldera-cone-system).

[ralph23]

Not sure why more people don't use the solid fuel tablets?? Theres no clean-up, no worry of fuel issues, perfectly safe and no chance of mechanical issues. They don't bring water to a full boil but it's still very hot. To save even more weight you can ditch the metal pot holder they sell and just use some rocks to hold the pot over the flame.

[BirdBrain]

Not sure why more people don't use the solid fuel tablets?? Theres no clean-up, no worry of fuel issues, perfectly safe and no chance of mechanical issues. They don't bring water to a full boil but it's still very hot. To save even more weight you can ditch the metal pot holder they sell and just use some rocks to hold the pot over the flame.

Price, availability, smell, soot.

[illabelle]

We carry a canister stove. Actually most of the time, my husband carries a canister stove - and the fuel. I guess I'm just lucky. :)

Our hikes are typically just weekends, with an occasional week, so we don't have the same issues with resupply that long distance hikers would.

I wouldn't characterize our meals as the "camp chef" variety, but they do go well beyond FBC (freezer bag cooking). It's not unusual for us to carry a fresh zucchini which I might saute (yes, in a small frying pan) and add to a pasta meal. We also use the frying pan to cook cornbread pancake-style. And I've been known to bring a little chili, which I'll layer with cheese between two small tortillas to make quesadillas. For these items, I like a stove with excellent simmer control, a low center of gravity, and a stable base. We do plenty of hot water re-hydration also (oatmeal, mashed potatoes, etc).

For our usual style of cooking, we carry a stove like the one below.
https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=JN.03N%2baMlX3eUQnrhBd6FsSw&pid=15.1&P=0&w=300&h=300

On the other hand, to lighten our load for the more difficult hikes, we would consider leaving the stove at home, or not cooking at all. Or maybe we just won't eat. :(

[ralph23]

Hmmm. I can get 12 tablets for less than $8. A new jet boil is more than $100. They are sold everywhere on the internet. I assumed the majority of people on here aren't thru hiking and just out for a couple of weekends a year. Smell has never been an issue for me. In fact, if you hadn't mentioned it I wouldn't have thought they smell at all. They do leave some soot on your cooking pot but it is easily managed by using your tin foil wind screen as a pot cover while hiking.
Plus the weight issue. 12 tablets weigh 6 ounces. A jet boil with fuel is 24 ounces??

[rotorbrent]

Yes boiling water is what most do on the trail and start with that until you decide to branch out. Into other methods on the trail. But soon you will want to try to fry, boil, bake, stew, food on the trail. Most hikers have a box of stoves they have used thru the years of camping. hiking.

[BirdBrain]

Hmmm. I can get 12 tablets for less than $8. A new jet boil is more than $100. They are sold everywhere on the internet. I assumed the majority of people on here aren't thru hiking and just out for a couple of weekends a year. Smell has never been an issue for me. In fact, if you hadn't mentioned it I wouldn't have thought they smell at all. They do leave some soot on your cooking pot but it is easily managed by using your tin foil wind screen as a pot cover while hiking.
Plus the weight issue. 12 tablets weigh 6 ounces. A jet boil with fuel is 24 ounces??

Not saying they are not a viable choice. They are. Just listing common complaints. Are they valid? Each must decide on there own. Is the user willing to shop eBay to get them? Can the user find them while in a trail town? How much will they cost there? I am with you on price. My stove costs 10 cents. BTU per weight, they are hard to beat. I prefer no soot. All of this stuff are just choices. Many choose esbit. There is a reason for that choice. Those reasons are not prioritized higher than the reasons I choose my set up. Esbit is a viable choice... if you deem certain advantages higher than their disadvantages or the advantages of other choices. Like I said, I was just listing common complaints.

[squeezebox]

Be aware that a canister can be overheated and explode if you use the windscreen incorrectly. Many threads on this subject.

[Hangfire]

Be aware that a canister can be overheated and explode if you use the windscreen incorrectly. Many threads on this subject.

Yes good point, I almost found that out the hard way! Make sure and cut mouse holes on that windscreen, there's gotta be air flow across the canister.

[Starchild]

Not sure why more people don't use the solid fuel tablets?? Theres no clean-up, no worry of fuel issues, perfectly safe and no chance of mechanical issues. They don't bring water to a full boil but it's still very hot. To save even more weight you can ditch the metal pot holder they sell and just use some rocks to hold the pot over the flame.
I used ebsit for the summer portion of the thru. Yes there is a odor, not too bad, and helps with the hiker funk odor, actually it's sometimes refreshing compared to the way the pack starts to smell and helps de-oderize them if the hiker funk in the process of re-odorizing them with esbit funk. Running the numbers they are fairly expensive per burn in terms of consumables compared to alcky or iso-butaine.

Also I found it better to start with a small piece, usually a leftover piece, get the water warming up, then use a new tablet to get it to the boil, blow out out and that's your next starting piece. This way you are burning a full sized tablet to get the water over the boiling point, where you need the most heat, instead of a little piece.

But the downfall for a thru is availability, though it is getting better. I found myself carrying too much extra just in case, and the weight efficiency was no longer there. It was also strange where I would find them and where I would not. Town outfitter, no, small hostel store, yes, go figure.

[Smoky Spoon]

I like my Esbit too, REI carries the stove and tablets. I have a pocket rocket but hate the canisters for thru hikes. I use the Stanley metal container to boil in. I only use freeze dried foods so boiling water for them or coffee is all I need. I stock up on the fuel tablets every chance I get. The Esbit is low weight, functions well and with the Stanley a half a tablet boils it in less than seven minutes for me. So with two hot meals a day, breakfast and dinner, i only require one fuel tablet a day.
If anyone reading this buys one, i suggest getting a stop watch and experimenting a bit. Try half tabs and whole tabs etc. Remember I eat only freeze dried foods.




I used ebsit for the summer portion of the thru. Yes there is a odor, not too bad, and helps with the hiker funk odor, actually it's sometimes refreshing compared to the way the pack starts to smell and helps de-oderize them if the hiker funk in the process of re-odorizing them with esbit funk. Running the numbers they are fairly expensive per burn in terms of consumables compared to alcky or iso-butaine.

Also I found it better to start with a small piece, usually a leftover piece, get the water warming up, then use a new tablet to get it to the boil, blow out out and that's your next starting piece. This way you are burning a full sized tablet to get the water over the boiling point, where you need the most heat, instead of a little piece.

But the downfall for a thru is availability, though it is getting better. I found myself carrying too much extra just in case, and the weight efficiency was no longer there. It was also strange where I would find them and where I would not. Town outfitter, no, small hostel store, yes, go figure.

[SkeeterPee]

Ok so I am hearing long term I might want something different then a jet boil. So I am thinking getting a pocket rocket with a pot is best then I have the pot already when I try another stove. My one concern was the issue with wind conditions, but it sounds like that is not a major issue for people and that it might just take longer to boil as the heat is blown away, but that it will still boil? I don't think I want to bother with a windscreen given the risk of explosions.

[Different Socks]

Cook, boil, simmer and bake. All of those and more on my MSR stove I've used for 1000's of miles.

[nsherry61]

Ok so I am hearing long term I might want something different then a jet boil. So I am thinking getting a pocket rocket with a pot is best then I have the pot already when I try another stove. My one concern was the issue with wind conditions, but it sounds like that is not a major issue for people and that it might just take longer to boil as the heat is blown away, but that it will still boil? I don't think I want to bother with a windscreen given the risk of explosions.

Unprotected, in even a moderate wind, the pocket rocket is useless. If you can keep flame going (which may be nearly impossible), your boil time can be 20 minutes or more.
Pocket rockets can work well in wind, only if they are well shielded.

There are plenty of very experienced people that use and love their jetboils for the long term. They do much better in moderate winds, but in stiff winds jetboil with fail, just just the pocket rocket does without a wind protection.

In the end, I think the exploding canister stove fear is significantly overrated. The gas range in your house can explode if managed irresponsibly also, but we still use gas ranges.
I have more problem with keeping my canisters warm enough to work in cold weather, even when using a windscreen. This is one of those deals where prudence is prudent. Use a friggen wind screen if you need to (otherwise your stove won't work in the wind - i.e. many if not most outdoor conditions), BUT, if you do use a windscreen that doesn't include a heat reflector keep touching your canister to make sure it isn't getting hot. AND, a heat reflector is ridiculously easy to make by cutting a disc of aluminum foil and placing it below your burner. And, the heat reflector further isolates your flame from the wind and might even increase heating efficiency.

A note for BirdBrain if he is reading this thread . . . I think the fear of exploding canisters is a lot like peoples' fear of bears . . . way blown out of proportion. ;)

[BirdBrain]

Nice. :D I agree. For the record. I have said nothing about canisters exploding.

[Odd Man Out]

So it's less the cold and maybe more the altitude where alcohol struggles. I couldn't remember. That looks like it has more parts than it needs, though a tall windscreen is a good idea. I have a fairly shallow one.

I can't say I have ever seen a reliable report to indicate that alcohol stoves struggle with either altitude or cold. The issue with alcohol stoves for winter camping is not stove performance, but the amount of fuel you would need to melt snow. If you need to melt snow and ice, then white gas is probably the way to go. As for altitude, I've not seen any reports that alcohol stoves are adversely affected unless it was due to other factors such as wind, systems that are not optimized, operator error. As BB pointed out, these systems have a steep learning curve to get them just right. But in the name of science, I personally volunteer to have a porter carry my eCHS system and a tea bag to the summit of Kilimanjaro so I can do a high altitude test. If you are interested in sponsoring my expedition, PM for instructions on transferring $10,000 to my account.

[Rising3agle]

I've only done about 3-5 day hikes so far, but my experience has been that just boiling water with an inexpensive alcohol stove burning Heet works pretty well. I was a complete noob at it, and it took me under 15 minutes at home to 'figure it out'. There just isn't a lot of complexity to pouring 2oz of fuel into a stove, putting up a windscreen, and lighting it, then setting a pot on top.

I did start out using a Trangia (like $15 on Amazon) and have since branched out into building my own - from cat can stoves, to you name it. Have built pot stand / wind screen combos out of that ground wire mesh stuff and roof tin. Tinkered with a lot of different things, for really cheap; tons of ideas for how to make the best alcohol stove in the world if you like adjusting and tinkering and trying stuff out (which, admittedly, is half of the fun of an alcohol stove).

when out hiking, I still usually carry the trangia, a small windscreen, and 8oz of Heet in a Smart Water bottle (to get the squeezie top). hasn't failed me yet

---

wanting to branch out and try simmering some stuff, I picked up a JetBoil MiniMo. it has a shorter, fatter pot and allows you to simmer. It was a bit pricey, but will work well for camping later if it doesn't work for hiking. Plus I bought it at REI so I have a year to figure out if it works for me, or I can return it (which for me is doubtful, I don't really like parting with gear once I get it). No idea how well it works yet - but the squat fatter pot definitely looked more convenient than previous JetBoil models, and I know I would like simmer capability. So we'll see how it works.

don't be afraid to try out an alcohol stove; they work fine. after you have used them a bit, and figure out that you want more capability from your stove, you can always switch to something that simmers later. but an inexpensive alcohol that will boil water would definitely get you moving and doesn't have a very steep learning curve.

[Odd Man Out]

To answer the OP's question, I use a home made eCHS alcohol stove with an Olicamp XTS pot. I put 2 cups of water and about 150 grams of dehydrated food de jour in the pot. It will come to boil in about 4 min using about 15 mL (1/2 oz) of fuel. I may let the food boil for a minute before extinguishing the stove and transferring the pot to the pot cozy. If the food looks like it might boil over, I will use the "simmer mode" with is to hold the pot about 10 inches above the stove. It sets in the cozy for 15 min and then I eat out of the pot. The Reflectix cozy is very effective. After 15 minutes the food is too hot to eat. I stir and let it cool a bit before I can eat. I use the cozy lid as a coaster to set the pot on. After the stove cools, excess fuel is recovered. When done I will put a bit of water in the pot to rinse it out. I will use my fingers and/or my plastic scrubber (onion bag fragment) to get it clean. I drink the "dish water". Boiling water for tea after supper and coffee in the morning also helps keep the pot clean (clean by camping standards, that is). Except for the AM coffee and PM tea, I only cook supper - cold lunch and breakfast.

[BirdBrain]

I've only done about 3-5 day hikes so far, but my experience has been that just boiling water with an inexpensive alcohol stove burning Heet works pretty well. I was a complete noob at it, and it took me under 15 minutes at home to 'figure it out'. There just isn't a lot of complexity to pouring 2oz of fuel into a stove, putting up a windscreen, and lighting it, then setting a pot on top.

I did start out using a Trangia (like $15 on Amazon) and have since branched out into building my own - from cat can stoves, to you name it. Have built pot stand / wind screen combos out of that ground wire mesh stuff and roof tin. Tinkered with a lot of different things, for really cheap; tons of ideas for how to make the best alcohol stove in the world if you like adjusting and tinkering and trying stuff out (which, admittedly, is half of the fun of an alcohol stove).

when out hiking, I still usually carry the trangia, a small windscreen, and 8oz of Heet in a Smart Water bottle (to get the squeezie top). hasn't failed me yet

---

wanting to branch out and try simmering some stuff, I picked up a JetBoil MiniMo. it has a shorter, fatter pot and allows you to simmer. It was a bit pricey, but will work well for camping later if it doesn't work for hiking. Plus I bought it at REI so I have a year to figure out if it works for me, or I can return it (which for me is doubtful, I don't really like parting with gear once I get it). No idea how well it works yet - but the squat fatter pot definitely looked more convenient than previous JetBoil models, and I know I would like simmer capability. So we'll see how it works.

don't be afraid to try out an alcohol stove; they work fine. after you have used them a bit, and figure out that you want more capability from your stove, you can always switch to something that simmers later. but an inexpensive alcohol that will boil water would definitely get you moving and doesn't have a very steep learning curve.

There are basic safety concerns. They are not complex. The dangers and mishaps are real. People get burnt filling stoves they thought had gone out. People tip stoves over. Alcohol gets dumped and sometimes in the pack. None of this has happened to me. Avoiding such stuff is easy... if you are aware of it and take precautions. I agree that the heating with alcohol is very easy to master. What does have a steep learning curve is chasing efficiency. What OMO and I are suggesting is that this requires thinking in systems and those systems take some time to perfect. It takes some time to even grasp the obstacles. The net is littered with the standard claim that stove x can boil 2 cups of water starting at 70° using only 1/2 oz of fuel. Those claims are optimistic at best and flat out lies at worse. It takes most stoves about an oz of fuel. People exaggerate by not counting the time or fuel it takes to get the stove running. They also don't count the fuel burnt off after the boil because the fuel cannot be recovered. They rely on indoor testing. You can often tell an obsessed tester because they start at 68° F because that makes a nice metric number of 20° C. They also test in ml because ounces could mean weight or volume. To people like OMO and I, the only thing that matters is how the stove performs on the trail. That means combatting the elements and having a "system" that performs well in very adverse conditions. Our systems (they vary a bit, he has a better pot and I have a better cone) both can on average boil 2 cups of water starting at ambient conditions of the trail in about 4 minutes while using 15 ml of methanol (yellow HEET). Getting to those numbers require dedication to the hill of diminishing returns that most will not climb. Most do not climb it because they think any system will get you there and/or they see no hill to climb.

Please do not read me wrong. I agree with the majority of your valid assessments. I only ramble here to explain what steep learning curve does exist. It is almost effortless to walk the foothills. Most stop right there. It takes an honest but obsessed person to chase those last few grams.

[Odd Man Out]

...The dangers and mishaps are real. People get burnt filling stoves they thought had gone out. People tip stoves over. Alcohol gets dumped and sometimes in the pack....

Such as at 1:06 in the video in post #7. He nearly tips over the stove when he lights it with his striker. Then he grabs the stove and an open pan of priming fuel after they are lit. Not optimal.

[Uncle Joe]

I can't say I have ever seen a reliable report to indicate that alcohol stoves struggle with either altitude or cold. The issue with alcohol stoves for winter camping is not stove performance, but the amount of fuel you would need to melt snow. If you need to melt snow and ice, then white gas is probably the way to go. As for altitude, I've not seen any reports that alcohol stoves are adversely affected unless it was due to other factors such as wind, systems that are not optimized, operator error. As BB pointed out, these systems have a steep learning curve to get them just right. But in the name of science, I personally volunteer to have a porter carry my eCHS system and a tea bag to the summit of Kilimanjaro so I can do a high altitude test. If you are interested in sponsoring my expedition, PM for instructions on transferring $10,000 to my account.

I'm in! Since your going to Kilimanjaro you can layover in Nigeria and cash my check there! :D Yeah, I can't recall where I heard that about the altitude but if I find it I'll try to post it.

FWIW, since there is concern in the thread about alcohol stove usage, I use a Trangia. The nice thing about this stove is that any fuel not burned can be used because it has a screw top. I've had no real issues using it. I've found Heet to be the best fuel source so far. It blooms much faster than Ethyl. It also makes a considerable flame. I suppose from an efficiency standpoint there is some waste there. I still would rather carry that and some Heet than a fuel canister. The downside is you can't really simmer. There are simmer rings but I haven't had much luck messing with them. In the end, I'm boiling water and steeping a meal so it works.

[Odd Man Out]

I'm in! Since your going to Kilimanjaro you can layover in Nigeria and cash my check there! :D Yeah, I can't recall where I heard that about the altitude but if I find it I'll try to post it.

FWIW, since there is concern in the thread about alcohol stove usage, I use a Trangia. The nice thing about this stove is that any fuel not burned can be used because it has a screw top. I've had no real issues using it. I've found Heet to be the best fuel source so far. It blooms much faster than Ethyl. It also makes a considerable flame. I suppose from an efficiency standpoint there is some waste there. I still would rather carry that and some Heet than a fuel canister. The downside is you can't really simmer. There are simmer rings but I haven't had much luck messing with them. In the end, I'm boiling water and steeping a meal so it works.

Just make sure it's a lottery check endorsed by a Nigerian Princess. Then were good.

As BB pointed out, the field effectiveness of the system (as opposed to the effectiveness in a garage video) is affected by many things, including how you deal with left over fuel and fuel wasted to prime to the stove. The Trangia avoids these problems by having a pot stand (so you can put your pot on the stove immediately before it blooms) and by having a cap. It is certainly bullet proof. But from the test result I've seen, it seems to be a rather low power stove and heavy weight stove. If you like the Trangia, you could consider a Zelph Starlyte (the version with a lid). It has a fuel absorbing wick so fuel won't spill. When done you can blow it out and cap it to store unused fuel. You will need a pot stand, but that helps make it efficient (no priming/bloom time - instant on/off). It is one of the easiest and safest alcohol stoves you can use. Not expensive to buy (don't know of a DIY option). A simmer ring is trivial to fabricate (although I have not done that). The two down sides (which is why I switched to the eCHS) are low power (possibly comparable to a Trangia) and the power diminishes with fuel load (keep it full for full power).

I have not tested ethanol vs methanol. I should do that sometime - along with the Kili altitude expedition.

[Hangfire]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaD1wKEKXt0

[Namtrag]

Buy the $7.99ish Amazon MSR clone, make a wind screen, and you'll be good to go. I have seen it with free shipping on occasion.

http://www.amazon.com/OuterEQ-Ultralight-Gas-powered-Backpacking-Ignition/dp/B00S7M620A/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&qid=1442945373&sr=8-17&keywords=camping+stove+backpacking

We have a jetboil, which is awesome since all we do is boil water for coffee and freezer bag cooking, but lately we are fooling around with alcohol stoves (we bought one from Zelph), and are also using our MSR clone for fun.

There's something about using alcohol which appeals to me even though it is slower than the jetboil.

[BirdBrain]

Just make sure it's a lottery check endorsed by a Nigerian Princess. Then were good.

As BB pointed out, the field effectiveness of the system (as opposed to the effectiveness in a garage video) is affected by many things, including how you deal with left over fuel and fuel wasted to prime to the stove. The Trangia avoids these problems by having a pot stand (so you can put your pot on the stove immediately before it blooms) and by having a cap. It is certainly bullet proof. But from the test result I've seen, it seems to be a rather low power stove and heavy weight stove. If you like the Trangia, you could consider a Zelph Starlyte (the version with a lid). It has a fuel absorbing wick so fuel won't spill. When done you can blow it out and cap it to store unused fuel. You will need a pot stand, but that helps make it efficient (no priming/bloom time - instant on/off). It is one of the easiest and safest alcohol stoves you can use. Not expensive to buy (don't know of a DIY option). A simmer ring is trivial to fabricate (although I have not done that). The two down sides (which is why I switched to the eCHS) are low power (possibly comparable to a Trangia) and the power diminishes with fuel load (keep it full for full power).

I have not tested ethanol vs methanol. I should do that sometime - along with the Kili altitude expedition.

I have tested for this in an effort to find the absolute lowest amount of fuel that an eCHS can boil 2 cups of water. After many iterations, I built one that can boil 2 cups of water starting at 70° with 10 ml of Kleen strip Green (about 95% ethanol). Bad news is that it takes about 10 minutes to boil said water with said stove. It was a fun goal. It is not practical for the field. I learned several things along the way. Ethanol does not burn as cleanly, has a high flash point, and produces more BTU per weight. Also, efficiency is not the only concern. A slow efficient stove does not react as well to the elements as a more powerful and slightly less efficient stove. The stove I use now will use more fuel, but boil in much less time as my experimental stove. However, in the field both end up using about 15 ml. The time is triple with the experimental stove. I believe we are at the optimum, OMO. Methanol works better in cold, burns cleaner, and is easy to acquire. The eCHS is powerful enough to overcome the elements without a significant drop off in efficiency. Of course all of this is contingent upon a balanced system.

[AtWokman]

I have the minimalist titanium small set. Its the ****2years and counting.
Stove, gas pot holder, and spoon all fits in one.

Down sides; gas. Its got the potential to break. No wind sheid(but making one is easy).

[Uncle Joe]

Just make sure it's a lottery check endorsed by a Nigerian Princess. Then were good.

As BB pointed out, the field effectiveness of the system (as opposed to the effectiveness in a garage video) is affected by many things, including how you deal with left over fuel and fuel wasted to prime to the stove. The Trangia avoids these problems by having a pot stand (so you can put your pot on the stove immediately before it blooms) and by having a cap. It is certainly bullet proof. But from the test result I've seen, it seems to be a rather low power stove and heavy weight stove. If you like the Trangia, you could consider a Zelph Starlyte (the version with a lid). It has a fuel absorbing wick so fuel won't spill. When done you can blow it out and cap it to store unused fuel. You will need a pot stand, but that helps make it efficient (no priming/bloom time - instant on/off). It is one of the easiest and safest alcohol stoves you can use. Not expensive to buy (don't know of a DIY option). A simmer ring is trivial to fabricate (although I have not done that). The two down sides (which is why I switched to the eCHS) are low power (possibly comparable to a Trangia) and the power diminishes with fuel load (keep it full for full power).

I have not tested ethanol vs methanol. I should do that sometime - along with the Kili altitude expedition.

The Trangia I have has a cap and I ordered the stand. I'm not crazy about the stand as it's just wide enough for my pot but I bent the feet in a little to be safer. Heet did a fine job this weekend. Boiling my water much faster than Ethyl. I didn't time it but I'm confident it can do 12oz in about 6 minutes or so maybe sooner. It just didn't seem to take long. I can run some tests, though, to be sure. In the end, unless it's particularly cold out, I don't care about a 6m boil. Ten minutes would bother me, though. The Trangia also comes with a simmer ring but I've never used it. One thing Heet tends to do is burn pretty hot. I get a bit more wide flame that goes up the side of the pot a little bit. It blooms very fast, though, which have mentioned before, I think. I'm happy with it.

[Vegan Packer]

I look at it from the perspective of thinking of what things could be like on a bad, rainy day. I want to get my boil done quickly. I do all freezer bag cooking. I have a Micro Rocket.

[Uncle Joe]

I look at it from the perspective of thinking of what things could be like on a bad, rainy day. I want to get my boil done quickly. I do all freezer bag cooking. I have a Micro Rocket.

Yeah, it's hard not to like JetBoil for speed. I use freezer bags too. Done with cleaning my pot. Steep in the bag then put the bag in the pot for structure.

[Malto]

Only you can answer this question, and it might take a few hikes to figure out your traveling style. Are you a camp chef? Or an eat-simple-meals-and-run kind of hiker? Nobody can answer that question for you. My style, for instance, has evolved to the point I don't even cook any more and that has improved my hiking. I wouldn't expect anyone with a different style of travel to follow that example.

If you really don't know what kind of hiking you'll do, it may be wise to limit the money you spend on things that may end up unused. I haven't seen my old Whisperlite (neither of which is true) in years--I assume it's still around somewhere.

i agree with this. you can spend a lot of money of various stoves. I would start with something cheap and go with it until you determine where you are on the cooking spectrum. I have everything from a whisper light to alcohol and often I take no stove at all.

[Rex Clifton]

Alcohol stoves are finicky, the only one I use anymore is a Caldera Cone paired with a SP Trek 700. For a jetboil type stove I would recommend an MSR Windboiler over the Jetboil Flash. It's a bit heavier but the Windboiler is amazing.

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

[Theosus]

As a huge alcohol stove advocate, I suggest a cheap isobutene setup to start with. Tinker and play with the alcohol setups at home. Read blogs. Get all the safety stuff down at home. Get the bugs out at home. No need for surprises on the trail, like leaky bottles, or dumping fuel into a stove you thought went out, or tipping over everything because you thought the stand was secure, or running out of fuel because someone exaggerated the stoves efficiency, or on and on. Don't get me wrong. I think an alcohol stove is a superior choice. I just don't think it is the choice for a person just starting out.

Agreed! Trying your stove out for the first time on the trail is NOT the place for alcohol stoves. Go outside in your yard and try to cook on the thing a few times. Test the stand (if you have one, my fancy feast stove IS the stand. Try out a few different wind screens. Test cook some of the actual meals you will be eating on the trail. I wanted to take some instant-just-add-water pancakes. A Disaster at home, glad I didn't take them! Test your fuel bottle for leaks. I tried three or four before I found two great ones: My first choice for overnight/two night trips is my Outdoor Products (WalMart) plastic hip flask. It doesn't leak, it's DESIGNED for alcohol, and the curve fits the outside pocket of my pack where I keep my fuel. Plus, it looks like a flask, so if someone steals it and tries to drink it, they get what's coming to them. My second choice is an old lavender-scented body wash bottle I rescued from my wife trying to recycle it. It's bigger than the flask, it has a flip/squirt top that screws on, and the thing just won't leak. It's perfect for fuel.
Definitely test anything DIY before you go! I was on a group/newbie hike that my friend (trail name" The Hobbit") puts on. He told everyone in his hiking class about alcohol stoves. This one woman breaks out her stove on the trail, and it looked like she gave a six year old a screwdriver and told it to punch hold in the cat food can. The poor thing was dented, holes gouged out, metal pieces sticking in and out... and her fuel wouldn't burn, she was using 30% rubbing alcohol from the drug store. It would light but wouldn't stay lit with a pot on it, and the whole thing was soon covered with soot.
I've tipped my stove over trying to light it with sparks from a metal striker. I've tried toasting a bagel on the windscreen and had it drop on the stove. I've had badly designed cone-shaped windscreens that were like blast furnaces, scorching anything under the screen and discoloring my titanium mug. DIY and test at home! Then cook like a pro on the trail...

[BirdBrain]

Agreed! Trying your stove out for the first time on the trail is NOT the place for alcohol stoves. Go outside in your yard and try to cook on the thing a few times. Test the stand (if you have one, my fancy feast stove IS the stand. Try out a few different wind screens. Test cook some of the actual meals you will be eating on the trail. I wanted to take some instant-just-add-water pancakes. A Disaster at home, glad I didn't take them! Test your fuel bottle for leaks. I tried three or four before I found two great ones: My first choice for overnight/two night trips is my Outdoor Products (WalMart) plastic hip flask. It doesn't leak, it's DESIGNED for alcohol, and the curve fits the outside pocket of my pack where I keep my fuel. Plus, it looks like a flask, so if someone steals it and tries to drink it, they get what's coming to them. My second choice is an old lavender-scented body wash bottle I rescued from my wife trying to recycle it. It's bigger than the flask, it has a flip/squirt top that screws on, and the thing just won't leak. It's perfect for fuel.
Definitely test anything DIY before you go! I was on a group/newbie hike that my friend (trail name" The Hobbit") puts on. He told everyone in his hiking class about alcohol stoves. This one woman breaks out her stove on the trail, and it looked like she gave a six year old a screwdriver and told it to punch hold in the cat food can. The poor thing was dented, holes gouged out, metal pieces sticking in and out... and her fuel wouldn't burn, she was using 30% rubbing alcohol from the drug store. It would light but wouldn't stay lit with a pot on it, and the whole thing was soon covered with soot.
I've tipped my stove over trying to light it with sparks from a metal striker. I've tried toasting a bagel on the windscreen and had it drop on the stove. I've had badly designed cone-shaped windscreens that were like blast furnaces, scorching anything under the screen and discoloring my titanium mug. DIY and test at home! Then cook like a pro on the trail...

The things you list are things some would list as reasons to not take an alcohol stove. They are, in fact, reasons to try things at home. I have seen people on the trail that struggled to set their tent up. One person had the instructions out. DIY is a huge part of the experience for me. I love building things that are better suited for my needs than what I can buy. Even if I buy an item, I seek to improve some things about it. Some people list issues with alcohol stoves as reasons to promote their own choice. It would be equally easy to list the down sides of their choice. In the end, it is just a choice... if you know how to use that choice. No matter how you slice it, one should be prepared. A person should test their gear. They should take shakedown hikes. They should be willing to listen. They should seek better ideas that fit their preferences. It is amazing what a person can glean if they have an attitude that their setup can always be improved upon. Or they can just look at something, decide it is right, experience mishaps on the trail, and proclaim that such experiences are unavoidable situations that are just part of hiking. I expect there to be issues. I plan for them. That attitude has lead me to believe that an alcohol stove is the most foolproof and reliable way of boiling water. That choice comes with a learning curve. Learn at home.

[rafe]

Alcohol stoves are finicky, the only one I use anymore is a Caldera Cone paired with a SP Trek 700. For a jetboil type stove I would recommend an MSR Windboiler over the Jetboil Flash. It's a bit heavier but the Windboiler is amazing.

I don't own one but I have seen that Caldera Cone thing in action and it seems to work! Me, I never quite made my peace with alky stoves, so I just stick to a Pocket Rocket. And mostly, yes, it just boils water.

[CarlZ993]

On my thru-hike, I used an alcohol stove from Zelph (Fancee Feast) & was pleased w/ it. Obviously, alcohol will boil water slower than a canister (99 times out of 100). So you have a trade off there. It is usually a lot lighter than a canister stove.

On almost all of my other hikes, I use a canister stove (current favorite is the Soto Windmaster; 2.8 oz & it handles wind extremely well). If I did a thru-hike again, I'd probably opt for this set-up.

Regardless of what system you pick, I'd recommend you make - or buy - a pot cozy made out of Reflectix (attic radiant barrier; basically aluminized bubble-wrap). You boil your water, stir you food it, place in the pot cozy, & double the wait time for what ever the simmer time the recipe calls for. No simmering. No food burnt to the bottom. Food still very hot when you're ready to eat.

Good luck in your decision. As stated previously, any system will work. Each system has its pluses & minuses.

[LIhikers]

During spring, summer and fall my wife and I use an alcohol stove and during winter we use an MSR white gas stove.
In both cases we only boil water (usually) to make up our meal. On either stove we use a K-Mart grease pot.

[QiWiz]

Jetboils are fast but relatively heavy. If you are in less of a hurry, you might try alcohol or Esbit burners with your favorite pot and a good windscreen. Some people (gasp) even use small woodburning backpack stoves on the AT, usually with a just-in-case alcohol or Esbit backup option.

[lemon b]

90 percent of the time these days I use the Pocket Rocket. Used a Whisper lite for years and still go back to the white gas when it's going to be in the 20's or lower. Experimented one year with alcohol and do not like the fidget factor. Have seen plenty of folks who have the art of alcohol stoves wired. Always just been a water boiler , again because of fidget factor. Mainly in the area of clean up.