help, new to pop stove

[beckybellis]

ok.. few questions.
How long does one fill
last (from the time you light it- not from the boil time, what sort of foods would need extra boil time? anything that needs to be boiled first, then cooked boiling for 8 min? (such as mac, and rice..?)
what is the best fuel to use? can you use white gas?
im bringing lots of rice (liptons) couple mountian meals.
can you make scrambled eggs?
how much fuel will i need for one week (7days) cooking appx 2 times a day.
would it be ideal to bring my whisper lite also?
id appreciate anyone who has the time to answer my million questions!!
thanks so much, this is a great message board!!
becky:D

[rafe]

what is the best fuel to use? can you use white gas?

NO NO NO NO NO !!!! Not in a pop-can stove !!!!!

[Fiddler]

Get some S-L-X denatured alcohol at a hardware or paint store or a builders supply like Lowes or Home Depot, or use HEET (gas line antifreeze) in the YELLOW (not red) bottle. Do you have such a stove yet, or thinking of making one? They are really simple, and fun, to make.

Lots of good info in these:
Alcohol Stove Links
http://zenstoves.net/
http://hikinghq.net/sgt_stove/ion_stove.html
http://www.ionstove.com/index.htm
http://wings.interfree.it/index.html
http://www.csun.edu/~mjurey/stove.html

[zelph]

ok.. few questions.
How long does one fill
last (from the time you light it- not from the boil time, what sort of foods would need extra boil time? anything that needs to be boiled first, then cooked boiling for 8 min? (such as mac, and rice..?)
what is the best fuel to use? can you use white gas?
im bringing lots of rice (liptons) couple mountian meals.
can you make scrambled eggs?
how much fuel will i need for one week (7days) cooking appx 2 times a day.
would it be ideal to bring my whisper lite also?
id appreciate anyone who has the time to answer my million questions!!
thanks so much, this is a great message board!!
becky:D

It would be ideal to bring your whisperlite and have your pop stove to heat 2 cups water with 1/2 ounce denatured alcohol, no white gas. You can make scrambled eggs with an egg poacher 1 egg size.

[Two Speed]

ok.. few questions.
How long does one fill
last (from the time you light it- not from the boil time, what sort of foods would need extra boil time? anything that needs to be boiled first, then cooked boiling for 8 min? (such as mac, and rice..?)
what is the best fuel to use? can you use white gas?
im bringing lots of rice (liptons) couple mountian meals.
can you make scrambled eggs?
how much fuel will i need for one week (7days) cooking appx 2 times a day.
would it be ideal to bring my whisper lite also?
id appreciate anyone who has the time to answer my million questions!!
thanks so much, this is a great message board!!
becky:DBecky, not trying to be a smart ass, but much of the answers to your questions depends on the exact stove you have, the fuel, ambient conditions, the pot, the stand, whether or not you're in alignment with Chuck Norris, etc.*

The best thing you can do is experiment with YOUR stove and set up. Much depends on how you handle it, whether on not you like cozy cooking and the types of foods you cook. Building your own stove and fooling with it is the very best way to figure these critters out, so you're on the right track.

*OK, alignment with Chuck Norris shouldn't have THAT much affect on your stove's performance. Unless Chuck thinks it should. See this thread (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=17955) for more info on that. BTW, :welcome , and feel free to join the madness.

[mountain squid]

Assuming you mean an alcohol stove, you will want to use denatured alcohol, which is readily avail along the AT. I carry a 20oz soda bottle and top off when I can. Never ran out and I probably avg 1.5 hot meals/day.

Most Lipton sides/mac-n-cheeses require about 1/2 the liquid stated. I do freezer bag cooking, so I boil the water then add to noodles, rice, etc. Place freezer bag in pot cozy and then wait 10-15 min. The heat is retained in pot cozy and this is how it "cooks". Works well for me and uses less fuel.

Never cooked scrambled eggs, but don't see why you wouldn't be able to.

Only carry one stove.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

[rafe]

From my experience with a TinMan alcohol stove -- which is certainly not extensive:

The stove cools very quickly once the flame goes out. It's cool enough to pick up by hand within a minute or so.
You can fill it with up to 2 oz or so of alcohol. Typically, 1 oz is enough to boil 2 cups of water. That includes about 60-90 seconds for priming, about 5 minutes to reach boil, and then another minute or two before the flame dies out.
With alcohol stoves, you really need to use a pot cozy. Most of the cooking happens inside the cozy, long after the fuel has been consumed. They're really only useful for heating water.
Fuel efficiency varies all over the map. Some folks say they can boil two cups of water with 1/2 oz of alcohol, but I've had no such luck.
It's a completely different mindset from using a Whisperlite.

[beckybellis]

well, i purchased a can stove/alcohol stove from "mechanic mike" on ebay, along with his windguard/pot stand combo.
ill be using a 2 liter pot, and do not have a cozy, although it seems very obvious i should have one..just cant find a cheap one, cant you just cover your pot with aluminum foil?? lol
im sure you all are laughing...
so.. cheap cozys may be found where.. ive found cozy's for certain pots, etc, but is there a universal type cozy? thanks everyone for the quick responses!!! lovin it!
oh.. and i havent recieved the stove yet.. so.. im just trying to get some info on it, so when i get it i can go nuts.
lol

[mountain squid]

Well, I also use Tin Man's stuff found here:

http://www.antigravitygear.com/

Although, you might already have everything else, you can outfit your entire kitchen there.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

[rafe]

so.. cheap cozys may be found where.. ive found cozy's for certain pots, etc, but is there a universal type cozy?

The TinMan (http://www.antigravitygear.com/) himself. (antigravitygear.com) They're usually cut for specific common camping-pot sizes. Or you can make your own, from foam or Reflectix.

[beckybellis]

http://www.antigravitygear.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=3_13&products_id=141
so wouldnt this work as a cozy for any 2 quart pot?

[Lilred]

well, i purchased a can stove/alcohol stove from "mechanic mike" on ebay, along with his windguard/pot stand combo.
ill be using a 2 liter pot, and do not have a cozy, although it seems very obvious i should have one..just cant find a cheap one, cant you just cover your pot with aluminum foil?? lol
im sure you all are laughing...
so.. cheap cozys may be found where.. ive found cozy's for certain pots, etc, but is there a universal type cozy? thanks everyone for the quick responses!!! lovin it!
oh.. and i havent recieved the stove yet.. so.. im just trying to get some info on it, so when i get it i can go nuts.
lol

I built my own cozy using the silver reflection material that one uses to block their car's interior from the sun. Got it at a dollar store, cheap. duct tape works great for this. Pick up a grease pot from KMart for 8 bucks, cheap. build your own stove for free, extra cheap. you can get a 16oz. plastic flask in the camping dept. at Walmart for 3 bucks, cheap, and it comes with a 1oz shotglass on top to measure your fuel out with. 2oz a day gets me two hot meals. another 1/2 oz gets me a hot cocoa at night. The flask holds more than enough for six or seven days on the trail. I always carry a tab or two esbit fuel as well, just in case. DEnatured alcholol is sold by the oz all over the trail. Haven't had trouble finding fuel in the first 500 miles of the AT.

[mountain squid]

Technically, that is a cover for the cozy. It might work as a cozy, but maybe not as efficiently. I don't know. Since Tin Man displays it as a cover, that is what I would use it for. My pot cozy from Tin Man has made most of the AT without the need for a cover (I've also a pouch cozy).

The actual cozy's are here:
http://www.antigravitygear.com/store/index.php?cPath=3_13

The pouch cozy would work well for freezer bag cooking.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

[beckybellis]

i see those cozy's but i just am confused because they are for certain pans.. i just have a regular aluminum 2 quart pot.. and wonder that those might not fit?

[rafe]

i see those cozy's but i just am confused because they are for certain pans.. i just have a regular aluminum 2 quart pot.. and wonder that those might not fit?

2 quarts is a bit big to use with most alcohol stoves. Far more than you need for solo backpacking. Remember, 1 oz of alcohol will boil two cups of water. Not two quarts.

[mountain squid]

Yeah, as TT mentioned, 2 qts is way more pot than you will likely need. I have the 3 cup Tin Man pot. As I mentioned, you only need about half the liquid "required" for a Lipton side. Which means only about 1 to 1.5 cups of water.

If you still wish to take the 2qt pot, contact Tin Man for a customed made cozy.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

[beckybellis]

haha.. i wasnt going to fill up 2 quarts of water.. :) its just the size of the pot i bring..

[beckybellis]

ex.. sometimes 2 boxes mac and cheese.... fills up a pot :)

[beckybellis]

I think what i will do is just simply experiment and make my own using the foam, furnace tape, and hd aluminum foil.. and hopefully i can figure it all out, sure it will be fine.
so someone posted that what something would require for water, use half? like the lipton bag of rice.. that only will use 1 cup.. seems like to little, but then again.. WHAT DO I KNOW.. ive never done it yet hahaha!

[mountain squid]

That is alot of mac-n-cheese. I would probably only eat 1/2 box at a time and throw in a tuna pkt.

See you on the trail,
mt squid

[beckybellis]

yeah, that is alot!! and i love tuna with my mac! mmm...

[beckybellis]

one more question.. would it be better/easier to just make a quart size ziploc cozy? such as this one.. http://www.antigravitygear.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=3_13&products_id=72
i mean most of my hot food consists of lipton rice, few ramen, mac n cheese, couple mountian meals, oatmeal, stuffing, and the other meals are pancakes, and eggs.
i would really then, just have to repackage the oatmeal, rice, and mac and cheese into freezer bags, and then use the cozy.. RIGHT?? HAHA!

[mountain squid]

Yes, I mentioned that back in post#13. Additionally, Lipton Sides are foil lined. You can pour hot water directly into them. I would still use a freezer bag, though, because the Lipton bag will be pretty full of water (kind of messy).

See you on the trail,
mt squid

[Lilred]

I have always used the full amount of water required by package directions and I have never had a lot of liquid left over. It cooks up perfect in my cozy.

[zelph]

ok.. few questions.
How long does one fill
last (from the time you light it- not from the boil time, what sort of foods would need extra boil time? anything that needs to be boiled first, then cooked boiling for 8 min? (such as mac, and rice..?)
what is the best fuel to use? can you use white gas?
im bringing lots of rice (liptons) couple mountian meals.
can you make scrambled eggs?
how much fuel will i need for one week (7days) cooking appx 2 times a day.
would it be ideal to bring my whisper lite also?
id appreciate anyone who has the time to answer my million questions!!
thanks so much, this is a great message board!!
becky:D



ex.. sometimes 2 boxes mac and cheese.... fills up a pot :)


I think you should consider using the pop can as your secondary stove and use the whisperlite as primary. Your 2 quart pot would get lonley using the pop can.

As you learn more about pop cans at home you'll be able to switch over at some later date and make it your primary. You might even try to wickitise it.

[beckybellis]

thanks everyone for the info!!

[atraildreamer]

... , and feel free to join the madness.
ASA (Alcohol Stove Anonymous) support groups meet regularly at WB, and on many other backpacking sites. Trust me...you'll soon need to join ASA! :banana :jump :bse :banana

[beckybellis]

:welcome me to the ASA.. then.. haha!!:o :o :o