View Full Version : Question about alcohol stoves
El Toro '94
07-11-2009, 23:08
How well do alcohol stoves perform in winter? By winter, I mean winter in the southern Appalachians, not melting snow in the Arctic. I'm looking at switching to an alcohol stove for my hike, and was going to carry it at least in November and december. Should be in central/sw Virginia/NC in Jan-Feb, was wondering if the alky will do or whether I should switch back to a white gas stove for Jan and Feb.
How well do alcohol stoves perform in winter? By winter, I mean winter in the southern Appalachians, not melting snow in the Arctic. I'm looking at switching to an alcohol stove for my hike, and was going to carry it at least in November and december. Should be in central/sw Virginia/NC in Jan-Feb, was wondering if the alky will do or whether I should switch back to a white gas stove for Jan and Feb.
well, Iditarod racers use alcohol stoves:
http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF16/1634.html
Granted, the stoves they use have wicks. I take a boy scout troop to Shining Rock Wilderness every Jan or Feb. A couple of years ago, it was below zero Sun morning. I had my brasslite. I was the only one in the group (everyone else had canisters) that had hot coffee that morning...
harryfred
07-12-2009, 01:19
I use home made alky stoves, I hike around southern PA all year long. I have not yet camped out after the first couple of weeks of Nov. but I do stop on my day hikes and make myself some cup-o-soup or coffee. I keep my alcohol close to my body to stay warm and I sometimes "spill" alcohol over the edge of my stove and light that to get it started. It takes a lot more alcohol to get water hot on very cold days I never wait long enough for a boil but it would take a lot longer than in the warmer weather. I have talked to hikers that do over nights on the colder months with a alky stove and have been told that they use it close to their camp fire to get it to work.
Allen1901
07-12-2009, 06:04
I live in the area You are talking about and use alcohol stoves all winter.
I've used an open top side burning "pepsi can" stove with methonal as cold as 9 F.
Colder than that I usually use a wick stove sold by www.minibulldesign.com (http://www.minibulldesign.com)
I would avoid a "photon" type pressurized stove. It also helps to keep your fuel warm by keeping it in a shirt pocket under your coat.
Cheers!
kayak karl
07-12-2009, 07:41
How well do alcohol stoves perform in winter? By winter, I mean winter in the southern Appalachians, not melting snow in the Arctic. I'm looking at switching to an alcohol stove for my hike, and was going to carry it at least in November and december. Should be in central/sw Virginia/NC in Jan-Feb, was wondering if the alky will do or whether I should switch back to a white gas stove for Jan and Feb.
i used mine on the trail thru jan and feb. not a problem.
Big Dawg
07-12-2009, 07:58
They work fine, but can be a bit finicky. On my supercat stove, I wick-a-tised it at the base (see my pics), which assists especially in cold weather. I also put my small bottle of alky in my pocket or something else insulated for a few minutes to warm the alky up a bit in cold weather, which helps it light better.
Big Dawg
07-12-2009, 08:02
They work fine, but can be a bit finicky. On my supercat stove, I wick-a-tised it at the base (see my pics), which assists especially in cold weather. I also put my small bottle of alky in my pocket or something else insulated for a few minutes to warm the alky up a bit in cold weather, which helps it light better.
If you wick-a-tise the stove, then you'll need to put a few drops of alky on the wick before lighting.
If you don't add a wick, then starting w/ warmer alky & stove will be more important when lighting up, in my experience.
I have used both the Starlyte and the Fancee Feest at temps below 0*F. The Starlyte performed beautifully at -4*F, the FF at -7*F. Both are wick stoves.
Starlyte history
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=18383
Fancee Feest History
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=27262
More on alky stoves
http://www.bplite.com (http://www.bplite.com/)
In early April, around the NC/GA order, I got caught in the spring snowstorm. 15 to 20 degrees F. Alcohol worked fine, once lit.
It was difficult to start the stove, until I added a scrap of paper for a wick. Then no problem.
medicjimr
07-12-2009, 11:22
I have used my catstove in NW Pa in Jan, Feb down in teens with no issues.
It has been pointed out before that mushers in Alaska use alcohol stoves, so there is no question that alcohol can burn at very low temperatures.
However they don't use them because they are light/hot or economical in fuel usage, they do so because they are maintenance free and safe.
Those guys use huge stoves and quarts of fuel, not ounces.
(and of course it was the standard issue to the Swedish Army for decades)
But if you are prepared to wait, don't have snow/ice to melt and can start the burn ( the easiest way is provably the cotton ball/vaseline start, unfold one , light it and drop it into the stove ) alcohol will burn .
Franco
Stick with open or wick based stoves for cold temps and you should be fine. I find pressurized alky stoves to be way too finicky for cold weather camping. Also use a windscreen with a close fit to the pot, maybe 1/4" all around. That helps a lot.