View Full Version : Alcohol stove melting pennies !! help.
burntoutphilosopher
11-30-2010, 20:19
hi guys, been trying a few alcohol stoves, and my sideburner jet stove is melting the penny i used to cover the fill hole.
anyone had this happen? any idea why?
i have one stove stuffed with insulation that actually hasn't melted a penny yet, not sure if this is why, or maybe less jets so cooler burn?
... also as for wicks, i found some cool stuff at the hardwear store, it's a cloth you put behind metal pipes before you weld them, won't burn or melt up to 2500 degrees and is softer than wool, makes a great wick, far better than the pink stuff in your attic.
anyway comments on alcohol stoves in general would be appreciated, this is a new world for me.
Skidsteer
11-30-2010, 20:26
Use a nickel.
burntoutphilosopher
11-30-2010, 20:34
L O L
solves the symptom, but not the problem.
it shouldn't be that hot in the first place. not off the use of only 0.75 ounces of HEET
Skidsteer
11-30-2010, 20:44
L O L
solves the symptom, but not the problem.
it shouldn't be that hot in the first place. not off the use of only 0.75 ounces of HEET
Well yeah. Not to put too fine a point on it but the Penny stove is a colossal piece of crap design from the standpoint of effeciency. IMO anyway. Even a basic Pepsi can stove is more effecient that a Penny stove under actual real world conditions.
Try a catstove or kitten stove. They're a lot more forgiving.
burntoutphilosopher
11-30-2010, 20:46
:: googling now ::
thanks for the help... i'm a cannister stove person never tried alcy before.
check out my penny stove video shows how to fix it lol
at you tube this is me [rjburg ]
Skidsteer
11-30-2010, 21:30
check out my penny stove video shows how to fix it lol
at you tube this is me [rjburg ]
Hee Hee! That's a classic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxNIqG1qZmA
Penny Stove : see the new Low Profile version
As good as before but more compact.
Franco
Wise Old Owl
11-30-2010, 22:55
oh how many pennys does one need to complete the trail?
4eyedbuzzard
11-30-2010, 23:58
Hee Hee! That's a classic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxNIqG1qZmA
Love it! The Gallagher of penny stoves.
Maybe this thread should be in the humor section. Alcohol burns at about 500 F
Copper melts at aroung 2000 F..
Skidsteer
12-01-2010, 07:15
Maybe this thread should be in the humor section. Alcohol burns at about 500 F
Copper melts at aroung 2000 F..
Pennies are made of zinc which melts at 785 F.
Copper plated zinc to be exact but the melting point is still way above the temp of Alcohol. I've been using a penny stove for years and have never had a penny melt. Maybe I'm missing something here.
OK I just pulled out my penny stove that has had the same penny in it for over a year now. It's been used probably 60-70 times during that period and I see the penny is warped and now easy to bend with my fingers. I guess my old eyes just never noticed the "melting" before. I'll sit down and be quiet now.
couscous
12-01-2010, 08:14
Try using a penny that's older than 1982 .. that's when they were changed from 95% copper/5% zinc to 97.5% zinc/2.5% copper.
burntoutphilosopher
12-01-2010, 09:58
since there seems to be some skepticism, i thought i'd post pics.
this is after a FIRST USE with 3/4 of an ounce of normal yellow HEET.
the sideburner jet does not have a wicking material inside, the top burning jet does.
~Paul
9556
9557
9558
9559
You don't need wicking material in a penny stove. They work on pressure built up in the can because of the heated fuel.
I use a lot smaller holes than you have. I bet your getting the stove to hot and pressurized fuel is coming out of the fill hole. Heating the penny and melting it. Just some ideas I'm throwing out.
atraildreamer
12-04-2010, 13:17
hi guys, been trying a few alcohol stoves, and my sideburner jet stove is melting the penny i used to cover the fill hole.
Just proves that the US Dollar is getting weaker in the world economy! :rolleyes:
hi guys, been trying a few alcohol stoves, and my sideburner jet stove is melting the penny i used to cover the fill hole.
anyone had this happen? any idea why?
i have one stove stuffed with insulation that actually hasn't melted a penny yet, not sure if this is why, or maybe less jets so cooler burn?
... also as for wicks, i found some cool stuff at the hardwear store, it's a cloth you put behind metal pipes before you weld them, won't burn or melt up to 2500 degrees and is softer than wool, makes a great wick, far better than the pink stuff in your attic.
anyway comments on alcohol stoves in general would be appreciated, this is a new world for me.
You've got contaminated fuel. It has turned into something more potent than from when it was new. Not my way of thinking but a reliable source from youtube videos. When a stove burns that hot to melt a penny, then it's bad fuel.
burntoutphilosopher
12-04-2010, 15:27
^^ Contaminated fuel?
never thought that was an option. basically something other than methanol raising them temp of the flame?
has anyone else experienced this?
i guess if the methanol burns around 550F and the zinc melts at 750F then it's not unreasonable that whatever part of the HEET that is 'proprietary blend' could raise it just enough... add that to the large and numerous vent holes and i tipped the scales.
...i am starting to appreciate the simplicity of my heavy cannister stove.
You've got contaminated fuel. It has turned into something more potent than from when it was new. Not my way of thinking but a reliable source from youtube videos. When a stove burns that hot to melt a penny, then it's bad fuel.
bwaahaaahahaa
It couldn't be a design flaw in the stove now could it? ;)
^^ Contaminated fuel?
never thought that was an option. basically something other than methanol raising them temp of the flame?
has anyone else experienced this?I was just pulling your leg. There are stove makers that blame things on bad/contaminated fuel. Long story from the past.
RussB, never could it be a design flaw, no way!!!:D
...i am starting to appreciate the simplicity of my heavy cannister stove.
Don't go back to that:eek:, have Skidsteer make you a kitten stove. He may have some on the shelf.
burntoutphilosopher
12-04-2010, 22:10
wow, major fail...
... bought a fresh bottle of heet, and have a fresh set of melted penny's.
i did make a cat can stove that worked really well. only used .7 of an ounce of fuel and didn't quite boil 2 cups, not to a rolling boil by any means. will try more tomorrow.
back to work monday so i wanted to get all this locked down before the end of my vacay
burntoutphilosopher
12-04-2010, 22:14
the cat stove i made is here:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=66981
working on a real working version, this was a hand done rough cut just to test the principle.