{"id":22867,"date":"2012-03-22T18:31:09","date_gmt":"2012-03-22T23:31:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artofmanliness.com\/?p=22867"},"modified":"2021-06-01T19:53:39","modified_gmt":"2021-06-02T00:53:39","slug":"how-to-choose-a-camp-stove","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/lifestyle\/gear\/how-to-choose-a-camp-stove\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Choose a Camp Stove"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Vintage<\/p>\n

The question of how to choose a camp stove sometimes ends up being a discussion with the rancor of a religious debate. Ultralighters, basecampers, and everyone in-between has an opinion. So let\u2019s explore the different options, and maybe we can come to an ecumenical agreement.<\/p>\n

There are many stoves on the market, and almost all have unique features that give them their niche. Ultra-light, ultra-small, ultra-blowtorch: they all have functions that serve a certain kind of purpose on a certain kind of trip. The \u201cbest\u201d stove is the one that\u2019s best for you, when <\/em>it\u2019s best for you.<\/p>\n

Stoves are usually divided up into two main categories: liquid fuel stoves and canister stoves. They are often further divided into basecamp and portable stoves. Let’s take a look at some of the features and drawbacks of the various stoves in each grouping.<\/p>\n

Basecamp Liquid Stoves and Canister Stoves<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Advantages<\/em><\/strong>: Higher heat output. Pot stability. Capacity for larger pots<\/em>.
\nDisadvantages<\/em><\/strong>: Bulky and heavy. For canister stoves, the heat costs a little more.<\/em><\/p>\n

I lumped the basecamp stoves into one category as they are more or less identical in their functions. These are the large, two-burner (or three) stoves you recognize from when you were a youth. They\u2019re big, they put out a lot of heat, and they\u2019re great for recreating conditions that rival the home kitchen. In fact, we\u2019ve been known to use our nostalgically green body with red tank Coleman two-burner for cooking french fries on the porch to keep the kitchen from becoming a franchise of McDonald’s with all the attending grease and none of the profit.<\/p>\n

I also have a flat propane-fueled basecamp stove that fits nicely into spots where the Coleman would be a squeeze.  It doesn\u2019t throw off the BTUs of a Coleman, but it\u2019s quiet, clean, and quite a bit lighter. So what if your coffee takes eight minutes instead of six?  You\u2019re outside, enjoying a lovely view, not at Starbucks.<\/p>\n

The benefits of basecamp stoves are obvious: more heat and more stability. If you can cook in a kitchen, you can cook on a basecamp stove.  But what they gain in convenience, they lose in portability.  Take one backpacking? Nope.  How about on a canoe or kayak trip? A canoe trip<\/a>, perhaps, especially if you\u2019re not portaging and if you\u2019re cooking for a very large group (over a dozen or so). A kayak trip, well, they\u2019re probably not going to fit through the hatches. Oh well.<\/p>\n

Portable Stoves<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Liquid-fueled<\/strong><\/p>\n

Advantages<\/em><\/strong>: Best cost to heat ratio. Good for air travel (if stove is clean). Perform well in cold weather. Option to burn multiple fuels. Usually field-serviceable<\/em>.
\nDisadvantages<\/em><\/strong>: Can be fussy and require priming to start. Possibility of pollution is higher.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Portable<\/a>

A venerable Optimus 8R<\/p><\/div>\n

These are common and popular, as they can travel all over the world, many burning whatever fuel they come across. They are lightweight and portable, sometimes stowing inside your cook kit to save space. They are relatively simple little contraptions, so they are long-lived and usually field-serviceable. They are considerably less expensive per BTU as liquid fuel doesn\u2019t come in canisters.<\/p>\n

\"Flame<\/a>

Oops. Flare-up.<\/p><\/div>\n

However, liquid-fueled stoves have downsides. They are less convenient, as they usually require priming and can do a lot of flaring up before they settle down to business. They can be somewhat noisy, like my old Svea 123 that I\u2019ve had for decades, but it\u2019s a nice little putter, which I am told sounds like a very small V1 rocket. Probably not very comforting to someone who lived through WWII in London, but I like it.<\/p>\n

Many of these stoves have interchangeable jets that allow you to use different fuels such as automotive fuel or kerosene. If you don\u2019t change the jet, they\u2019ll smoke like an Italian movie star and eventually clog until they\u2019re cleaned out.<\/p>\n

\"Man<\/a><\/p>\n

If you are considering air travel, your stove must be whistle-clean. A friend of mine who went backpacking in Tibet wanted to take his stove with him but was having trouble getting it clean enough for the airlines. I told him something like, \u201cLook dude. If you can afford airline tickets to Kathmandu, you can afford a new stove. Make sure it burns kerosene and donate it to the locals when you come home.\u201d<\/p>\n

The biggest disadvantage is pollution\u2014a very small amount of white gas or kerosene can pollute a lot of water (10,000 gallons according to the Leave No Trace people), so if you\u2019re filling your stove on a sandbar and you spill a few tablespoons of fuel, you\u2019ve just polluted thousands of gallons of water. It doesn\u2019t mean you shouldn\u2019t use liquid fuel stoves, they just require more care.<\/p>\n

The Trangia Methanol Stove<\/strong><\/p>\n

Advantages<\/em><\/strong>: Simple. Safe. Dead quiet. Use non-petroleum based fuel<\/em>.
\nDisadvantages<\/em><\/strong>: Lower heat output. Less control over heat. Fuel is less convenient and can melt your Swiss Army Knife handle.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Portable<\/a>There is one liquid stove that isn\u2019t conventional, for fuel or for function: the Trangia stove. A Swedish stove that burns methanol, also known as wood alcohol, it\u2019s very fuel-efficient. The Trangia is very stable and self-contained and can be used safely in areas where a gas stove may not work. It functions by burning alcohol in a small wicked cup, sort of like a Sterno but with more efficiency. It has one small vice, and that is it can take two to three times longer to boil water, as methanol is not loaded with the BTUs that you find in white gas or kerosene. That said, you just have to alter your camp set-up routine\u2014get out the stove and light it up, and when you\u2019re done setting up your tent, you\u2019ve got your water boiling.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>Fuel is usually obtained at a pharmacy if you want the highest quality methanol. If you have a friend who\u2019s a chemist at the local college, even better.  However, the methanol is tough on plastic. Spill it on some plastics and they melt or at least get very sticky.<\/p>\n

\"Trangia<\/a>The nicest thing about the Trangia stove is its quiet nature. Sitting on a sand bar on the Wisconsin River, I\u2019ve heard herons hunting frogs in the shallows a hundred yards away, and the only sign of a boiling kettle was the lid rattling when the water was ready for tea. That\u2019s nice. And since methanol is a wood alcohol, it\u2019s a renewable resource. Bueno<\/em>.<\/p>\n