Gross stupidity with an alcohol stove

[Jsaults]

I was fiddling with my collection of alcohol stoves this afternoon. I decided to run time-to-boil tests, and when I came to my last stove, a White Box. I was low on fuel. I was using a BIC lighter and was having trouble getting the alcohol in the stove to light, so in a moment of gross stupidity I tilted the stove. Bad idea. It lit, but the sudden increase in pressure caused alcohol to squirt out some of the flame ports and immediately catch fire. On my thumb and back of hand. And a bit on my cotton shirt. Luckily I was running the tests on top of the washer, so I flushed the alcohol and exposed skin with copious quantities of cold water. No grievous damage done, but my shirt has a scorch mark.

To quote Ellen Ripley, "Lucky lucky lucky."

BTW, no drinking alky was involved in this mishap.

http://whiteboxalcoholstoves.com/

 

[Bob B.]

Wow, I am glad it ended well ... close call.

Bob.

 

[Canotrouge]

Lucky lucky lucky indeed!! Look like a good stove though... I like alcohol stove!!

 

[red langford]

I too have had lapses in judgement while experimenting with alcohol stoves. For that reason I am sticking with my Naphtha. One thing to eff up in the garage but out on the trail could mean dire consequences. Thankfully you came out of it with nothing more that a few scorch marks and some embarrassment.

 

[ppine]

Alcohol stoves have been popular on big boats for years, partly because they don't produce any fumes that can collect in the bilge. It reduces the explosion hazard greatly compared to propane or other gases. The downside is that alcohol flames are hard to see, and people get burned more often as a result.

 

[Jsaults]

ppine : True regarding alky stoves on boats. But I had NO trouble seeing the plume(s) of flame emanating from my stove! Added to the excitement.

Jim

 

[HOOP]

Whew! Glad you were not hurt Jsaults!

As people go lighter with smaller UL alcohol stoves, they get tippier and tippier, both with their own small base and the pot support base, if there even is one. (I know Jsaults you did a boo boo not related to the Whitebox stove design itself, so this is not a critique of your stove). But for those thinking that alcohol stoves may be dangerous, I offer the following advice from my own experience over the past 2 years when I started using an alcohol stove full time for canoe tripping (when I am not cooking on an open wood fire).

I have been using the Clikstand with my Trangia. It’s a very solid set up with the inherent stability of a triangle. Its broad so it supports the burner and the pot on top. They make a wire adapter to hold the Evernew Ti burner too (which I own as well). Its easy to light the burner without needing to tip it, because the Clikstand has ample room for your hand to get in there with a lighter, ferro rod, or match. Hence I think this is a very safe alcohol stove set up, where one would almost have to try to upset it. I use a full standard foil windscreen (Primus brand).

I know the UL hikers will cringe at a Clikstand-Trangia combo, but this is not an UL hiking website, it’s a canoe tripping website. I would suggest that this combo weight is statistically insignificant compared to the canoe weight, hence its statistically weightless!

I would NEVER use an alcohol stove inside a tent because if it is upset, you get flowing liquid flameage, which will be impossible to extinguish inside a tent! So use it outside with a firm base and pot support, and all is well.

 

[Canotrouge]

I agree with HOOP, I've been using a tangia for years, maybe close to 15. The outdoor school my wife teaches at use only trangia for all there trips, fall, winter and spring. The reason on switching to Trangia from white gas, was a safety issue, a maintenance issue and the learning curve that is really small with the Trangia's stove. They use a bit more fuel than white gas, but really, it is not that big of a deal compare to all the benefits.

 

[Jsaults]

I should add that my favored method for starting the White Box and my two Minibull Designs stoves is to use a firesteel and striker. Time to lose all of the BICs.

 

[ppine]

I agree with Jim that firesteels make good lighters for stoves.

 

[Jsaults]

No Title

Hmmmmmm. I wonder if I could light my little Peterson "nose warmer" with a firesteel? Maybe while lighting a stove?
Jim

 

[Sturgeon]

I've been using the Trangia in the Clikstand for the last two years on and off. Great combo. But you won't catch me using the fire steel to light it. The quick toward-the-stove motion is recipe for disaster with a klutz like me. I kept hitting the darn Clikstand stove with my striking hand. Now I just dip a long stick in the alcohol, light it with a lighter or match and calmly light the stove.
JSaults, glad you didn't do too much damage to yourself.
Don't want to hijack the thread, but Hoop, I'm curious about the Evernew Burner you mentioned... How does it stack up vs. the Trangia itself.

 

[Jsaults]

Sturgeon, the trick with a firesteel is to hold the striker stationary and draw the steel back towards you. That is how THIS klutz does it.

Jim

 

[Mnoutdoorfunguy]

Great information from everyone! Thanks. I am a relatively recent convert to alcohol (stoves that is) and the Trangia has been wonderful. Alas, one's youth wasted fiddling with white gas stoves. The full Trangia system has been wonderful for our paddling set-up. I am concerned about weight, but feel that the stability, ease of set up, and windproofness of the Storm Cooker are more important than any weight savings. With this, we can use a small Bank's Fry Bake Pan on top of the windscreen and a twiggy fire on top of that. On day trips or weekend paddles we carry a 10" steel wok and use the gas burner to make some great stir fry meals. The alcohol burner doesn't have enough heat to truly stir fry so we opt for the gas burner and recycle the canisters when empty. The fire steel and striker has never failed to light either stove after one or two tries. By the way, we use larger 25 version for two people. I suppose the Europeans are daintier eaters than we two Midwesterners. It is supposed to be able to cook for 3-4, HAH! We have two 25's in hard anodized and a 27 in HA for solo meals or when we have an extra person or more appetite.
I no longer have any white gas or other type of canister stove and, without boasting, I have had or used them all except for the new generation of canister stoves: all of the MSR's, Coleman camp and backpacking, Svea, Optimus, early butane canisters. It is encouraging that, if you keep an open mind, better things just bite you in the face! Take care everyone and keep the alcohol of your hands and where it belongs, in you gullet.

 

[Sturgeon]

Sturgeon, the trick with a firesteel is to hold the striker stationary and draw the steel back towards you. That is how THIS klutz does it.
Jim

Aaaaaah! It's those little things that surprise and delight. It's like finding out you've been mispronouncing a word for years. Thanks Jim!

 

[Sturgeon]

Mnoutdoorfunguy. So you build a wood fire on a platform on top of the Trangia stormcooker set?

 

[HOOP]

Don't want to hijack the thread, but Hoop, I'm curious about the Evernew Burner you mentioned... How does it stack up vs. the Trangia itself.

Quasi hijack, so I'll keep it brief!

I have only been messing with the Evernew at home, doing tests in the Clickstand (with the wire adapter ring from Clikstand). My Trangia + Clikstand cooking depends on simmering at a lower flameage and temperature, using a simmer ring, since I: (1) rehydrate meals where I want a long slow simmer; (2) cook fish in oil at a low temperature, and I do not want the oil splattering bear attractant everywhere, and (3) low temp foods like frying OvaEasy eggs or pancakes in a frypan, and the aforementioned fish. Once the pan is up to heat, I toss on the simmer ring and it cooks well

The good news is that you can use a Trangia simmer ring on the Evernew burner. It fits pretty good with my home tests. Sometimes you get flame up around it due to the Evernew's lower jets, but press it down with a stick, and it usually self-seals again. Without the simmer capability, the bare Evernew or any other alcohol stove would not fit my needs. The Evernew also cannot be transported with fuel in it, so you have to pour back the un-used fuel into your fuel bottle, and let the wet internal wicking either evaporate before packing, or burn it off (no big deal sine I don't have to pack up immediately after cooking anyway). My Trangia leaks through the inevitable side crimp metal cracks anyways, so I carry it inside a small leak proof screw top plastic container. I may eventually shift to the pour back method for it too.

I am happy for now with my Trangia burner for canoe trips. But on my next hiking trip where I am trimming serious grams for the pack, I plan to bring the Evernew with Trangia simmer ring, and Clikstand.

 

[Mnoutdoorfunguy]

Hi Sturgeon,
For baking with the small Bank's Fry Bake Pan, I first put a small, 27, right side up in the top windscreen. Then I put the Fry Bake on top of that. The simmer ring is set at about half open. Then a small, twiggy fire is built on top of the Fry Bake. This has worked very well for us. I know there are a number of people that dry bake with the two Trangia pots, but this my preferred set up.
Thanks

 

[oldie moldy]

Just a question for you guy's who use those alcohol stoves; somewhere I read that they make chemicals that added to a campfire give it (the fire) various colors. The thing that has always given me worries about alcohol is I can't see the flames in daylight, is there anything that a person could add to alcohol to where you could see the stuff burning?

Rob

 

[Sturgeon]

@ Hoop and mnoutdoorfunguy, thank you both for taking the time to answer my questions. Much appreciated.