Stoves for a Small Sailboat

[pinnache]

HI there have just taken owenership of Hunter 701 (23ft) which the previous owner had placed a LPG stove in it with the instructions along the lines of "if you ever want to seriously use that make sure you vent it out into the cockpit...." now I know the principles of what he was talking about and have read plenty about the safety of gas on boats but here's the thing ...I couldn't really be bothered!!!!

am thinking of scrapping the whole LPG thing and going to a meths/paraffin/petrol stove. Was looking at the coleman unleaded fuel 2 burner stove....opinions please????/

SeaJay

[sabray]

not knowing the exact set up presumably tho old owner was talking about the tanks and where they were. Propane is a great fuel use it safely. If I found the propane wasn't working as a safe option on your size boat the next choice would be an origo alchohol stove. Id try to make propane work first though youll be happier. Add a little a rail mount barbeque.

[virginia boy]

I am waiting on delivery of a stove identical to this "Little Cod" except that mine is blue enamel. I can hardly wait for Christmas eve sitting with my wife in front of a warm fire. The dollar price is high, but romance is priceless.

I also purchased two drop in alcohol burners which allows me to cook with passive alcohol like my current stove but with more style.

[sabray]

love that stove Im struggling how to fit it in. On a 23'boat it would cook the owners. On my 44 it would be lovely. but where?

[Brodie]

I feel your pain. I installed a used Wallas 95DU diesel stove on a 24' Swiftsure that originally had no stove aboard. Because of the insurance isues with LPG and the pain in the ass that alcohole provides I installed the Wallas. This is a great little Stove that also privides heat with the blower lid option. Because the combustion prosses is contained and exhausted overboard there is no condensation or exhaust smell. Even a boat without a Diesel engine can use this stove with a small day tank.

[Brodie]

As you can see it looks right at home on a small boat.

[MichaelC]

Please avoid the unleaded fuel on your boat. That is white gas - great for backpacking where I use it constantly, but not so great on a boat. I don't like propane, but I recognize that many people use it safely and successfully. Pressure kerosene stoves are wonderful, provided they are gimballed, but I would not try to use one on a fixed counter, and you have to be scrupulous ab out keeping it maintained. Again, propane is much easier. Any complication at all, particularly mechanical complication, should be avoided IMHO, but the techies will disagree. Do some research, and get whatever you feel comfortable with. [Just not gasoline!]

[rebel heart]

We have a propane stove and a diesel heater. Both are great. The bit of smoke and stink that the diesel creates when it fires up doesn't get vented into the cabin so I don't mind it. With our old kerosene stove you had to watch it like an arsonist in order to get a smoke free flame.

Does a diesel stove vent to the exterior like a diesel heater does? That still doesn't help me with the grilling situation but I'd be interested in a diesel stove. It's a terrific fuel.

[Brodie]

The Wallas has a sealed combustion chamber, just like a hydronic heater. All the exhaust exists the boat through the exhaust port on the aft quarter. This is much better than the Dickenson diesel stoves that are found on many commercial fishing boats. These type like to fill the boat with fumes if negative psi forms in the boat.

[zopi]

I have a 2 burner origo...cooked dinner last night and breakfast this morning on it...you'll want a flame spreader though..jut a little deflector to spread the flame out...I need to make a little stove top oven for it..alky stove get some bad press..but the origo works pretty well..and no pressurized fuel..

[nautical62]

I've used either small camping stoves that I bolt down or the one burner bulkhead gimbaled stoves on the smaller boats that I use that work on the one lb propane canisters. I've had boats that come with the origo, but much prefer propane myself.

With both stove types, I'd cook in the cockpit much of the time, either by unbolting the one wing nut or with the bulkhead stove, just having a second mounting bracket outside.

[barnakiel]

LPG here and we never look back.

b.

[troppo]

I don't have a boat (not yet) but in the bush have used Coleman dual fuel cookers for decades and loved them. Since the fuel is petrol and highly flamable, I would be very hesitant about using one inside a boat, cockpit maybe. In fact, I think I would not use one at all inside. If I used LPG inside the boat I would also have a gas detector just in case of a leak. I have had no experience with metho stoves but lots of boats have 'em so I am likely to have one in the boat when I get one whenever that will be.

[IdoraKeeper]

On my 26' sloop I had a small forced air Webasto for heat and an Origo alchohol stove that he was gimballed. The webasto was best when motoring or at the dock (battery drain). I cooked many happy meals on the Origo. It was also good for heat when under sail. I usually ran the oven burner since the flame was contained in a steel enclosure and the condensation ran into a drip pan.

[MichaelC]

I have heard lots of bad press about Primus kero stoves. I have had one single burner in a double gimbal arrangement and one 2 burner, also gimballed. I have never had any problems with them at all. No flare ups, no stink. I just bought a two burner Taylor for 25 bucks. The last owner used diesel fuel in it [the tank was still half full] and the stove was coated with grime, soot and dirt. It took me half a day to clean it. I have yet to fire it up, but he may have ruined the jet openings with the diesel fuel. Once I cleaned it, I had to strip and leave my clothes outside due to the diesel stink. Finding parts for these stoves is difficult these days, but in good repair they burn at least as hot as propane [I am using a four burner propane stove these days in my trailer while building]. I have one of the old roarer types that were the best. The introduction of the long handles and knobs was a step backward, since the original Primus or Svea were far superior stoves. [In Turkey they called those stoves 'pumpagazojak'. Ojak means stove]. You can occasionally find, in thrift stores, large heavy aluminum dutch ovens that work well for baking on the top of a two burner stove. You can bake ship's bread in an aluminum pressure cooker with no rocker or gasket. I got the recipe from a book by Janet Groene, who is on this website these days.