alcohol stoves/ovens

[Hard Rock Candy]

I had alcohol stove on my boat. It worked fine untill i got to the Bahamas. I went into Nasua and bought a gallon of alcohol. they pumped it out of a 55 gallon barrel. I took it to the boat and filled my two alcohol canisters. they were the kind with a big wick in the top. I lit the stove and it would not heat my coffee water. I eventually figured out that the alcohol was about half water. So when you have to buy alcohol, search for a gallon sealed from the factory. The stuff drinks water right out of the air. Mac

[Siberianhusky]

I used to use a priming paste with my old alcohol pump stove.
Jellied alcohol in a toothpaste type tube.
Felt safer than using liquid alcohol.

[Reb Blanchard]

Have never had an issue with visibility of the flame on my stove/oven.



Nice blue flame...


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[flagorio]

I have had 2 alcohol fires with my stove. These were from people who did not know what they were doing. The alcohol was turned on and it leaked all down the back of the stove. They then went to light the stove and it was a very huge fire. The problem wasn't so much the fire as the cleanup from the fire extinguisher it went everywhere. We are looking to replace the stove with propane. Also alcohol is pretty expensive we usually buy it at the home supply stores in 5 gallon containers.

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[Reb Blanchard]

Agree with your general comment around any system...improperly used, and they are dangerous, no matter what the fuel.


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[bytownboy]

I am truly embarrassed to report that I can still remember with a huge smile on my face the overwhelming feeling of glee I felt back sometime in 1980 when I threw my alcohol stove overboard. May it rust in hell.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

One thing I distrust about alcohol is the inability to see the flame...

Well, I have to admit the only alcohol stoves I've had were the ones that were kinda like a can of Sterno with a hinged swinging lid on powerboats. You simply poured the alcohol into the can and lit it. Couldn't see it burn a lot of the time... but then it didn't matter... you could die of old age waiting for coffee to boil!

[Panope]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoJzEDz0dqk

[jeepbluetj]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Well, I have to admit the only alcohol stoves I've had were the ones that were kinda like a can of Sterno with a hinged swinging lid on powerboats. You simply poured the alcohol into the can and lit it. Couldn't see it burn a lot of the time... but then it didn't matter... you could die of old age waiting for coffee to boil!

Sounds like an Origo - I really like my Origo.

It's basically a canister ("land mine") that one fills with alcohol and there's a shutter on top of it. The landmine is full of fibers that absorb the alcohol. It cannot spill. I fill it out in the cockpit where any spills from filling will be gone quickly.

Just open the shutter, stick in a lighter, and it's a stove. May be a tad bit slower than propane but mine makes coffee just fine. Seems about on a par with the propane one in my RV.

The flame is visible.
No complex pumping, priming, fuel running out of the stove like with a pressurized stove.

About as duck-soup simple as a stove can be.

I may opt for the more complex propane ifn I was sailing around the world, but to make a grilled cheese on the way to Avalon, it's just fine.

[Joel E Felt]

Thank you Mike O. That's what I had always thought, that it was not visible in direct sunlight. Boats up for the winter, and now I have to repair. The only cork (plunger) I could find was to big. I am trimming it to fit. Good luck, right? I believe I will take it out first before I get to playing with it. Thanks to all on thread. It just happened to be a subject I was working on, and helped out largely.
joel

[andyft]

We had an alcohol stove on our old boat, I converted it to propane some how, all I remember is just hooking up a propane line to the fuel inlet? Please don't hold me responsible if it doesn't work, and be carefull

[Rhapsody-NS27]

I like my Origo stove top. I use it once in a while on the boat and would like to go to an Origo 6000 oven some day. Hard to come by used one's so I guess their owners like them.

[Reb Blanchard]

Joel, take a look on eBay or Internet search for leather plunger cups. I ended up finding a guy in Turkey who was producing what I needed...cheap. If I recall he had quite a selection of sizes. Came in a pack of 3 and installed the first one about 3 years ago...continues to work perfectly. I would pass along contact information but it is up on the boat.


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[Joel E Felt]

thanks Reb Ill try that

joel

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Joel E Felt

Thank you Mike O. That's what I had always thought, that it was not visible in direct sunlight. Boats up for the winter, and now I have to repair. The only cork (plunger) I could find was to big. I am trimming it to fit. Good luck, right? I believe I will take it out first before I get to playing with it. Thanks to all on thread. It just happened to be a subject I was working on, and helped out largely.

Joel, is this plunger cup part of the pressurizing pump for the alcohol tank? My pressure system used a basic bicycle-style valve on a SS tank. I pressurized using a standard pump, usually to around 15 psi.

In any case, it just occurred to me that another source for your plunger cups could be camp stores. My camp stove uses a leather cup as part of a plunger to pressurize the fuel tank. I recently bought a few replacement leather cups as part of a basic maintenance kit for our MSR Whisperlite camp stove. Perhaps these would work for you...?