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20-11-2019, 12:43
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#1
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Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: cape coral
Boat: Pearson 424
Posts: 109
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alcohol vs propane
if cruising , is it better to have an alcohol stove or a propane stove. have read that propane is not available everywhere
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20-11-2019, 13:30
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#2
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Registered User
Join Date: May 2008
Boat: FP Lipari, 11.95 metres
Posts: 97
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Re: alcohol vs propane
In over 20 years cruising in Europe, Caribbean and SW Pacific we have never had a problem obtaining propane/ butane
On the other hand, alcohol is a controlled substance in some countries.
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20-11-2019, 13:44
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#3
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Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Solent, England
Boat: Moody 31
Posts: 18,427
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Re: alcohol vs propane
Were are you thinking of cruising to?
Pete
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20-11-2019, 13:46
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#4
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: San Francisco, USA
Boat: Pearson 323
Posts: 61
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Re: alcohol vs propane
I've had the same thoughts, and have decided on keeping my pressurized alcohol stove, but bringing an electric hotplate (single burner, easy stowage), fold-up solar oven, and cockpit rail-mounted propane grill/stove. It's a lot for a 32-footer, but I need my 3 meals/day.
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21-11-2019, 03:05
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#5
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 2,690
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Re: alcohol vs propane
What a lot of clutter! In a 32' boat? That wouldn't take long to drive me bananas.
Just a tip, but long-term sailing goes MUCH more smoothly when you simplify, simplify, simpify.
Fair winds,
LittleWing
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21-11-2019, 03:13
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#6
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Maryland, USA
Boat: 58' Sedan Bridge
Posts: 5,420
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Re: alcohol vs propane
Quote:
Originally Posted by shadowdancer
if cruising , is it better to have an alcohol stove or a propane stove. have read that propane is not available everywhere
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We had a combo alcohol/electric stove on a previous boat. If we started boiling water on alcohol for coffee one day, coffee might be ready the next day. Might.
I was always concerned about using i because I couldn't see the flame, too.
-Chris
__________________
Chesapeake Bay, USA.
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21-11-2019, 04:18
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#7
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Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 141
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Re: alcohol vs propane
Propane would be best choice , but if you are going into reallyremote cruising areas for many months at a time a pressure diesel wiuld be good choice.
5 gal of diesel will last about a year of cooking and baking.
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21-11-2019, 04:19
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#8
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Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Caribbean
Boat: Cape Dory 33
Posts: 29
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Re: alcohol vs propane
In the Caribbean alcohol is getting quite hard to find.
Propane/butane is available everywhere (I've been).
Propane is MUCH more economical.
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21-11-2019, 05:52
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#9
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 2,007
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Re: alcohol vs propane
NO fuel is available EVERYWHERE. Once upon a time, kerosene was the third world fuel of choice. If you read any of the old "classic" cruising texts that is what they recommend. Now, kerosene is scarce. Propane is the go-to fuel everywhere there is civilization.
Alcohol is a common cooking fuel, like, nowhere. Without a (relatively) expensive pressurized system you just can not cook on the low temperature alcohol flame. Cooking 3 meals a day a 15 lb propane tank lasts us 3 months. Carry two, and your good for 6 months. I am SURE you can find a source of propane in 6 months.
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21-11-2019, 06:18
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#10
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Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: On Vessel WINGS, wherever there's an ocean, currently in Mexico
Boat: Serendipity 43
Posts: 5,508
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Re: alcohol vs propane
Quote:
Originally Posted by shadowdancer
if cruising, is it better to have an alcohol stove or a propane stove. have read that propane is not available everywhere
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Propane, but be sure you have installed according to standards, as it is explosive.
We found propane available everywhere but often they won't refill your bottle, you must exchange their bottles. This means you buy one and thereafter exchange it.
Learn to make or buy adapters from other countries' bottles to yours. Also learn to decant gas from their bottle to yours. (again, adapters)
Some places are very stringent but third world countries, usually anything goes.
__________________
These lines upon my face tell you the story of who I am but these stories don't mean anything
when you've got no one to tell them to Fred Roswold Wings https://wingssail.blogspot.com/
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21-11-2019, 06:56
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#11
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Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Carrabelle, Florida
Boat: Fiberglas shattering 44' steel trawler
Posts: 6,083
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Re: alcohol vs propane
Alcohol has a bad reputation for safety, even compared to propane, which can fill your bilge and go boom. Might I put a word in for a propane detector in any system that uses propane inside the cabin? The 12v ones are not as cheap (pushing $50 US) as the 120v types, but a propane filled boat is one time you might want to take to the life raft while the boat is still floating.
__________________
Never let anything mechanical know that you are in a hurry.
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21-11-2019, 07:01
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#12
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Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: cape coral
Boat: Pearson 424
Posts: 109
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Re: alcohol vs propane
thanks, I have a propane system but heard that its hard to find. heading south and maybe thru Panama to the pacific
rock
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21-11-2019, 10:35
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#13
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Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: W Carib
Boat: Wildcat 35, Hobie 33
Posts: 13,480
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Re: alcohol vs propane
Quote:
Originally Posted by shadowdancer
thanks, I have a propane system but heard that its hard to find. heading south and maybe thru Panama to the pacific
rock
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Where have you heard its hard to find?
Propane is the cooking fuel of choice in all of Central America/W Carib, so its everywhere...from small villages to big Cities.
Getting your yachtie style tank filled may not always be convenient since it cannot just be exchanged as can the local tanks. You can build a fill adaptor to get around this issue.
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21-11-2019, 10:47
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#14
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Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: On a sphere in a planetary system
Boat: 1977 Bristol 29.9 Hull #17
Posts: 730
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Re: alcohol vs propane
We cruise the US east coast and Bahamas, no issues with obtaining denatured alcohol for our non pressurized two burner origo stove, it all depends on where you are going. Some research on your destinations will answer this question. Call your locations tourist ministry they can tell you.
Fair winds,
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21-11-2019, 11:06
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#15
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Sozopol
Boat: Riva 48
Posts: 1,382
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Re: alcohol vs propane
I have been very happy with my Origo alcohol stove. Here are the facts:
The Origo has two burners of 6,800 BTUs each. The oven burner makes 5,250 BTUs. A typical marine propane cooker has one 8,200 BTU burner and one to three 3,400 BTU burners. If you use lower quality denatured alcohol with higher methyl content, the output will be 10% lower. In practice there is very little difference between the total heat output, say the alcohol stove could be 20% slower to boil a given amount of water.
Now, in terms of carrying the fuel, let's do the math. A 20 lb propane tank weighs 38 lb and is typically filled by 15-18 lb of gas. In addition, you can only refill at selected locations, so you either need to carry multiple tanks or always leave a reserve, so that you do not run out. I would say that the average usable propane is a 38 lb propane tank is 15 lbs or 324K BTUs for a total weight of 40 lbs. The same weight alcohol gives you 40 x 12,000 BTUs = 480K BTUs, stored nice in plastic bottles, anywhere on the boat with multiple other uses for boat maintenance and no propane related dangers.
The problem with alcohol is availability and cost (approximately 2x more expensive). It is up to you to decide which way to go. I prefer alcohol.
In addition, consider an electric tea kettle for boiling water. Due to the design and the enclosure, heating water in an electric tea kettle is 80% efficient vs. 25-30% efficient over the stove. An electric tea kettle has many uses on a boat and speeds up cooking.
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