Alcohol or Propane?

[roger.waite]

In support of what others have said, there is a strong concensus in the literature (e.g. Beth Leonard) on LPG being more available than alcohol or kero in the islands.

Our consumption for a couple is just under 5 kg (~11 lds) a month. Pretty similar usage to you (limited use of oven, 2 sometimes 3 cooked meals a day).

[SvenG]

If you fill the containers in the sink or off the boat an Origo will will far safer than compressed gas.


-Sven

[jrd22]

When we are on the boat full time, anchoring 90%(not eating out) we use 2.5 US gallons of propane every 5 weeks. I would say we cook/bake more than average (bake a lot). Two on board. Hope this helps.
Finding alcohol was difficult for my son on his boat in Florida and the Carib. , and they went through a LOT of it, expensive in most places too.

[Curmudgeon]

Propane. So handy, available everywhere.

But you need a properly vented locker for the bottles and a good monitoring system.

[David M]

Originally Posted by clockwork orange

Wow, almost unanimous opposition to the alcohol stove,however if you are still considering it i am pretty sure that alcohol was the choice for Jessica Watsons around the world trip,im sure it was chosen after much consideration by her very experienced team so it cant be that bad,you may want to send them an email,they will have some pretty accurate idea of how much fuel you will need as she will also be cooking for one for about 9 months.
Steve.

I don't know...a group of people who want to send a child on her own around the world versus some very experienced cruisers? I would give the nod to the experienced cruisers.

[Morganministry]

My vote is also for propane. It is readily available. I prefer it for cooking over any other heating source. There is a reason most professional kitchens use it.

Now as for use on a boat. The obvious concern is for it to "pool" in the bilge and then ignite. So install a good propane detector.


I was looking at a cabin cruiser a while back that had an alcohol stove on it. The dealer said that the stove was useful for heating coffee and that was about it.


Scott

[SurferShane]

I once found a chart on a bushwalking site that compares the usage of different fuels in mountaineering/lightweight cooking stoves. Some propane stoves beat simple metho burners by near three times the efficiently per gram of fuel. If I can find the chart I will post a link.

However, the metho stove on my boat has a primer that turns the liquid to a gas before burning. This obviously increases the efficiency to a rate similar shelite burning primed mountaineering stoves, which is not that far under the efficiency of propane (from memory somewhere above 2/3 the efficiency?). As the gap narrows I would personally start considering other factors like availability, storage and alternate uses for the particular fuels. In my opinion metho has many other uses including sterilising wounds.

On a recent trip I found I was changing disposable propane cylinders on a simple gas stove I was using on the deck as often as I was filling the cabin stove with metho. The propane had a more efficient burner that created more heat for searing meat. Still, the primus metho stove worked good enough. Even when I had the boat surveyed the bloke doing the job commented that I should be keeping this particular stove.


If you have the room another option is to retain the spirit stove in the cabin and get a propane BBQ for the deck? (this is exactly what I am considering when/if finances allow) .

[jenny.caron]

Originally Posted by SvenG

If you fill the containers in the sink or off the boat an Origo will will far safer than compressed gas.

-Sven

I agree - we've been cooking with our Origo for a couple of years now and I have yet to see any issues with it at all.

As far as people saying that alcohol cooks slowly, I'm not quite sure I get it. I feel ours does an absolutely amazing job and while it might be "slower" than propane, it's a lot easier to cook with. I was cooking on a friend's propane stove, and I kept having to turn it down because it cooked wayyyy too fast. And every time I turned it down the flame went out!

We have the Origo 6000 (with an oven) and it bakes far better than any oven I've ever used. I've gotten more compliments on the food I've made in this thing than I've ever gotten before, and I don't think it has anything to do with me!


Oh, and the other thing - we've rigged a cap for refilling, and now we never spill any alcohol. We still fill it very carefully, but it's much more effective.

[SvenG]

Originally Posted by jenny.caron

Oh, and the other thing - we've rigged a cap for refilling, and now we never spill any alcohol. We still fill it very carefully, but it's much more effective.

How did you do it ?

We fill ours in the sink which is 100% safe (to the extent that anything ever is) but I would be very interested in how you modified the cap.

Agree about the cook time; if we wanted fast food we probably shouldn't be sailing



-Sven

[tomperanteau]

Originally Posted by SvenG

How did you do it ?

We fill ours in the sink which is 100% safe (to the extent that anything ever is) but I would be very interested in how you modified the cap.

Agree about the cook time; if we wanted fast food we probably shouldn't be sailing

-Sven

That's about what we do with our Origo 3000. We either fill it in the sink or in the cockpit. Never any problems with it, and the stove works like a dream.

Tom

[jenny.caron]

Originally Posted by SvenG

How did you do it ?

I would be very interested in how you modified the cap.

-Sven

We saved the cap off of an old can of alcohol and cut a hole in the middle of it. Then we bought a spout from the store that is meant to be used for cans of *nearly*, but not exactly, the same size. They fit together fairly well, and then we just melted the plastics together. (and when I say "we", I really mean my husband). I suppose I should take a picture of this if it doesn't make any sense! Anyhow, it doesn't leak at all, and it is SO much easier than attempting to dump the stupid gallon jug over with alcohol spilling everywhere. It was so frustrating.

[jenny.caron]

Originally Posted by tomperanteau

That's about what we do with our Origo 3000. We either fill it in the sink or in the cockpit. Never any problems with it, and the stove works like a dream.

Tom

We started with the 3000 and upgraded to the 6000. If you like the stove, then you'll LOVE the oven. It is amazing.

[tomperanteau]

Originally Posted by jenny.caron

We started with the 3000 and upgraded to the 6000. If you like the stove, then you'll LOVE the oven. It is amazing.

Actually, I googled (is that a verb now?) your stove/oven after reading your post. We might be looking to upgrade soon, so this is good information. We have a grill on the stern, but it seems like a hassle to do the stone baking thing on that.

[SvenG]

We tried to buy the oven by itself to add to our stove but you have to buy the complete set. We will still buy the 6000 and tear out the CNG stove/oven that we currently have the 3000 mounted on top of.



-Sven

[Martinini]

Here is a neat little stove-oven combo for Propane Camp Chef Outdoor Camp Oven 2 Burner Range and Stove