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alcohol vs gas stoves
What are the pros and cons of these two types of stoves for a small boat
(20')? Thanks, Grainger |
You should post this question to rec.boats.cruising .
Alcohol Pro- It's safer- alcohol will not explode and fires can be put out with water. Some alcohol stoves are simple and compact. Con- Most alcohol stoves don't heat very hot. A few do. Fuel is expensive. It takes a couple of minutes to start a pressurized alcohol stove. It's hard to find a big-oven alcohol stove. Propane- Pro- Fuel is widely available and inexpensive Most stoves heat vigorously Stoves available in small and large sizes, including ovens and broilers Con- Propane is heavier than air and , at the right concentration, can explode. Not a good thing. Making a propane stove system safe on a boat is complicated. The design of tank enclosures, piping, shutoff systems and bilge sniffers is nontrivial and can add significant cost and complication. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) My knowledge of this is old. Dunno if these are still viable. pro- gas is lighter than air, so much safer than propane The other plusses of propane con- tanks and equipment were expensive and distribution never got widespread. Butane I'll let others fill this in. For some people, kerosene or diesel could be a good solution, too. Grainger Morris wrote: What are the pros and cons of these two types of stoves for a small boat (20')? Thanks, Grainger |
on most 20' boats, the very best is a butane chafing stove, available often
under $18 (close out store), and nearly as often for $85 (chandleries) and in between (department stores). An okay second is an Origo 1500 non-pressurized alcohol stove everything else is something else, and not a hell of a lot better than a coffe can filled with sand and some gasoline set on fire (I have cooked on such). What are the pros and cons of these two types of stoves for a small boat (20')? Thanks, Grainger |
The $18 solution is appealing. Is butane heavier than air?
JAXAshby wrote: on most 20' boats, the very best is a butane chafing stove, available often under $18 (close out store), and nearly as often for $85 (chandleries) and in between (department stores). An okay second is an Origo 1500 non-pressurized alcohol stove everything else is something else, and not a hell of a lot better than a coffe can filled with sand and some gasoline set on fire (I have cooked on such). What are the pros and cons of these two types of stoves for a small boat (20')? Thanks, Grainger |
The $18 solution is appealing. Is butane heavier than air?
yes. it is best to store the cartridges outside the cabin. |
Grainger Morris wrote:
What are the pros and cons of these two types of stoves for a small boat (20')? Thanks, Grainger I have used, alcohol wet pot and pressure, kerosene pressure with torch preheaters, and propane camp stoves aboard various sailboats. We also have a sterno swing boiler, but only tried it once. Sterno is, how shall I say, SSSSSSsssssslllllloooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwww. Preheater pressure stoves are OK for cooking, but a royal chore to get going, no matter the type. Alcohol os just as flammable as gas, but cool, and the flame is invisible, until your shirt catched fire. Propane: twist a knob, spark a barbeque lighter, and presto! It's magic! The propane won, 15 years ago, and I'm sticking with it. The small tanks are kept under bungee in the cockpit when not in use. All is well. We camp aboard most weekends or at least have lunch or supper aboard, while fishing at the mooring or watching the sun slide out of the sky behind "our" mountain. Generally, we cook supper, do the dishes, then put the tank outside. Breakfast, we bring in the tank, eat, clean up, stow the tank back in the cockpit, where there is room for four beside the rudder post, put the folded camp stove under a q-berth bin, and that's it. The galley area is not dominated by no stinkin' old stove except during cookery. The stove is also useful in other locations and it serves as a winter spare in case of power outages to keep the coffee hot until the power returns. We actually have about 3 camp stoves, two propane, but I wouldn't take the naptha stove aboard any boat. When we got this boat, a Tyler 29, it had an Origo 2 alky pot screwed to the galley surface. It's replaced by the camp stove, which we can secure for use, but usually just let it sit on the plasic anti skid mat, and which might benefit from coat hanger pot holder wires, but we never bothered. It makes good toast with a beehive grate, and can do a dozen eggs with bacon on a flat aluminium and teflon grill. Excess fat needs to be and is easily drained off. It would serve well to make bread, or fuel a candle pot. I am amazed that someone actually paid a couple of hundred bucks for the barely used Origo. They are 600 bucks in the catalog. Phew! Most sailors must be even crazier than me. Never did get any use out of the kerosene oven, except for storing pots, pans and a pressure cooker. The price of tinned propane is a little high, so I am considering refilling them from a 20 pounder tank, but not for tranport across any legal boundaries. I don't really trust that scheme, but considering, may give it a try. The worst that could happen is my propane trickles down the cockpit scuppers. Sterno sucks, and doesn't even do that very well. 2 0r 3 burner propane stoves are about 20 - 30 loons. If you can't find one that cheap, try http://www.globalsemi.com they had a special last month. I got one as a deal, but haven't needed to use it yet. It is intended for the camper van / granny suite, unfinished out in the yard. YMMV Terry K |
Jim Conlin wrote in message ...
The $18 solution is appealing. Is butane heavier than air? JAXAshby wrote: on most 20' boats, the very best is a butane chafing stove, available often under $18 (close out store), and nearly as often for $85 (chandleries) and in between (department stores). An okay second is an Origo 1500 non-pressurized alcohol stove everything else is something else, and not a hell of a lot better than a coffe can filled with sand and some gasoline set on fire (I have cooked on such). What are the pros and cons of these two types of stoves for a small boat (20')? It is my opinion that alchohol stoves are the most dangerous item on most boats. The pressurized ones require priming with fuel whose flame is hard to see insuring that eventually you will attempt to prime a stove that is already (or still) aflame from a previous attempt. Similar situations have arisen with unpressurized alchohol stoves where they have been refueled while still burning because they seemed to be out. I think the alchohol stoves are so dangerous that I took one out of my boat and simply put cans of sterno down into the empty burner wells and this works as well as alchohol and is safer. For real cooking, I favor a Coleman propane stove used in the cockpit only while at the dock or maybe at anchor if it is very calm. I store the cylinders in a net bag hung off the stern below coaming level. Thanks, Grainger |
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On Fri, 22 Oct 2004 04:47:55 GMT, Jim Conlin
wrote: The $18 solution is appealing. Is butane heavier than air? Butane is about 2.08 x the density of air. The containers used on those chafing stoves hold 220 g. JAXAshby wrote: on most 20' boats, the very best is a butane chafing stove, available often under $18 (close out store), and nearly as often for $85 (chandleries) and in between (department stores). An okay second is an Origo 1500 non-pressurized alcohol stove everything else is something else, and not a hell of a lot better than a coffe can filled with sand and some gasoline set on fire (I have cooked on such). What are the pros and cons of these two types of stoves for a small boat (20')? Thanks, Grainger Rodney Myrvaagnes NYC J36 Gjo/a "Religious wisdom is to wisdom as military music is to music." |
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