Backpacker’s Pantry Pot Parka MYOG

[kristen buckland]

Has anyone tried making their own Pot Parka? I'm thinking of bringing one along for Rainier for melting snow and would love to save the $40 of buying it from Backpacker's Pantry. The website says it is made of aluminized fiberglass, is that something I can easily buy? I don't have much experience making my own gear.

Thanks!

http://www.backpackerspantry.com/products/outback-oven/outback-oven-parts-and-accessories/pot-parka-10inch.html

[Bob Gross]

I own one of those Outback Oven covers. The aluminized material is rather unique, and I've never seen any similar material on the market. But, that is just me. Maybe I don't look so hard for materials since I already own one.

BTW, it is possible to overheat the material, if you really work at it. Mine shows a couple of singe marks.

Now, if you are only trying to melt snow, then I don't think that you need all of that. I use a couple of layers of heavy duty aluminum foil and cover over the top of the pot, making sure that I leave a couple of spots for exhaust air to leave. That seems to speed up the melt process so that you can do it with a low burner flame instead of a high flame. Besides, the foil will fold up better for transport. I use an additional piece of foil next to the tent as a heat shield to keep from burning the place down.

–B.G.–

[And E]

As Bob says, you probably don't need to over engineer it. I just used my Kovea spider stove in inverted mode and foil windscreen to melt snow when we did an overnight at Rainier. Just make a circus tent with some heavy duty foil to go over the pot. It'll be lighter and more compact.

[kristen buckland]

D'oh! Thanks guys for pointing out something so simple…….a foil parka sounds like the way to go.

thanks.

[Bob Gross]

Ordinary aluminum foil will work, but it is flimsy and will blow away easily. Heavy duty aluminum foil will work, but two layers of it mashed together works as well. There used to be an Extra Heavy Duty aluminum foil sold locally, but it is almost impossible to find except online and only in industrial quantities. The heavy duty stuff is also good since many of the rolls of it are extra wide. When you are trying to make a big enough cap to cover the entire snow melt pot, that extra width is handy. As a flare shield against the tent, the extra size is critical.

You can always melt snow outside of the tent vestibule, but that is a pain when the weather is bad. That's why you collect clean snow into a clean garbage bag when you first set up the tent. Then you wedge the bag into the space next to the vestibule, perhaps between the inner and outer tent. If you do it right, you sit inside the tent, and you are reaching out into the vestibule where the stove is burning. You can scoop more snow into the pot without getting in the weather.

For snow melting with a typical backpacker stove, I recommend you to have a piece of thin Masonite board, maybe one square foot, to act as a stable base. Otherwise, the stove will slowly melt its way down into the snow. I was practicing this just last weekend.

–B.G.–

[Bill Giles]

Not that it matters, but Camp Chef sells a similar item as a dutch oven cover. For baking, I can see the benefits. For melting snow, I can't. I think that a windscreen that fits fairly snugly around the pot would help hold the heat in, but I don't see the need for a cover, especially if you are going to want access to the top of the pot to add snow. Using a snug fitting windscreen in a confined space could result in fuel overheating and excessive pressure. I've tried Jim Wood's Firebucket with an alcohol stove and it seems to cause the alcohol to vaporize and burn faster. For a canister stove, I'd be more inclined to use a heat exchanger design pot.

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