Solid fuel users

I was just curious as to the actual weight of Coghlans tabs. Most people say that two Coghlans is about equal to one Esbit in terms of output.

Triox seems like it's a lot more expensive, and if the package is compromised, the triox is quickly rendered useless from what I've been told. Triox is also fairly toxic both in fumes and to the touch. Triox is an interesting fuel and it seems like (if my memory from being in the Army years ago serves me well) it burns a lot hotter than hexamine, but its expense, toxicity, and lack of durability lead me to believe that hexamine is a more practical choice.

HJ

I use the Coghlan's tablets religiously. Each round tablet weighs 6.5 grams. I get 2 cups of water to just boil on 2 tablets. A box of 24 costs me about $5.99 at the local "Canadian Tire".

I used to use Esbit (the 14 gram tablets) but they were more expensive, harder to get, and I didn't notice a performance difference. Hope that helps.

Square esbit sold in US is about 14 grams per tablet.

I use the Coghlan's tablets religiously. Each round tablet weighs 6.5 grams. I get 2 cups of water to just boil on 2 tablets. A box of 24 costs me about $5.99 at the local "Canadian Tire".

I used to use Esbit (the 14 gram tablets) but they were more expensive, harder to get, and I didn't notice a performance difference. Hope that helps.

Exactly the kind of info I was looking for. Very helpful. Thank you.

Seems like the Coghlans tabs are a lot better deal than Esbit for little or no sacrifice in utility.

I've been checking around, and, at least in Los Angeles, I've been striking out on finding a good source of hexamine other than Esbit. Esbit is readily available but more expensive.

HJ

I just ordered some Weber fuel cubes- evidently very similar (or even identical) to Wetfire cubes, but much cheaper(and in bigger cubes I think)

I'll do a comparo w/ Esbit and see how they fare

I think the esbit and coghlans are gonna come out about the same. If the coghlans weigh 6.5 grams and you have to use 2 to get 2 cups boiling that equals 13 grams. Only one esbit at 14 grams is needed two get 2 cups to a boil. Also a 24 pack of coghlans was said to be $5.99. I think I usually pay $5.95 for a 12 pack of esbit… so I think they are basically the same thing, the only difference being that the coghlans are packaged in smaller amounts. I'm not sure how they compare with burn times and the amount of heat generated as I have never used the coghlans. Anyways, just wanted to point out that you are getting basically the same amount at the same weight.

I just got a one and tried it out this past weekend. I know two cups is the standard. But figured that with 1.5 cups I get a bit tastier noodles and I don't have to boil as much water. With stream-temp water, I can use 3/4 of an Esbit tablet and get a boil with a little fuel left over. You can easily see the flame (compared to alcohol) and you can just blow it out and save the little bits for the next time you cook. I just weighed an Esbit tablet in its foil packaging and it weighs around 14.4-14.6 grams. So, there's your trail weight per tab, basically a half an ounce.

I did notice that the Esbit is a little runny and leaves a white deposit where it runs off and black deposits where it burns in the flame. The black soot on the cooking pot also becomes a bit sticky after sitting for a few days. Don't like that so much, but I kinda like that better than having alcohol in my pack. And according to Rand @ Trail Designs, its a bit more efficient than alcohol. A Keg-H in Gram Cracker mode weighs less than five ounces.

EDIT: Forgot to mention you can use a knife to easily divide the Esbit tablet into quarters, that way you don't have to light a full one if you don't need to.

"The black soot on the cooking pot also becomes a bit sticky after sitting for a few days."

I carry a small square of scrubby and clean the bottom of the pot after each use, so it never gets to be a sticky mess. Works great, and I always make sure I've a bit of warm water left over in the pot to use for scrubbing.

Doug, thanks for sharing your trick. I've also been told you can just scrub it in the dirt or grass or similar surface and get part of that soot off that way.

Yes, Esbit and Coghlans are about the same, but Coghlans is supposed to be harder to clean up after. There's a good post to that effect here: http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=6647&startat=20

Coghlans, at least here, is less than half the cost of Esbit ($2.50 vs. $5.95), hence my interest. I guess I can put up with the greater clean up of Coghlans if I'm saving 50%.

HJ

Just realized that the price I saw quoted for the Coghlans was 5.99 from Steven in Canada lol. I guess at $2.50 that would make them more appealing.

hehehe, sorry about that. I should have specified. Esbit up here is nearly impossible to find. I've never even seen it in a store, only on the odd website here and there.

With regards to cleaning the pot, I do what Doug does, I take one of those green/yellow sponges and cut it in 4 and bring the 1/4 with my on each trip. It doesn't even register on my scale and easily cleans my pot with a little water. Just remember not to rinse in the lake.

hmmm- 11 grams (wetfire ~ 5 grams), 24 cubes for $5

pretty good boil time, burnt fully down in 11 minutes (comparable to Esbit)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCcN0T0guoI

How much mess do they make?

If the packaging gets compromised, do they go bad?

HJ

less mess than Esbit, but still some

that I don't know, the packaging on the wetfire is better (individual wrapped). my thought was to keep them in the original packaging until right before a trip and then put them in small "ziplocks"

OK, good to know.

No info on what they're made of? If they're not individually wrapped, then maybe they're not so darn fragile like Wetfire.

How did they work as a fuel?

HJ

I think in composition they are very similar to wetfire, possibly identical?????

they come wrapped individually, kind of- but more like an ice tray w/ wrap over the top, they could be cut individually out- not sure how tough the top film is though

I'm going to do some side by side testing w/ Esbit, but from what I've seen on video I think they will perform just as well as far as boiling performance- less smell, less residue and roughly about 1/2 the price

the other advantage they distinctly have is that the Weber (wetfire) cube is a wonderful tinder- will still burn when thrown into a pot of water! they light far easier than Esbit and will readily take a spark

Mike,

Have you seen this video? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd_SUa2YWH4

The problem with the Weber cubes is that they dry out if you get so much as a pin hole in the aluminum foil top. Their contents are quite volatile. I guess they could work if you put them in a hard sided container, but I'd hate to be out on the trail and find out that some were dead and I couldn't cook my supper. Just my thoughts.

HJ

very interesting- any idea on how an Esbit fairs after a month sitting out? I wonder if it would share the same fate?

definitely looks like you want the Weber sealed in some fashion- you could easily cut out individual cubes from the pack- not sure how tough the seal is though??? one possible work around is to put a single layer of duct tape over the entire seal and then cut out the # of cubes you need- that might be overkill???

I think esbit will become useless too after awhile.

Last year I recived my graham cracker stove And I was excited to see it in use but it was raining.
So I set the Stove up on my formica counter top with the supplied heat sheild. I lit the esbit tab and started to boil the water but I smelt a someting burning. The heat produced from the stove bubbled the formica and turned it black and burn through to the wood surface.

I since then have gone to tripod solid fuel stove set up because you can set your pot on it and it elevates the fuel higher from the surface below after the counter top incident.

I had concerns of super heating or scaring of substrate or rock surface you set up the stove on in the wild with the graham cracker stove set up. I have added my own side wings to the tripod stove to get a more controlled burn and have had great results backpacking.

@Mike, I was thinking the same thing about duct tape. Hate to find out I'm wrong, three days in on a backpack. Maybe it would be OK if you bought a brand new pack right before your trip, but kind of a hassle. Not too appealing for me.

@John, I've burned two year old unsealed Esbit without any problem. It must go bad some day, but we're talking years here.

@Terry, do you have any pix you can post of your set up?

HJ

I've burned a good deal of Esbit and generic Esbit in my time. If one chunk is exposed to air, that doesn't hurt it much in the short time frame. If you leave it exposed to air for a long time, like a year, it gets stale. It will still burn, but not so hot, and it is more difficult to light. So, I think it is important to keep them sealed up until you are out on the trail at least.

–B.G.–

Bob,

I used the duct tape "trick" that Mike was talking about above on the Esbit that I burned that was a couple of years old. I noticed no degradation in performance. YMMV.

HJ

I've been using the Stansport solid fuel(#236-P)for several years with good results. In '04 this was my fuel of choice on a 1500 mile section hike on the PCT. I get 8 blocks to a package, approximately .75 ozs. per block, about 6 ozs. per 8 blocks. The blocks are scored into 1/4's. I think it is about 40% cheaper than Esbit tabs. I just did a test in my kitchen with 2 cups cold tap water coming to a rolling boil in about 8 1/2 minutes with just over 1/2 a tab. I used a tab which is at least 6 years old stored in an unsealed bag. I lost some heat by lifting the lid a few times because I got impatient. A heavy ash forms as the tab burns which needs to be scraped off to improve the burn. For cleaning in the field I use a handful of pine needles. My stove is a can that is a size bigger than the standard tuna can with the sides cut open for air flow; the pot sits directly on the can with a wind screen. The left over chunks can be saved and re-burned. The ingredient listed is Hexamethylenetramine. I like this fuel better than Coughlins round tabs(hotter,less stinky). The Stansport folding stove that is associated with these tabs is overweight, overbuilt junk.