low temp limit for esbit

[Bob Gabbart]

What is the lower temperature limit for using esbit tablets to say boil one and a half cups of water in a metal cup? Can I use half a tablet to boil one and a half cups of water at 25F ambient temp?

Thanks
Bob

[Ryan Faulkner]

I dont use esbit, but I have heard that its performance is not affected by the cold, so for the winter, it is a better option than alcohol

[Bob Bankhead]

There is no (realistic) temperature limit to solid fuel stoves. If you are still alive and your match will light, so will the Esbit tablet.

I routinely use 1/2 a tablet to boil 12 ounces of water for a dehydrated dinner in my Evernew 27 oz titanium kettle. Break the tablet before you light it. A windscreen is a must with this stove and how well you shield the flame from wind is THE determining factor in its performance.

[Vick Hines]

Bob,
Well put. Especially the windscreen. And I would add, a lid for the pot. I also find 1/2 tablet (0.25 oz) effective for boiling 1 1/2 cups of water. The lowest temperature I have used Esbit in was 15 degrees.

[Sunny Waller]

how do you handle half an esbit tab..do you cut it in half or does it break easily?? does half an esbitt tab travell well without breaking apart??

[Bob Bankhead]

Sunny:

The tabs are molded like the old Three Musketeers candy bars, with a thinner section that allows them to be broken between opposing hands, much like breaking a stick.

Note that a fair amount of physical force is needed to do this because you’re trying to break a small, thick piece into two and getting a firm grip on it is not easy.

I’ve not tried to use a knife on them in the field for fear of damaging the tiny Equinox blade that I carry or having it slip and cut my hand. I suppose you could cut several at home with a heavy-bladed kitchen knife or a cold steel chisel. It is their small size, not their density, that makes breaking them difficult. Ever try to break a scored pill with your fingers?

[Sunny Waller]

Yeah I noticed that..I was hoping somebody had an easy way of doing it..I love the new TI-Esbitt stove-it is now my weekend warrior stove of choice. I hate to blow an entire esbitt tab for a cup of tea. My fingers are not strong enough to snap it in half and I have learned the hard way not to play with knives in the woods. I will experiment at home.

[Vick Hines]

Sunny,
Don’t sweat it if you have to use the full tablet; just blow it out. A good puff will kill it. The tablet will give off a white, smelly smoke when you do this, but have a scrap of aluminum foil handy to put around the hot tablet to stop it from smoking. The smoke is actually hexamine, and the part that condenses on the inside of the foil is still good fuel – just thin flakes. They light very quickly, and if you shake them off onto the cooled remainder of the tablet, they will make your next start easier.

It is very hard to get uniform pieces when breaking or cutting Esbit. If anyone knows something that is really effective (no guessin, please) let us know. Otherwise, blowing it out is probably the better method.

Too bad the supply of military surplus hexamine has dried up. The mil tablets were about 0.2 oz. and worked fine for a cup of water.

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