Wood-burning stove, denatured alcohol stove or a Solid-fuel tablet stove?

After reading your comments here I'd get an MSR Whisperlite International multi-fuel stove, two fuel bottles and a repair kit. Learn how to clean it periodically.

That should suffice for almost any situation. Alcohol stoves are just not worth the aggravation. Petroleum fuels, like unleaded petrol and kerosene are much hotter and thus you carry less fuel than is the case with alcohol.

BTW, get a good non-stick (ceramic coated) ALUMINUM pot. Titanium pots are expensive, heavier and are poor conductors of heat i.e. inefficient and have a central hot spot that will burn food.

Get a good aluminum pot gripper and some Lexan eating utensils too.

A plastic "camping" cup with measurements marked inside is light, versatile and won't burn your lips when drinking hot liquids.

EDIT: OK I STAND CORRECTED. GET THE MSR WHISPERLITE UNIVERSAL (NOT THE INTERNATIONAL) SO YOU CAN USE GASOLINE, KEROSENE AND CANISTER FUEL.

Will a multi fuel Alky/Esbit/Wood setup work at high elevations and/or in cold temperatures(5F)? And in wet climates?
What about a wood-burning stove on its own, will it work in those conditions?

Will 1 pot suffice for cooking my own raw food? How large/big does it need to be then?And which lightweight, compact pot shall I go for in this case?

Cheers.

A wood stove won't work very well at high elevations because there is no wood at all to use. Even if there was a scant bit of wood, chances are that there would be a ban on using wood there.

Will 1 pot suffice? It depends on how much you intend to eat.

The rule of thumb (for one person) is that you need a pot volume of at least 500ml, but that assumes that you are only boiling water to use on dehydrated food. If you intend to cook lots of raw food, then you need to double that size. Try out some of your food, and you might need to increase that even more.

–B.G.–

A multi fuel stove generally refers to liquid fuels.

Mind you, to switch from gasoline to kerosene would require swapping out a nozzle/part in the stove, which requires tools, but it means you an use different types.

Alcohol is NOT one of them that you would be able to use.

Alcohol stoves require their own specifically designed stoves and are relatively low energy fuels, but are popular for their easy availability at hardware stores in the US and low cost of the fuel.

Esbit is a great fuel that I use, but they can be a little difficult to ignite with a lighter….think burnt fingers from holding the flame to the esbit cube til it ignites.

They are also expensive and is probably one of the more difficult fuels to find.

In temps of 5F…..freezing, the multi fuel stove is going to be your best friend, particularly if you are looking at snow and wet conditions.

A wood burning stove would not be recommended.

Also, at elevations of 10,000 feet or above, referred to as "above treeline" wood burning stoves are often prohibited in the States, but the practical matter is that there is less to little wood/fuel to be found above that elevation.

Hope this helps….for your trip, having read your thread on an off for a while, I would recommend the multi fuel stove.

The others could work for you, but would really require your taking the time to build up your skill set to use them effectively.

The Multi fuel stove is pretty simple to use.

Just make sure you bring a repair kit sold with them that has extra parts that you may need to replace from time to time.

That would be the one negative about this type of stove….moving parts to swap out or replace.

Tony

Read all about woods stoves and how to make them work for you:

http://www.bplite.com/viewforum.php?f=60

Wood and esbit stoves are not really "stoves" in the same sense as a canister or liquid fuel stove.
A wood or esbit stove is simply a metal enclosure with a way to set your pot down. You could cook over an open fire or use esbit by propping up your pot on rocks and lighting the esbit beneath it. The stove part just makes it easier.
Temperature does not affect wood fires to my knowledge. Even if it did somehow, it's a free fuel source where you aren't concerned about efficiency.

Get the Whisperlite universal. Worth the money, and burn canister fuel as well as white gas and when you are in a bind even gasoline!!!!

"A multi fuel stove generally refers to liquid fuels."

In a few previous posts on this thread, I was suggested a "multi fuel" set up with alcohol, esbit and wood, which is what I wanted to know about; I would like to know if such setup would work at either high elevations, with cold tempeartures (5F) and a dry climate (no snow) or at medium high elevations in rainy conditions.

Cheers.

Looks like Dan threw a gem in your lap but it's getting lost in the shuffle:

"I suggest you get a stove that burns denatured alcohol/rubbing alcohol.

Full disclosure: I manufacture this kit.

http://www.woodgaz-stove.com/conquistador24-kit.php

The stove sold with the kit is a large version of the StarLyte stove. Once you pour the fuel into the stove it will not spill out, a safety factor found in no other stove.

I have only 2 of these kits available. The large StarLyte stove is not sold separately.

I will include a carbon felt simmering disc for your cooking needs."

What is nice about this kit, per his specs, is that it burns rubbing alcohol which you can pick up in any drug store.

Another stove which can burn rubbing alcohol is made my Jon Fong of Flat Cat Gear. The stove is called the Iso Clean Stove: http://flatcatgear.com/page13.php

He was kind enough to give a demonstration of it for me earlier this year and it worked great.

______________________________________

Dan's kit has a simmering option. I can't remember if Jon's does or not. Due to the light weight and the availability of rubbing alcohol I've found throughout Latin America, I'd give this some serious consideration.

That was asked and answered previously.

At high elevations, there is almost zero wood. In rainy conditions, there is almost no dry wood.

Wood works OK if you are at low elevations, the weather is dry enough, and if there is enough wood around.

–B.G.–

"I recommend the Sidewinder Ti stove with the 3 cup pot for solo backpacking.

The Gram Cracker ESBIT holder is efficient and the optional Inferno woodburning insert works great. You can even burn wood without the insert if necessary.

I've used this stove with alky, ESBIT (a lot) and wood (in winter). It rolls up small and weighs very little and it is VERY windproof, something you'll need where you're going."

"Given your variables I think flame control requirements really rule out most alcohol setups (although trangias and some others can sort of simmer). The challenge availability of alcohol across your route even if you choose a setup with some flame control. A multi fuel setup like the caldera ti tri would give you esbit and wood as options but you'll lose any flame control and they aren't designed to move the pot on/off to give you rudimentary control. So this seems dicey at best."

Those are the posts I'm referring to and those are the stoves I'd ike to know more about (if they work in the conditions stated previously).

Here you go:

http://www.traildesigns.com/stoves/cones/caldera-3-fuel-wood-burners

I own the Sidewinder paired with a Evernew 600ml pot. It does indeed cook with alcohol, esbit, and wood.

For the trip you're proposing, the smallest pot I'd look at would be 900ml but I'd be more inclined to look at a 1300ml pot for a multi month adventure.

Happy shopping.

My question still stands though…do they work at high elevation + cold temperatures and dry climate or high elevation, mild temperatures and wet climate?

What is wet climate? Do you mean humidity?

I've never heard of esbit being effected by temperature or elevation. I've used it at 12,000 feet and it seemed just as efficient.

Wood is very much affected by humidity and wetness, it takes skill to cook with wood in those conditions.

In CA, climate is mostly hot and humid or hot and wet during rainy season at level ground (cold and wet in the mountains). South America is predominantly hot and wet or cold and dry at high elevations (like in Bolivia), with a minimum night temperature of 5F. I am going to exlcude the Andes from this consideration.

I also have just found out that I can't get Esbit tablets delivered here from the States, so that kinds of leaves me with either wood burners or a liquid multi-fuel. Alcohol won't work at high elevations, so that's kind of ruled out, but then will I cook my own food at high elevations, with no access to street markets for fruit/veg? God knows!

I can't wait to leave with the biggest pack ever, with gear I have no idea about and feel extrimely stupid about all this! :)

"Alcohol won't work at high elevations"

Are you sure about this? A lot of people on here hike at high elevations in the sierras or rocky mountains. And a lot of them use alcohol stoves. What elevations are you talking about exactly?

People have boiled water with alcohol below -20* temperatures. You'll have to keep your alcohol warm in one of your pockets but it can be done. Water boils at a lower temperature at higher elevation, most of my adventures are below 10k', and Esbit is my fuel of choice so I'll defer the "how does alcohol perform above 10k'"to someone else.

Again, there is no best tent, stove, sleeping bag, etc, etc. There will always be compromises and it's up to you to figure out which of those you are willing to accept.

Edit to add: Shug's YouTube videos are well worth watching for entertainment value alone but here's an example of an alcohol stove being used at -32*. This is below 2500'.

Relevant section begins at 3:20 and example of how wonky white gasoline stoves can be at 5:00.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTuGJgka1qc&list=PL42A47C8FBAB9C49A

Edit part 2: by no means have you ruled out alcohol stoves but that's your choice. I'd personally take a stove that could burn rubbing alcohol and a 1300ml pot. I've burned rubbing alcohol in a penny stove and it worked fine with the exception that there was lots of soot. From what I could see at the demonstration, Flat Cat Gear's Isoclean stove doesn't have a problem with soot when burning rubbing alcohol.

For the times you want to cook over a fire, there's no reason to over think this. Find three rocks and call it good. I'd just make sure that you're using a steel or titanium pot instead of an aluminum one.

Good luck.

For a trip of that length, I'd recommend using a small cooking fire when possible. That means you'll need the skills, tools and knowledge to build a fire in all environments and conditions. Practice it when the wood is soaked.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwVxdmmzgN4

When lack of wood or conditions/restrictions don't allow a fire, use a stove like Dan Y. suggested.

Also, consider if you will be able to obtain liquid water in the cold conditions. If not, you'll need either a fire or a liquid gas stove to melt snow or ice. The other stoves aren't really practical for melting. (And a tool to obtain the ice if it comes to that…)

In high elevations where animals roam around look for their dried dung. Rabbit dung burns well.

Use a wood/dung burning stove :-) I can make a large StarLyte type stove that will burn rubbing alcohol for you. Pour the fuel in and it won't spill out. I can make it simmer with a carbon felt cover.

Ask Jon at flatcatgear if his iso stove is suseptable to flame lift-off with a slight breeze. Something to consider when using that type of stove.

I think your best bet would be a wood/dung burning stove. On wet days eat your carrots, cabbage, celery etc. raw. Vegetarians do that :-)

"You also list some cold temps where alcohol will be challenged."

didn't you guys say this?! Clearly you all have quite some controversial opinions on the same subject… :-P

Does an acohol stove, which will burn wood as well, exist?

The Trail Designs Ti-Tri kits can be used with an alcohol stove, esbit stove, or used with just the windscreen to burn wood.

I provided this link yesterday:

http://www.traildesigns.com/stoves/cones/caldera-3-fuel-wood-burners

Alcohol can be used in cold temperatures provided that you keep it warm.

Watch this video for fire:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nt39uF6HaGQ

This one for alcohol and overview:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8-bTAS9PkA

This one for Esbit:

Will it be fine for simmering or does it need a metal ring? Will it be stable enough?

Don't be sorry.

Dan Y. makes the Starlyte so he can comment as to its simmering capabilities when paired with the Caldera Cone. Another stove that Trail Designs could provide is the 12-10 stove but again, I couldn't tell you if it can simmer or not.

My "cooking" is limited to boiling water to rehydrate food.

Watch the video to see how a carbon felt disc can make a StaLyte Burner simmer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TavizGeeD6Y

I purchased the simmer ring for the Caldera 12-10 stove and it worked well.

.

Did you get my PM?