Let there be more stove windscreen discussion

[Matt Swider]

I noticed in your picture Roger that you had the windscreen up to near the top of your pot.  I agree the windscreen is useless if it does not block wind from the flame source.  I also believe going a significant way up the pot helps achieve this purpose, as well as channel some hot air along the edge of the pot.

[Jon Fong / Flat Cat Gear]

IMO, if you are using a remote canister stove, the requirements for a windscreen are pretty minimal.  The important factor seems to be to keep the flames coming out of the burner head semi-stable and not shifting around on the bottom of the pot/mug.

Windscreens designed for an alcohol and Esbit stove are a totally different animal

[Matt Swider]

Guess I was applying the right principal to the wrong situation.  I wondered about that early on, but no one chimed in regarding that until now.   Oh well, I am an engineer and running experiments is always fun.

[Roger Caffin]

I noticed in your picture Roger that you had the windscreen up to near the top of your pot. 

True – but that windwscreen, which folds in half lengthwise, was originally designed for my V1 Winter Stove which has the pot higher in the air. The stove in the photo is my new V2 Vortex Burner Winter Stove, which is lower. Since the folded windscreen fits into my normal cooking pot, I haven’t bothered to reduce its height. lazy? Yep. A few extra grams? Yep, but the extra height helps anyhow.

I agree with Jon that the alky & Esbit stoves are more delicate in the wind than the canister stoves, but I still would not be without my windscreen. Using it does add some efficiency and speed.

Cheers

 

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I put some aluminum around my canister stove and it melted and blew up. So be careful with it.

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Piper

Some more details would be much appreciated.

Was the windscreen right around the canister? 360 degrees?
How far from the pot was the windscreen? 1/2″, 1/4″, or less?I see the control knob melted: was there any other damage?
Was the stove on low or high at the time?
Does the stove still work? It may or may not be safe to test this of course!

In any event, I don’t think your stove actually blew up – when that happens the bits of the canister tend to be a long way away. But ‘became a bit of an info’ – looks like it. How did you turn it off – or did it just empty the canister?

Cheers

[Matt Swider]

Hey Piper, thanks for the caution, but my setup has a remote canister, so no issues with overheated canisters.

[Eric Blumensaadt]

CALDERA CONE -> the best windscreen (for some stoves).

Caldera Cones first gave alcohol stoves more efficiency, then they WAY upped ESBIT efficiency and finally their titanium stoves with the INFERNO insert gave us the most efficient wood burner.

** As for my tiny canister -top stove: (Brunton Crux)

1. -> I cut down a pie tin and turned up the edges 1/4″. Then I cut it in 1/2, re-joined the halves with Gorilla tape so I could pack it. (The diameter had to be slightly larger than my 3 cup Trail Designs pot.)
2. -> This “base” has a center hole just large enough to accommodate my stove’s threaded end so placing the “base” over this threaded end and screwing it on the canister clamps the “base” in place very well. Cut this hole before cutting the base in 1/2 and taping it together. (Turned edge faces up, natch, to hold the windscreen in place.)
3. -> Shortened an MSR windscreen (& punched six 1/4″ holes near the bottom) to sit on top of the base described above. The pot holds it on in windy conditions B/C it fits fairly close with about 3/8″ (1 cm.) clearance all around. The windscreen is about 1/2 inch lower than the top of my pot to make   room for my pot lifter to grab the pot edge.

This setup permits small canister-top stoves to work well in windy conditions while protecting the canister from the stove’s heat with the base.

Yeah, I should try to devise a “latch” to hold the windscreen to the “base” on the upwind side for the times when I must remove the pot.                                                                                                       **Maybe a tiny wing-style pinch paper clip positioned thru a slot in the base so it grabs the windscreen.

If I make a new windscreen I’ll use Trail Designs’ adjustable “vent tabs” instead of punched holes so I can control the wind better.

CAVEAT: You must look thru the vents to see the burner flame for adjustment if that is necessary to do without removing the pot.

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