State of the stove market 2023

Soooo much depends on what you want to do with it. Check local regulations for what is allowed at any given time of year.

Esbit/hexamine/Coghlan’s is ultimately lightweight, low-power, inexpensive. Requires wind screen.

MRE heat packs are a light, smoke-free, tent-friendly, alternative if you don’t need to boil for purification. Lightweight unless packing for a long journey without resupply. Not available in most stores, so bring what you need.

Alcohol/spirit burners are simple, light, widely available, work at low temperatures, and are also low-power. A carbon felt wick prevents/reduces spillage when tipped over. Ranges from free MYOG to pricey titanium. Requires windscreen; again MYOG or cone for peak efficiency. Burns a variety of fuels; not just alcohol.

Canister stoves are easy, reliable under the right conditions, reasonable weight, moderate-to-high-ish power. Inverted canister stoves cost a few extra ounces but work without trickery/technique at low temperatures. There are a couple of threads here about adapting tiny butane sources to a stove. A propane adapter and small propane tank are another option for cold weather. Wind screens help, but be careful how you use them. You don’t want the canister to be hot to the touch (possible explosion danger).

White gas stoves have highest power-to-fuel-weight ratio. Popular for melting snow on long trips. Messy and require maintenance. I would bring an alcohol burner as backup; it will burn the same fuel.

Wood/twig stoves don’t require you to carry fuel, as long as you travel in forests. Potentially high power. Some are very lightweight. Be careful about flying sparks in dry weather. Not strictly LNT, but small stoves don’t need much fuel to boil some water. (Larger wood/charcoal grills excel for steaks). You can carry wood pellets or charcoal if necessary. (Requires wood, lack of fire-danger warnings, a small fire blanket, and some care). <– That’s probably why they are not a more popular.

The combination of a wood stove and Esbit covers a lot of situations for minimal weight.

For that matter, a couple of Esbit cubes are a good backup for any stove, as well as emergencies. You can build a “stove” out of rocks in a pinch.

As you say, alcohol and canisters are popular for different reasons. Which to choose is entirely up to you.

Canisters have the edge for novice cooks as well as those who prefer it simple and fast. They are easy to use above freezing and cost less than $20 at the low end.

Some of the areas we frequent including the National Parks have restrictions that rule out any stove without on/off valves. Much of the wilderness we frequent don’t usually forbid alcohol stoves unless there is a fire ban in place. That happens most every summer season now. Canister stoves are still allowed in all those places even under Stage 2 fire bans. Even with no fire ban the danger with the extreme dry conditions is very palpable.

So we haven’t used alcohol stoves for several years and have experimented with making canister stoves as efficient as possible.

Just to give some perspective we have a titanium Caldera cone with wood burning insert and 12-10 alcohol burner, Trangia alcohol burner and the Trangia/Primus remote LPG burner, White Box alcohol stove, several wood burning stoves of high quality, a Kovea Spider remote LPG burner and gave some white gas stoves like the MSR Dragonfly etc to charity as I never really liked white gas. We never had to invert a canister for cold. We do like all of those stoves though and in some cases such as dry baking the perfect chocolate chip blueberry scone it’s the Trangia LPG burner in the Firebox ti Nano with the Outback Oven and Pam Banks Fry/Bake pan. But that’s too heavy for all but the most festive occasions. Like Bill says it’s a complicated question to answer. But that’s my perspective.

So all we have been using for the past several years is the good old very dependable Snow Peak Gigapower with the OEM “windscreen” topped with an upper titanium windscreen that works super efficiently in all weathers, snow, rain and wind. Small footprint in and out of the pack and totally legal everywhere we go even under Stage 2 fire bans. We have had and used the Snow Peak Gigapower for nineteen years now and have the newer version that modulates lower and is lighter in weight.

Good luck with your choice.

If it’s allowed, I still use an alcohol stove with caldera cone. Canister stoves are fine, except for the annoying canisters.

Just wondering, are people still as hot on alcohol stoves in 2023 as we were in 2009?  Or have we reverted to canister stoves due to particular restrictions out west or convenience or speed?

I believe that there has been a shift to canister topped stoves.  IMO, there are 2 factors at play.  First, the total weight of the big 3 has dropped pretty significantly and the absolute concern over cutting grams is not as high of a priority as it was almost 15 years ago.  Secondly,  canister topped stove can be dirt cheap and are pretty simple to use in fair weather conditions.  My 2 cents.

I still love alcohol stoves, but since there have been so many devastating fires in CO, RMNP allows only on/off stoves. It’s disappointing because the shape, size and weight of the canister is kind of non-negotiable. It affects my choice of cookware since it can be more space efficient to keep the canister inside the pot. I’ve read a few posts about folks using smaller, non-standard canisters with interest, though.

Not getting rid of my alcohol stoves, though.

Bill: That’s a great summary and overview that I agree with.

One minor point on, “You don’t want the canister to be hot to the touch (possible explosion danger).” which I would tweak to “You don’t want the canister to be hot to the touch BELOW THE FUEL LEVEL.” because it is the temperature of the liquid fuel that determines the pressure of the canister not the temperature of the vapor in the headspace.

My quiver has two arrows in it.

1) BRS-3000T canister-top stove with is the lightest, cheapest (reliable), most compact canister option and its short height helps stability and the effectiveness of a Moulder Strip® enabling its use with standard butane-mixes down to -25F which is well below the bottom of my fun meter.

2) a few very compact alcohol options generously provided by DanY.  It’s easier to smuggle alcohol than butane to remote treeless volcanic islands and the quietness and pre-timed nature (measure 6 mls of alcohol and walk away) are their strengths.

My garage has lots of other stoves – MSR Whisperlites, XGKs, Fireflies, Svea-123R, Optimus 8R, propane stove heads, wax burners, wood burners, Esbit, etc.  I’m like a Hikin Jim Junior of the North Woods.  But I need to freecycle those white gas stoves (except for the Svea) while the propane stoves get used for car, motor boat, canoe-2-miles-across-the-lake, and always on the sled-2-miles-across-the-frozen-lake trips.

The major issue with the sit on top canister stoves are the breeze. They are far lighter than remote canister stoves but not mar as efficient as a tight windscreen. If you enclose the canister with a windscreen it can lead to explosions. That’s why I found a way to tightly enclose the burner and pot but leave the canister open. It is far lighter and far less bulky and less expensive than a Jetboil or MSR Windburner. All the parts compact down to a smaller footprint. The titanium upper windscreen is wrapped around the pot. This changed the overall efficiency big time. Wind is never a problem now. Some won’t like the extra weight of the windscreen setup but it blows away the efficiency of a sit on top without a tight windscreen.  We used those for many years. This is everything including fuel except the lid.

In use while snowing and breezy

With the upper windscreen this won’t take a large pot, 600 or 700 mls is about the max. If I could find anything more efficient that isn’t heavier or bulkier in the pack and doesn’t enclose the canister itself I’d probably buy it.

Like may here, I’ve got a ridiculous amount of stoves. My go to is a Jetboil Sol Ti. One I devised, that’s almost as good as the Jetboil, is a an MSR Pocket Rocket Deluxe with modified Sterno Inferno pot, and homemade Ti windscreen. This whole setup is just about as efficient as the Jetboil Ti, and weighs the same:

That is super cool Brad. My setup without fuel is 8.2 oz for everything so very close to yours. They are very efficient.  I think I can find a 600 ml mug that is lighter than the one  we use but liking this one just fine.

That is super cool Brad. My setup without fuel is 8.2 oz for everything so very close to yours. They are very efficient. I think I can find a 600 ml mug that is lighter than the one we use but liking this one just fine.

Glen, I have much lighter pots than the Sterno Infreno pot, but its heat exchange construction really works. Though heavier, on a longer trip it becomes “lighter” than a typical Ti pot because of its fuel efficiency. It’s almost as efficient as the Jetboil Ti, but not quite, generally using about 1g more fuel to boil 16oz’s of H2o than the JB.

Some years back I had a Snowpeak Giga stove like yours and made a Ti wind screen for it that was almost identical to the one I’m using with the MSR. Both are a Snowpeak bowl, cut down with slots added for the pot supports and a hole for the burner. Weigh’s 1oz.

The major issue with the sit on top canister stoves are the breeze. They are far lighter than remote canister stoves but not mar as efficient as a tight windscreen.

Agreed.  Your solution, and Brad’s, look great.  For those who, like me, are DIY-challenged, the Flat Cat Gear Ocelot windscreens are a great option.   I have one for my PRD and my Kovea Spider. Very lightweight and effective.

Those look great David. I bookmarked that site. That’s the kind of logic that is valuable.

Brad, you did a professional job with that Snow Peak bowl.

How do you guys make such straight cuts without crushing the bowl?

Glen, thank you.

Bill, I use a dremel with a cutoff wheel. It works quite well.

I think Bill + David post did a fine summary of the the SOM. My write-up for 2013 (with some minor updates) I think is still on target, so I don’t think lots has changed  https://verber.com/stoves/

My practice: Alcohol stoves are fun to play with but GVP converted me to esbits for simplicity and slight weight savings. I use alcohol when traveling internationally because fuel is easy to acquire. Caldera Cone are good. Use iso-butane canister (20y old Snowpeak GigiPower) when fire regulations require an “off valve” or when I need to cook for more than 1.

My write-up for 2013 (with some minor updates) I think is still on target, so I don’t think lots has changed  https://verber.com/stoves/

Well, with cooking systems like JetBoil Stash the weight is down and the efficiency is up due to the HX. Boiling 2 cups of water (70F) takes about 5 g instead of +7 g. Boiling 2 cups a day stretches out from 14-ish days to 20-ish days (YMMV). Yes, it is a fair-weather stove and it is not the lightest option but things have changed since 2013. With respect to International Travelling, Covid has allowed the proliferation of Hand Sanitizer (70% ethanol) which works fine in many alcohol stoves and is readily available. My 2 cents.

Esbit: Did not like the soot or the the smell (when burning) or the time to boil or the mess of unburned leftovers.  I do however carry a few of the little 4g tabs as fire starters.

Alcohol: Loved the silence and the DIY stove aspect and the multiuser aspect of the fuel.  Did not like the frailty of the stove/cone nor the time to boil.

Canister: Came full circle and my go-to is Soto Windmaster and Toaks 0.9L 130mm pot.  I can boil 8oz of water in 1:20. Wish it were quieter, but for me the speed and convenience overrule the weight and noise penalty.  The valves that allow refilling the 200g container from the larger and less expensive containers, and reducing the canisters recycled, just tipped the scale even further.

Jon. The stash could  get you from 16-20 days… when facing no wind.  Alas, I normally see wind, and I am generally have resupply within 10 days so that efficiency doesn’t change what I am carrying. I think a canister with good wind performance is as good or better. Hand Sanitizer is something I just added… I have done that but forgot to write it down.  Better than rubbing alcohol but not as good as some of the normal fuels. I don’t think this changes the vector, just adds a bit of color.

The state of the market may have changed but I keep on keeping on with my JetBoil Sol Ti.  It’s fast, convenient, and easy.  More and more  I have been ditching the stove altogether and not even cold soaking. I must admit I am a food is fuel kind of guy and rarely cook food at home either.  Not for everyone but I like the simplicity.

Ha ha, I am the opposite. I don’t use freeze dried meals and cook almost all of my dinners in the pot. Nothing like a spectacular view while eating a gourmet meals. It also keeps my wife interested in backpacking with me. EYOM (Eat Your Own Meals!)

“Nothing like a spectacular view while eating a gourmet meal”

Totally concur. That’s what we do.

David, I’m curious what makes the Svea special? I’ve seen this stove singled out a few times, not sure why.

But I need to freecycle those white gas stoves (except for the Svea) while the propane stoves get used for car, motor boat, canoe-2-miles-across-the-lake, and always on the sled-2-miles-across-the-frozen-lake trips.

svea is sort of like vinyl records – cult following

I couldn’t get my svea to work once when I was camping on snow.  Next, I got a MSR white gas stove.  Not that it isn’t possible to get a svea to work with proper technique.