Choosing: Stoves

A method of boiling water and cooking food is fundamental for most campers, multi-day trekkers and expeditioners. The environmental impact (de-forestation), fire risk, inefficiency, and uncontrollability of an open fire means that for most people, the method of choice will be some sort of stove.

Stove types
Stoves types can be divided according to the type of fuel they burn - there are advantages and disadvantages to all types. The following refers to lightweight stoves suitable for backpacking, trekking, cycle touring, and mountaineering.

Fuel	Pros	Cons	Suggested suitability
Solid (e.g. alcohol gel or 'hex' blocks)	Cheap to run. Very safe. Very easy-to-use. Simple and reliable (no moving parts). No maintenance. Fuel can not spill or leak.	Inefficient. Slow. No control over heat output. Fuel not widely available.	Those who what a cheap stove for very occasional or emergency use.*
Unpressurized liquid (e.g. meths)	Very little maintenance. Easy-to-use.	Inefficient. Slow. Fuel can leak or spill. Fuel can be difficult to obtain overseas.	Those who want a simple, relatively safe, and low maintenance stove; those who want a stove and pan set all-in-one. Popular with youth groups, schools, Scout groups, etc.
Gas (e.g. Go-Gas, Primus or MSR butane/propane mix)	Fast. Very easy-to-use. Very controllable. Very efficient. Clean. Self-sealing canisters are very safe.	Relatively expensive to run. Canisters only available in certain countries and/or areas. Performance can be poor in very cold conditions (butane/propane mix is better).	Those who want a powerful stove that is very simple to operate, safe, and efficient, but who know they can obtain the fuel (canisters are very widely available in the UK, and a good deal of the developed world). A good choice for shorter trips when weight is an important factor.
Pressurized liquid (e.g. Coleman fuel, unleaded petrol, paraffin)	Fast. Efficient. Fuel very widely available (depends on model of stove). Cheap to run.	Dirty, messy, smelly. Requires priming. Requires regular cleaning and maintenance. Can 'flare up'. Fuel can leak or spill.	Those who want a powerful stove with widely available fuel, that is cheaper to run than gas, and who don't mind the extra maintenance and hassle. Ideal for those travelling to developing countries or undertaking longer expeditions. Also the best choice for melting snow at altitude.

*escape2 does not stock any solid fuel stoves, due to their unsuitability for normal camping, backpacking, etc.

Specific fuels:

Fuel	Comments
Butane/propane mix	Clean and very efficient. Better cold weather performance than pure butane. Most manufacturers utilise the same European standard fitting (inc. Go-Gas, MSR, Coleman, & Primus).
Paraffin (kerosene)	Very widely available all over the world, but slow, difficult to light, smelly, dirty, and can quickly clog stove due to impurities.
Coleman fuel (white gas)	A form of purified petrol. Much cleaner than other liquid fuels, but more expensive (currently 12 times the cost of petrol in the UK!).
Unleaded petrol	Cheap and widely available, but smelly, dirty and can quickly clog stove due to additives.

Top tips on choosing and using stoves:

Stoves with a separate burner and fuel bottle/canister are much more stable - especially with bigger pans or on rough ground.
Gas stoves with a generator tube give better cold weather performance and will not flare if knocked over.
Pressurised liquid stoves (e.g. MSR XGK II) give by far the best performance in extreme cold and/or at high altitude.
Many gas stoves are available with built-in igniters, making them even easier and quicker to use.
Ensure that any pressurised liquid stove is as easy to take apart/repair/maintain as possible. It should require the minimum of tools. The most common tasks are unblocking the jet and cleaning the generator tube - are these easy to do?
A windshield will greatly improve the performance of any stove.
For short trips, gas is the lightest and least bulky option (MSR Pocket Rocket is only 85g!). On longer trips however, a pressurised liquid stove and fuel can work out lighter for the heating power it produces (e.g. MSR Whisperlite Int.).
Remember that you can not carry any kind of fuel on aircraft, or even containers which have had fuel in them (clean thoroughly with detergent before transporting) - always check fuel availability at your destination before departure.
When travelling in some developing countries, you may well end up buying fuel straight from a drum at the side of a road - it is well worth filtering such fuel before use, as any dirt in the fuel will quickly block your stove.
It is not unknown for unscrupulous vendors in some developing countries to fill or top-up gas canisters with water (so they feel full).

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