Good point, I was wondering if the topic was about pressured or non-pressured
alcool stove..
I use an Origo 2 burners stove ( non pressurized ), always used methyl hydrate
( much like the old gas line anti-freeze, before injected engines ). Good
performance and not too expensive ( a gallon cost around 18.00 at hardware
stores ). I also pour it if I have water in my gas tank ( Atomic 4 ).
I tried denatured alcool once on the Origo but it was not as efficient to boil
water ( and for the first coffee of the day minutes couts! ).
Sylvain
C&C27 MkIII
________________________________
From: Dennis C. via CnC-List <cnc-list@cnc-list.com>
To: Burt Stratton <bstrat...@falconnect.com>; CnClist <cnc-list@cnc-list.com>
Sent: Monday, August 11, 2014 12:34 PM
Subject: Re: Stus-List Alcohol stove fuels. Best?
Lots of discussions, disagreements, personal opinions on this subject. One
place where camping, backpacking and marine recreation overlap.
Denatured alcohol will work, but is it REALLY the best bargain? How quickly
will it heat your food? What you're looking for is $$/BTU or heating
efficiency AND clean burning.
You might find this video enlightening:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt69fbNhCgs
The video compares several alcohol fuels. Granted, the comparison is done in a
non-pressurized stove but the comparison methodology seems fairly sound. The
results were defined in terms of economy ($$$) for bringing water to a boil.
In short, denatured alcohol performed poorly in terms of economic efficiency.
The best performing fuel was an automotive gas antifreeze, HEET in the yellow
container. HEET is primarily methanol. I suppose you can always go to a truck
stop and get air brake antifreeze.
Unfortunately, no actual stove fuel like Origo or Tru-Heat was tested.
Alcohol stoves are designed to burn ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Unfortunately,
you can't find 100% ethanol. Ethanol must be "denatured" by adding methanol to
avoid liquor taxation. Nigel Calder says you need a minimum of 95% ethanol.
Further, there
doesn't appear to be any standard for denatured alcohol. Make sure any fuel
you buy is labeled for use in alcohol stoves. Some denatured alcohols may be
as little as 50% alcohol.
Pressure alcohol stoves are more fuel sensitive than non-pressurized alcohol
stoves because of the orifice. If the fuel contains oils or impurities, the
orifice may become plugged. Before you burn any new fuel in a pressurized
alcohol stove, burn several ounces in a metal dish and check for residue after
the burn completes.
Make sure any fuel you buy is labeled for use in alcohol stoves. Read the
label. Look at the MSDS. There doesn't appear to be any standard for
denatured alcohol. Some denatured alcohols may be as little as 50% alcohol.
So, you might actually spend more $$ or incur more maintenance issues by using
a cheap denatured alcohol than a fuel formulated specially for alcohol stoves.
For the record, Touche' has a pressure alcohol stove. The Admiral and I use it
often. I tried big box store denatured alcohol (labeled for stove fuel) and it
worked but I personally prefer the Origo stove fuel. Just seems to work
better. Might be my imagination or the fumes. :)
Dennis C.
Touche' 35-1 #83
Mandeville, LA
On Mon, Aug 11, 2014 at 9:36 AM, Burt Stratton via CnC-List
<cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote:
This my first go-around with alcohol stoves. Seems to work very nicely. Cleaned
it up filled it and brewed a big pot of coffee in no time. Is there any reason
not to use plain old denatured alcohol instead of stove cooking fuel?
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