Alcohol stove tips or tricks

[Texrob]

I am new to using non pressurized alcohol stoves does anyone have any tips or tricks?
I have a Origo 4000 in my h27 and like it so far. I have used it mostly for heat using 3 terracotta pots bolted together. I use Everclear as fuel for heat which keeps the smell down.
I have been using denatured alcohol from the hardware store in one of the burners for cooking but I do not like the smell.

 

[Phil Herring]

I use Everclear as fuel

Is this fuel for you, or the stove?

 

[anchorclanker]

Everclear? Thats kind of expensive "fuel" to be burning, isnt it?

 

[Stu Jackson]

Everyone's sense of smell is different. On our Origo we used hardware store alcohol.

Tips&tricks? Follow the instructions. Make sure the canisters are covered when not being used, using the pads that come with the unit. Don't light a hot canister. Take the canister out to refill. That's about it.

 

[Texrob]

Everclear? Thats kind of expensive "fuel" to be burning, isnt it?

It cost about twice as much as the denatured alcohol. It burns very well and so far we have not used very much.

 

[Texrob]

Is this fuel for you, or the stove?

Just rum and beer for me! If the admiral gets cranky I may switch to the Everclear.:dance:

 

[anchorclanker]

So these alky stove burners are more like sterno cans? Are the pressurized ones more like a Coleman stove?

 

[Pat]

I am new to using non pressurized alcohol stoves does anyone have any tips or tricks?
I have a Origo 4000 in my h27 and like it so far. I have used it mostly for heat using 3 terracotta pots bolted together. I use Everclear as fuel for heat which keeps the smell down.
I have been using denatured alcohol from the hardware store in one of the burners for cooking but I do not like the smell.

At the risk of receiving a 'duh' from the crowd, we have been using our origo
4000 for 26 years and think it is top notch. There is nothing to break. There are no flare-ups. We have kept it clean and use it for at least coffee every morning when we wake up on the lake. I've boiled 10 pounds of potatoes on it for a Thanksgiving (only once) and my wife annually prepares
Eggs Benedict for many on our slip once a summer....we often go out and anchor for breakfast and cooking on it is simple and being stainless, it is easy to clean. I went to TJMaxx and bought selected stainless cookware which I store below the origo and I bought a Martha Stewart stainless coffee pot which makes great coffee when anchored either morning or night.. probably more than you wanted to know. BTW, we have used many diffeent brands of alcohol fuel and I guess we prefer the origo fuel sold by West Marine although it is expensive...You will enjoy it.

ps. we have also sailed across Lake Texoma at 3 a.m on a cold night and used the origo heat pal in the cockpit of a 302. They are safe and effective
as well.
Pat

 

[fox islander]

...we love our origo 6000...at least the cooktop portion. We haven't had as good results with the oven. The fumes from hardware store denatured alcohol does burn my wifes eyes a bit. I do the flower pot trick also for additional heat...works well and seems safe.

 

[Texrob]

So these alky stove burners are more like sterno cans? Are the pressurized ones more like a Coleman stove?

They are sort of like that. There are two large canisters stuffed with some sort of wadding that holds the alcohol. The only moving or the mechanical parts are the sliding covers that controls the flame.

 

[BrokeNotBroken]

Get a decent quality whistling tea kettle with a removable lid to quickly boil water for tea, coffee, soups, sponge baths, etc.

Keep the alcohol reservoir filled so that you have the maximum heat output.

If there is a flame diffuser, you can remove it from one burner and use that burner to boil water in your kettle. Some think that the diffuser makes the time to boil longer. I haven't timed it yet but I plan to.

Get one set of pot holders so that you can make tea/coffee on the go and don't have to worry about spilling boiling water.

I use Klean-Strip green denatured alcohol because it has a really high ethanol content, more than the other brands I see at the store. http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...talogId=10053&productId=202249513&R=202249513 The review is not mine but I did verify by checking the MSDS.

Use cast iron or tri-clad bottom stainless steel cookware to help distribute the heat of the flame for cooking.

that's all I have, good luck.

 

[jibes138]

Be extremely careful using one of these for heat. Make sure you have a CO detector installed and make sure the boat is adequately ventilated. If you get CO poisoning you won't even know it and death is not out of the question from the same. Since these stoves don't vent outside the boat like a true heater you are subjecting yourself to the products of combustion.

 

[Texrob]

Be extremely careful using one of these for heat. Make sure you have a CO detector installed and make sure the boat is adequately ventilated. If you get CO poisoning you won't even know it and death is not out of the question from the same. Since these stoves don't vent outside the boat like a true heater you are subjecting yourself to the products of combustion.

From the research I have done burning alcohol has about the same exhaust as breath. I do plan to try a CO detector to see.
However I never sleep with the heat on even at home.

It doesn't get every cold here so heat is not an issue. Central heat at the dock reduces the need for burning anything.

I know of a couple of kids that broke into a friend’s boat to make out and died from using a propane heater. They were not found for over a month.

 

[Texrob]

Get a decent quality whistling tea kettle with a removable lid to quickly boil water for tea, coffee, soups, sponge baths, etc.

Keep the alcohol reservoir filled so that you have the maximum heat output.

If there is a flame diffuser, you can remove it from one burner and use that burner to boil water in your kettle. Some think that the diffuser makes the time to boil longer. I haven't timed it yet but I plan to.

Get one set of pot holders so that you can make tea/coffee on the go and don't have to worry about spilling boiling water.

I use Klean-Strip green denatured alcohol because it has a really high ethanol content, more than the other brands I see at the store. http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...talogId=10053&productId=202249513&R=202249513 The review is not mine but I did verify by checking the MSDS.

Use cast iron or tri-clad bottom stainless steel cookware to help distribute the heat of the flame for cooking.

that's all I have, good luck.

That is the exact fuel I use. I can boil water but my kettle will not whistle! First time I used it half the water boiled off before I noticed it.

 

[fox islander]

...my CO detector has never alarmed while using the stove. That being said, I won't use it for heat while sleeping...

 

[centerline]

From the research I have done burning alcohol has about the same exhaust as breath.

this is not true.... there are too many variables that need to be considered before you can guess at the amount of CO that is being produced by a flame....
CO has no smell, but when you are burning your flame too high or trying to burn it too fast before the stove warms up a little, you will get a strong odor from it... even with everclear although its a little different smell, its still an odor.
this odor is a strong indicator that a higher amount of CO is being produced. and its because the stove is burning without complete combustion... the more complete the combustion, the less residual smell it will have, and also the less CO is being produced by it. BUT, you will never get a flame to burn without producing some CO......

here is what happens when burning a flame in a confined space or poorly ventilated space......
the flame burns fine creating a minimal amount of CO, as it does it uses the oxygen from the air faster than it can be replaced..... as the oxygen is depleted from the air, the flame continues to burn but starts producing a higher amount of CO due to incomplete combustion of the fuel because it doesnt have enough oxygen.... as it continues to burn, the life sustaining atmosphere starts to rapidly deteriorate..... no oxygen and lots of CO.

and on top of that, as we breath, our lungs will uptake the CO molecules 200 times faster than it will the oxygen molecules..... and the body holds on to them longer because, the oxygen gets used up in the body, whereas the CO does not get used but just stays around crowding the few remaining oxygen molecules from reaching our bloodstream..... a body suffocates internally.

propane or butane will also have a bit of a bitter smell if there is not enough oxygen getting to the flame.... alcohol is just worse because its a liquid that has to be heated and converted to a gas before it will burn...

once the stove is warmed up good, the smell diminishes almost completely, provided the flame is not set so high that it cant heat the liquid fast enough to convert to it to a burnable gas....

 

[jibes138]

Thanks Centerline, great info. The other effect of the CO is to the brain. The lack of oxygen and the CO concentration effects the thought process so you can't think logically. You don't realize what is happening to you and you don't make decisions to save your life, you just pass out and die. Always have good ventilation when burning anything. Alcohol may have low exhaust while burning in a wide open space but in a tightly sealed boat because it is freezing outside you might deplete the oxygen very quickly. Stoves are not meant to be used as heaters and aren't designed for that purpose. Don't end up as a statistic.

 

[centerline]

Thanks Centerline, great info. The other effect of the CO is to the brain. The lack of oxygen and the CO concentration effects the thought process so you can't think logically. You don't realize what is happening to you and you don't make decisions to save your life,

you just pass out and die. Don't end up as a statistic.

Exactly.... when dealing with the effects of CO poisoning is a rare occurrence to ever have a chance to say "well, damn, I thought It would be fine for a just few minutes".... dont be that person!

its safer to use a catalytic heater....

 

[Chris Patterson]

Thanks Centerline, great info. The other effect of the CO is to the brain. The lack of oxygen and the CO concentration effects the thought process so you can't think logically. You don't realize what is happening to you and you don't make decisions to save your life, you just pass out and die. Always have good ventilation when burning anything. Alcohol may have low exhaust while burning in a wide open space but in a tightly sealed boat because it is freezing outside you might deplete the oxygen very quickly. Stoves are not meant to be used as heaters and aren't designed for that purpose. Don't end up as a statistic.

So there's the problem. There must be a proliferation of these things on power-boats..

 

[py26129]

We love our origo as well. We use it almost every weekend and for our annual 3 week vacation on the boat. As for fuel, we have found Methyl Hydrate to work very well and it is dirt cheap. I can pick up a gallon for $8 at the local HW store. Best of all it has no unpleasant smell detectable either by me or the admiral.

Matt