The stove debate continues...

[Tony E]

Thanx Bob and thanx for bringing it back to the stoves Everything you said made perfect sense. I have a chev truck with th e tow package and it should do fine. Thats probably the worse part about going to pick it up is the driving through the mountains this time of year hauling a 30 foot trailer. My truck is a 4x4 so maybe that will help. I don't think this model trailer has brakes and I heard the story about the 26x that flipped. Where do you even put 12 people on that boat? Its always good to learn from other people's mistakes and that was a terrible costly mistake which wont happen. Thanx again

 

[zeehag]

Wow Zeehag..crack pipes? ...lol I just don't know where I would buy or refill CNG. My buddy used butane and says its great and convenient and right now everything I have for camping I I go deep in the bush for weeks on end) is rigged for propane. I have 2 stoves, 2 laterns, etc. So for me to stay propane would be great but to start with I think I'll bring out the coleman and just be very veryyyy careful with it. I just want to work out these detail before I head out on my first trip in may so I can try everything then I have a 2 week trip in June to get ready for and ....etc.

got your attention, didnt i.....
i dont know if was crack pipes per se, or some kind of needs to belighted inmiddle of a powerful gas exchange..boom.......might as well be, for all the good it does anyone to smoke and exchange gas cylinders.....they dont just boom.

intelligent souls are able to master the fine art of changing propane, and also of cooking with it and storing it. isnt rocket science. is only when folks get stoopit and lax and lazy that boom happens.

propane is nothing to get panties in a twist about. unfortunately for the scareded souls, propane IS most efficient cooking fuel and IS able to be found universally. alcohol and butane and cng do not exist in many places we cruise.
this formosa, before i bought her, had 5 galley fires from alcohol stoves. and you guys think it is safe to cook with, just because is easily extinguished with water??? please--try to see the flame in bright sunlight. propane is safer than alcohol. why do you think folk s have changed from alcohol to propane....

have fun. good luck. i love my propane stoves. i use em. much easier to use in rough seas than alcohol....is contained. alcohol has to be poured.....all over self as boat pitches and coffee is still unmade by 1000.... good luck.

 

[Sumner]

cng and butane are great within the confines of united states of america. there is no butane here in mexico nor cng. you may want to research in reality a tad longer if you plan to cruise outside of usa.
propane is available everywhere. easy to find and use.
if the 3rd world land dwellers dont blow up their homes from use of propane, is all good--why do you guys continue to fear this well used and easily found stove fuel. doesn't take much brain power to use safely. is found everywhere, and cooks better than other fuels. the only explosions of propane i have known of are those done by folk who left brain on hold while trying to change tanks incorrectly. or those who have to light their (crack pipes, cigarettes, or whatever they smoke) while changing the tank.

Yes, yes, yes..............good post :dance::dance:.

Propane has worked great for us and knowing what I do now I'd not change. For all the talk about alcohol I still think it is not as good as propane on a small boat. If we are in the middle of a meal with propane and the bottle runs dry, unscrew it and screw on a new one. Alcohol in that situation is not that easy. Propane, light a match and turn it on and it is lit and you can see the flame and turn it off and it goes out. We went out on one boat with an older alcohol stove and I didn't like the messing around that had to take place to make it work.

I'm 69 and camped a lot with the older coleman stoves that you pumped up and would never consider taking one of those on a boat. The liquid gas and the way it operates is just a disaster waiting to happen on the water unless you use it in the cockpit and are prepared to throw it over the side if necessary.

There is a reason there are gazillion propane camp stoves and why it is used in houses and on larger boats,

Sum

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]============================[/FONT]

Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Mac-Venture Links

 

[Bob J.]

Propane has worked great for us and knowing what I do now I'd not change. For all the talk about alcohol I still think it is not as good as propane on a small boat.

I've spent 40 years in the mechanical contracting/engineering business & I can't wrap my head around the fear of propane. Yes it is heavier than natural gas but properly installed, gas piping isn't supposed to leak. If you're that concerned about it, install a propane snifffer down low.

 

[Tony E]

Well there ya go! I knew the stove debate was going to be a hot one....lol . Its very clear that everyone has their own preferences for what works best for their and their boat. To me their's day trips, weekend trips and week trips. I'll probably never touch the ocean again once I get my 26x home to Saskatchewan but who knows. I'll do alot of weekend trips just to take people out to let them see what it is like and how fun it is. My summer and holidays off will mainly consist of these week trips. Put the boat in this lake for a week...fish ,sail, pull the boat out and move on to another lake. Thats where the stove comes into play. The day trip not as much as you do the "snacks " things. Weekends maybe a bit more but I am setting up for maybe a 12 volt coffee maker, etc and so a needing a stove is 50/50. Its the big one or two weekers that I will need the stove. If its nice out then yes you can use the stove and cook outside by the cockpit. Usually I go for a week trip and you can bet that its going to rain for at least a day or 2 on those trips. Thats when cooking inside would be nice. With th eproper ventalation and caution I think anything would work but of ciuse pending on what you do use, your risk can and will go up as everyone knows. K so lots of votes for pure alcohol, a few for cng, more for propane and butane, and some for the old Coleman.

 

[Sumner]

... I am setting up for maybe a 12 volt coffee maker, etc .....

I'd give up on that one. You are going to use up a lot of battery and have to somehow fill it with the coffee maker. It is fine on the road in a car or truck where you are driving and charging all of the time, but on the water electricity is precious,

Sum

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]============================[/FONT]

Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Mac-Venture Links

 

[Merlin Clark]

Need to invent a solar powered drip coffee maker Sum!

 

[sesmith]

I see the great stove debate continues. Our previous boat and our current boat have single burner non-pressurized alcohol stoves. These work pretty well and are pretty safe. I also use a small alcohol stove when camping. No problem knowing when it's on. If I wave my hand over it, and it almost gets burned, the stove is on.

We also picked up a Coleman "max" all in one propane stove a couple of years ago, like this one:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-All-in-One-Cooking-System/13848650?findingMethod=rr

We love it. We make coffee water on the alcohol stove (and use a french press) while we do breakfast stuff on the griddle of the propane stove. We usually set the propane stove out in the cockpit, just to spread things out some on a small boat. Real easy clean up. Only lost the griddle once while rinsing it in the lake. It was a little too hot, and my wife dropped it overboard. Luckily, replacements are available. It's safer just to wipe it off

 

[Tally Ho]

Thanx Merlin. Does a person really need 2 burners? I read that some people think that alcohol stoves don't get hot enough? Do they?

I have an Origo alcohol stove on my 28-footer. I wanted propane stove/oven, but impractical on a 28...and even less so on a Mac 26. I found that the alcohol stove works well, and is about as simple and safe as it gets. I buy the alcohol at the local hardware store (cheap), put some in a squirt bottle to make filling the stove much easier, and it gets plenty hot. I do have a 2 burner, so I can get the coffee started. as someone else mentioned, I use the Folgers singles...decent brewed taste and no mess... And I can put a frying pan on the other burner. But on a Mac 26, you don't have a lot of space.

 

[tkanzler]

Well, since this thread is still up and running, here are my choices.

Cheap one-burner propane

or cheap one-burner butane

but either way, about all it really needs to do is make coffee in my cheap little (6 cup, I think) coffee percolator that I already own. Greatest sound in the world - coffee perking in the morning, before anyone else is even up. :dance:

I use propane for my little round stern rail mounted grill, but I guess that's not a good enough reason to stick with propane.

 

[Tony E]

If you are going to mount things to your stern rail then what clamps do you use and where would you get them? Are that at an outdoors store or at a hardware store?

 

[tkanzler]

I got the clamp when I got the grill. I think it's separate because they make a couple of different sizes, or ranges of sizes, as mine came with a shim ror 7/8" rail.

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=458667&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&storeId=11151&storeNum=51150&subdeptNum=51158&classNum=51160#.UVHaghxazi8

 

[bffatcat]

stoves

believe it or not Im still using the 2 burner vintage homestrand pressure alcohol stove that was probably original equipment on my 1975 pearson p26w It works fine. MY motto has always been "If it aint broke dont fix it" You guys using gasoline camping stoves on your boats should check with your insurance Co

 

[alexco38]

Some people think butane is not as cost effective as propane. You can get them by the case at Asian supermarkets or restaurant supplies less than the Green propane bottles.

BTW, using 1/2 bottle a day isn't going to break the bank. No wonder restaurant and catering folks use them to warm food trays.

 

[zeehag]

butane is not findable outside of usa. propane is universal.
other fuels are difficult at best to find. there is no alcohol here in southern areas in mexico. there is no butane here either. nor cng. there is only propane. is a serious consideraton for those intending to cruise outside of the usa.

 

[Bob 04 H260]

The OP is a first time sailor buying a Macgregor sailboat he says he is going to use in Saskatchewan, in fresh water lakes. I don't think he needs to worry too much about what fuel is available around the world. I think he needs to understand the difference between a marine stove and a camping stove and he will make his own decision which one he wants to go with.

He might want to check with his insurance company should there be an incident in the future. My insurance companies have all asked what fuel was used for cooking and asked for an insurance survey, so that would resolve the problem for him. If he wants to stay in a marina he will need insurance. If he does does not stay in marinas he may not think he needs insurance and he can use any stove he deems suitable.

The boat has an large outboard motor, is water ballasted so really has no bilge, may not even have or need a bilge pump. For sure has no bilge blower unless he decides to install one. So if there was a gas leak there would be no way to clear it.

I think he now has enough information to make an informed decision on alcohol, propane or butane, and whether to use a marine or camping stove.

Good luck, enjoy the boat, Bob

 

[Bob 04 H260]

If you are going to mount things to your stern rail then what clamps do you use and where would you get them? Are that at an outdoors store or at a hardware store?

if you look at the store on this site they sell BBQ's and stoves, rail mount clamps, and tables are available as an accessory......the Magma grill can be purchased as a combo BBQ & stove

 

[Tony E]

Thanx Bob thats very helpful

 

[Steve Dion]

The 8oz butane cartridges are used at many brunches/buffets for these small stoves. They run about $2/cartridge when you purchase them by the dozen.

I have seen them used in Mexico and other places so I believe that it is not difficult to find them even in Saskatoon.

We have one of these in our emergency box at home in case of an emergency. Mr Buddy Heater, water, guns, propane, butane, guns........

 

[Charlie Jones s/v Tehani]

I'd give up on that one. You are going to use up a lot of battery and have to somehow fill it with the coffee maker. It is fine on the road in a car or truck where you are driving and charging all of the time, but on the water electricity is precious,

Sum

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]============================[/FONT]

Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Mac-Venture Links

Agree totally re the 12 volt coffee pot. A small stove, a teakettle and a french press ( got my from the grocery store for $20) is FAR faster and FAR more efficient. Takes less than five minutes to heat the water for my coffee.