Those of you with the Coleman one-burner stove...

jacqueg · Jul 14, 2020

...what do you do for a windscreen/splatter screen? I find foil-covered cardboard is just too annoying. And I don't want to cook inside the van.

I'm thinking about buying one of those stainless-steel folding splatter screens on Amazon, and cutting some kind of hole into it to accommodate the propane feed. But I don't know what would work to easily cut it.

Thanks for any ideas!

B and C · Jul 14, 2020

Stainless steel and easy cutting don't necessarily belong in the same sentence. Find a drill bit a little larger than the end of the tube that screws into the stove. Measure how high the hole has to be and drill.

highdesertranger · Jul 14, 2020

a cut-off wheel on a 4.5" angle grinder will make short work of it. wear ear protection sheet stainless makes a hell of a noise when cutting this way. highdesertranger

highdesertranger · Jul 14, 2020

after reading Brian's reply and rereading yours I am confused, which is not hard to do. where do you want to use this screen? what stove do you have? highdesertranger

Qxxx · Jul 14, 2020

JG, I also have the Coleman 1-burner stove. I use one of these for a windbreak, but IIRC it was a lot cheaper when I bought it a couple of years ago. You can wrap it close around the stove and hold in place with rocks. You don't need to cut a hole. I never cook inside the van.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/10-Pieces-...-Folding-Wind-Guard-Picnic-Plate/193571363831

I use this low-rider stove, I also have the other one, but you cannot lower the heat down far enough for my likes on the tall one. This,
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-PowerPack-7-500-BTU-1-Burner-Stove/14574672
Not this,
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-...ane-Gas-Stove-with-Adjustable-Burner/20369794

jacqueg · Jul 14, 2020

Thanks QX, that's the one I'm talking about. I used those "bottle-top" gadgets many eons ago, when I was still backpacking. But to me they always looked like a very unpleasant accident waiting to happen, and they still do.

So are those indentations in the bottom of that screen deep enough to accommodate the propane connection? Or do you just adjust the screen around the stove, and "turn back" one or more of the plates?

Qxxx · Jul 14, 2020

The windscreen isn't really long enough to go all the way around the flat stove, so I would position it so the propane feed was at the end of screen. You can also buy 2 screens and easily daisy chain them. (I noticed much cheaper prices on looking around than what I linked).

Also I would just turn things so the opening was away from the wind direction. You need an opening to get at the fry pan, in any case. Also, the aluminum is thin enough you can easily cut it with snippers if you need to make a bigger opening.

MrNoodly · Jul 14, 2020

My stove was connected to the 5 gallon tank via a 6 foot hose. The hose ran along the inside edge of the shield and out the front. Or I would rotate the stove so the fitting hung over the front edge of the shield.

My complaint with the Coleman stoves is their temperature control is almost useless if you want something other than Off, Too Hot and Totally Burned.

Qxxx · Jul 14, 2020

MrNoodly said:
My complaint with the Coleman stoves is their temperature control is almost useless if you want something other than Off, Too Hot and Totally Burned.

I found this to be the case with that tall stove that I linked, but the flat low-rider stove has much better low-end adjustment.

VanFan · Jul 14, 2020

MrNoodly said:
My complaint with the Coleman stoves is their temperature control is almost useless if you want something other than Off, Too Hot and Totally Burned.

Agreed. For the two-burner, my husband turns both burners on to get a simmer. Is there a stove you like better?

maki2 · Jul 14, 2020

The wind screen does not have to be make out of stainless steel. Aluminum is much easier to work with for making a custom folding wind screen. Go to the hardware store and buy 3 pre-cut pieces of aluminum, also purchase some small hinges. Your only labor time is drilling and riveting on the hinges. For installing the hinges use the 3M VHB auto trim tape from the auto parts store, it is high temp heat resistance. Doing it that way means the project is done in no time at all. But be sure you clean the hinges and the aluminum with alcohol or acetone before you apply the tape.

MotorVation · Jul 14, 2020

I have the Coleman one burner. Some of the things I cook require simmering. I use one of the windscreens (I bent one of the corners so it fits over the propane regulator), and three lids from #10 cans between the stove and the pot to regulate the heat. Old trick from when I used to be a cook

jacqueg · Jul 14, 2020

MrNoodly said:
My stove was connected to the 5 gallon tank via a 6 foot hose. The hose ran along the inside edge of the shield and out the front. Or I would rotate the stove so the fitting hung over the front edge of the shield.

My complaint with the Coleman stoves is their temperature control is almost useless if you want something other than Off, Too Hot and Totally Burned.

Qxxx said:
I found this to be the case with that tall stove that I linked, but the flat low-rider stove has much better low-end adjustment.

I agree that that all Colemans are a pain in the patootie in this regard. But having lived with a number of cranky ranges in s&b, I found the solution to that - https://www.amazon.com/Simmer-Flame...ing+Flame+Heat+Diffuser&qid=1594781020&sr=8-2
They work great, I've used them for years, and whenever I see one in a thrift store, I buy it. Consequently, I usually have at least a couple in my possession.

Some people don't like the wooden handle, but I think it's more comfortable to use than a metal handle. And you DO want a handle on your flame tamer.

jacqueg · Jul 14, 2020

maki2 said:
The wind screen does not have to be make out of stainless steel. Aluminum is much easier to work with for making a custom folding wind screen. Go to the hardware store and buy 3 pre-cut pieces of aluminum, also purchase some small hinges. Your only labor time is drilling and riveting on the hinges. For installing the hinges use the 3M VHB auto trim tape from the auto parts store, it is high temp heat resistance. Doing it that way means the project is done in no time at all. But be sure you clean the hinges and the aluminum with alcohol or acetone before you apply the tape.

Thanks, I might try to do that. But you can buy aluminum screens, and they are pretty inexpensive.

INTJohn · Jul 20, 2020

I have a 1 burner coleman and I just got some old used license plates and used wire looped thru the holes to hold them together so I can fold it fairly flat when not in use. I used 8 of them I think. I don't use it often but thats wha I use 4 a winskreen.
INTJohn

Qxxx · Jul 20, 2020

Sofi, the stove I have is over 10 years old, though not used a huge amount over that entire period. However, the past 3 years, I must have used it about 300-400 times in 11 months of travel, for breakfast and dinner, and it adjusts fine for low flame cooking.

jacqueg · Jul 21, 2020

Sofisintown said:
I have the same low rider too, and I tried it a few times, and the flame adjustment seems to work fine. Is that bound to change with use? :s

I think these less expensive Colemans are kind of hit or miss in this regard - they seem to me to vary a lot right from the factory. Even when mine was new, I couldn't really simmer anything without a heat diffuser, there was very little difference between 'Off' and 'Simmer'.

Qxxx · Jul 21, 2020

In truth, I've never tried to "simmer" anything for an hour or so using the Coleman stove, as I think that would be a waste of propane. So like I said, I do not try cooking dried beans or rice on it. I use precooked instead.

If you really want to be an S&B type chef when camping out, you'll need another way. Pressure cooker or hotpot may be that way. A heat diffuser may be ok for 10 minutes or so, but would waste propane if used for an hour. It's all a matter of adaptation.

jacqueg · Jul 21, 2020

I agree, I don't simmer for more than ten minutes or so - just long enough to heat things through and mellow out the flavor. But without the diffuser, I get burned bottom on the lowest flame I can achieve.

Any year now, I'm going to make one of these fabric "hay box" cozies. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N3LQOQV/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0

Qxxx · Jul 21, 2020

jacqueg said:
Any year now, I'm going to make one of these fabric "hay box" cozies. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N3LQOQV/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0

That device looks interesting although I'm too sure about where it says ...
"Keeps food above 140 degrees for 2+ hours and food warm for 6+ hours. Bring food to a boil then slow cook it or keep it piping hot while traveling".

I'm not so sure that if you took dry rice or beans and put it in this thing for 2 hours after boiling, that it would cook properly. When I've simmered "dry" rice on the stove (S&B) for 45 minutes as specified to get it done, there was a lot of bubbling going on, and my guess would be that the temperature was well over 140F. So, the veracity of the quote is something that would take some experimenting to verify, if I ever had the thermal bag.

So, tomorrow my stove top pressure cooker arrives, YEA, and I'll immediately try some red beans and rice, YEA. And I'm expecting to cook up in 10 short minutes, per all the advice from this forum,

. YEA.

Those of you with the Coleman one-burner stove...

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