Has anyone tried a popcan heater for van?

[Candilc]

Saw an awesome video on how to make a REALLY CHEAP pop can heater, someone said you can just put in a window...has anyone tried one in a van? I'm anxious to try it out of curiousity!

 

[LeeRevell]

There's a bit of a trick to making a pop can stove. I was camping with a group of self-styled 'preppers' and the subject came up. They tried several times, and finally got one made that barely worked. Design and placement of the vent holes seems critical.
I'll keep my Mr. Buddy.........

 

[Almost There]

The pop can (or beer can) stove has a burn limitation of maybe 10 minutes or so inherent in it's design. It's meant for heating water for backcountry rehydration.

It's not going to do much for heating the interior of even a small vehicle.

 

[akrvbob]

The pop/tuna/cat food can stoves are great for ultralight backpacking. Nearly all of them burn denatured alcohol and put out a lot of heat and boil water fast.

However, I would be terrified to use one in a van. If it spills you pour burning alcohol all around the van and whatever is nearby can catch fire and boom, you could have ribbons of fire all over the place.

The risk is much too high for me for too little gain.
Bob

 

[Almost There]

Yea, my Trangia stove will be used for outdoor use only, as stable as it is. A pop can stove with a homemade pot stand...no way!!

I've used the Trangia in an emergency here in the apartment (power outage) but I set it up in a cast iron frypan on the stove and it comes with a very stable base.

I am however going to an alcohol stove for a built in stove. I'm comfortable cooking with alcohol and it eliminates the need to install propane tanks. I'll carry the 1 pounders for the barbecue but that's it.

 

[One Awesome Inch]

Yeah, but isn't using any sort of alcohol stove in a van risky? You spill it and big problems.

It is way cheaper and better for the environment not using those 1LBS cannisters though.

However, due to the risk of fire with alcohol, I probably am going to stick with the 1LB propane cannisters/propane element. The vast majority of my cooking will be warming up canned soup, chilli etc and boiling water.

I don't know... I like certain aspects of cooking with alcohol but the fire risk seems too great.

 

[gypsychic]

I think the OP might be referring to a passive solar heater using soda cans painted black that are placed behind glass and vented on top and bottom. Bottom for incoming cool air, top for outgoing warm air. But I could be wrong. It wouldn't be the 1st time

I do find the discussion of alcohol stoves rather timely though. I've been looking into alcohol stoves as I no longer find the smell of kero as fond as I have before and I really, really, really do not want to use propane. It just freaks me out to carry around all that pressurized fuel. Not a lot of alternatives though. Bummer.

 

[george warner]

are you talking about the pop can heaters made with a bunch of pop cans hooked together in a wood frame and painted black .. for solar heat ..are the pop can stove ?

 

[Almost There]

are you talking about the pop can heaters made with a bunch of pop cans hooked together in a wood frame and painted black .. for solar heat ..are the pop can stove ?

Maybe we all got off on the wrong use of soda cans from the get-go! The OP hasn't been back to correct us if we're talking two different things here.

---

I do find the discussion of alcohol stoves rather timely though. I've been looking into alcohol stoves as I no longer find the smell of kero as fond as I have before and I really, really, really do not want to use propane. It just freaks me out to carry around all that pressurized fuel. Not a lot of alternatives though. Bummer.

This is a listing for the one I want:

http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|2276204|2276205|2276214&id=60257

Built in so it meets one of the criteria for changing my registration to an RV from truck. There are one burner and portable stoves available as well.

I'm with you, I don't want to be plumbing in below floor propane tanks and am no longer willing to have to find space inside the van for a tank nor have one 'living' with me.

Yes, there are tricks to be learned - like how to refill the stove without dripping fuel and learning not to test to see if there's a flame there by putting your hand over the burner...well duh!!

The most common complaint from the guys out doing canoe trips is that they can't see the flame - well they're outdoors in bright sunshine (hopefully) and since it's silent when lit it's not like the darned rocket burners that some of them use. And after multiple canoe trips with a bunch of guys, I can understand why some of them have problems...just sayin'....

The alcohol stoves are in use in a lot of boats and used quite safely too!

 

[highdesertranger]

well almost there, 7,000 btu burners are pretty low power. to boil 1/2 gal of water it will take you close to an hour in real world situations. my main stove has 30.000 btu burners will boil 2 gallons of water in about 15 minutes. I am sure that stove works fine but it's very low powered and the price, wow. highdesertranger

 

[jimindenver]

There are a number of ways to do a passive hot air collector, cans are popular because they can be had for free unless you pay a deposit. Foot print in any solar is king and there in lies the rub. Can you store a big enough collector to make it worth while.

Other less labor intensive mediums include black PVC pipe, down spouts painted black, a single sheet of black tin and even steel wool. Anything dark to absorb the heat. They do work, I've seen test of larger heaters putting out close to 200 f at the exhaust. Advanced designs include induced turbulence and stat controlled fans.

Probably the simplest thing you can do is hang a piece of black metal in a sunny window, it'll absorb more than you think. I was considering getting blinds black on one side, white on the other. Need the heat put the black side out with little effort.

 

[Almost There]

well almost there, 7,000 btu burners are pretty low power. to boil 1/2 gal of water it will take you close to an hour in real world situations. my main stove has 30.000 btu burners will boil 2 gallons of water in about 15 minutes. I am sure that stove works fine but it's very low powered and the price, wow. highdesertranger

When the day comes that I ever need to boil 2 gallons of water at any one time, I'll move to a larger, more powerful stove. Heck, I don't remember when I needed to bring a half gallon to a boil either come to think of it. Let's see 2 cups of water for my mug of tea, dishes can be done in room temp water just fine. Now, pasta might take a few minutes longer - who cares!

I use a Trangia alcohol stove regularly for interior camping and it works fast enough for me. I not only rehydrate my meals but cook from scratch on it.

I also don't have to add in the cost of having to install and plumb in an under floor propane system. To me the overall cost is fine.

 

[ccbreder]

Every fuel has it's danger. Alcohol stoves were in every yacht in the 60s. Now near every thing is propane. Some are moving to electricity. I am more worried about a spilled liquid fire than propane.

 

[highdesertranger]

I was just using the boiling of water as an example. to show the difference. highdesertranger

 

[Varmint]

I believe the op was referring to the solar heater made from pop cans painted black and placed in a shallow box with plexiglass cover. These work well for raising the internal temperature of a van or trailer, and some have used them for heating a tiny house. There are directions elsewhere for making these, as many people have experimented with them. They can be use indoors or out, as well as put away when not in use. Try googling "pop can solar heat".

The pop can stoves used for heating water or food can be rendered nearly spill-proof by simply adding a wafer of fiberglass insulation in them when you put the two halves together. I can turn mine almost completely over or drop them on the floor without spilling any alcohol. If you leave them on their side or otherwise turned-over, they will leak out slowly, of course, but the idea is to have time enough to pick them back up or turn them over. Better still is to make a decent place to set them so they won't turn over. Any table top will work, as the stand keeps it from heating, much less ruining the table top.

I should point out that mine burn about 20-30 minutes without the simmer ring, which can only be used with a pot sitting over the ring at the appropriate spacing. There is 1/2" of space between the top of my simmer ring and the bottom of my pot when using this ring, and with it my stoves burn between 50-60 minutes. These stoves aren't meant to sit on the ground, but on a stand which isolates them from the cold ground. If you put my stove on anything cold, like the ground, it will almost immediately go out. I use a small stand/spacer, made from a can top, for this. You can find directions for the original pop can stove on the zen stove site.

One thing that can't be stressed enough is that, in order to obtain maximum efficiency, you must follow the original designer's directions regarding the size and number of stove jets. You'll see his directions regarding the Heineken beer can he used for the original, and there's a link to his replacement, made with any other normal-sized pop or beer can. It boils water pretty quickly, and once boiling, you place the simmer ring on and put the pot back on it. Pay attention to this, as failure to have a pot above the ring will result in unwanted damage to the ring. It won't work properly without everything in place, and all this is detailed on the site.

Enjoy.

 

[WriterMs]

So if he is asking about the passive solar for heat, it obviously can work for daytime in cold weather. But he still also has to have something for nighttime heat if the day is cold enough to warrant use of solar gain heat. Unless at night he counts on his bedding, I suppose. So, as someone noted, the big problem would be storage space for it when not in the window.

An older woman prepper in the Ozarks who writes an interesting blog swears by the heat gain she gets on the south windows of her home by simply using thick, corrugated cardboard painted black on one side and that has some clearance below. Black warms the air in the vertically oriented corrugated chambers, and those direct the heat downward and into the room.

I wonder, though, how well window inserts made of such would work to keep OUT the cold during the night? Condensation would not be kind to cardboard either. Just thinking out loud here, so ... I'll stop now. LOL

 

[Canine]

When I was in high school, my school had a contest to see who could build the best solar oven. I built a plywood box that held 9 beer cans on five sides of the box. I cut out holes just big enough to hold the cans, siliconed them in, then painted it flat black. My performance was one of the worst. I can't remember who won (the one who generated the most heat), but he didn't use pop cans.

 

[SoulRaven]

Just south facing windows in the winter will give me all the solar heat I need to be comfy down to somewhere around the freezing mark outside.

 

[akrvbob]

Off Grid 24/7, I thought you were in the Seattle area, when do you get sun in the winter?
Bob