Rocket stoves for cooking

[TampShawn]

I have seen some ads for small wood/twig type rocket stoves for cooking. I have also seen some of these in the developing world for homes without electricity or other resources. 

Has anyone tried them? Do they work? Are they legal to use in the western part of the US where it is dangerous to use fire? Thanks. I have posted a few sites below for more information. 

https://www.solostove.com/solo-stove-lite
http://simplegreenliving.com/437/rocket-stove-make-one-and-cook-with-twigs/
https://www.treehugger.com/clean-te...makes-efficient-offgrid-or-camping-stove.html

 

[highdesertranger]

in the western US at certain times they have burn bans. rocket stoves are not legal when burn bans are in effect. highdesertranger

 

[OutdoorFT]

Ever considered making your own from a cat or tuna can using hole puncher and using delated (or somethong) alcohol. I made 2 and they work good. Cheap fuel too

 

[theinfamousj]

For main cooking or for occasional cooking? As someone who has always been an avid backpacker, if it is a type of stove that works off grid, I have tried it.

I adore my wood stove when it is too cold for liquid gas. And living on the east coast, wood is plentiful. But it creates a *lot* of soot and you can only boil water on it; no finer temperature control for simmering or other cooking. No rice. No stir fry. No toast.

Just rehydration. And dehydrated food is way more expensive than the money you save in fuel.

Also only for boiling: alcohol stoves.

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[Spaceman Spiff]

I adore my wood stove when it is too cold for liquid gas  . . . you can only boil water on it; no finer temperature control for simmering or other cooking. No rice. No stir fry. No toast.

Also only for boiling: alcohol stoves.

theinfamousj: What kind of temperatures do you cook in?  I've used my X-GK with white gas in -50ºF.

By spacing the cooking pot away from the stove one can regulate temperature.  You can also use a deflector to reduce the pan temperature, such as was used by people who couldn't (or it was inconvenient to) regulate a large kitchen wood stove.

Never tried a rocket stove, but if you can regulate the air intake you will be able to regulate the burn rate (and thus temperature).  Or you should be able to regulate the temperature by the amount of fuel you add; there is a learning curve, but this is how it is done on large wood stoves.

A rocket stove would be unusable out west during burning bans (and they are on in some areas this summer).

 -- Spiff

 

[TrainChaser]

You can cook ABOVE rocket stoves. You need to be able to raise and lower the pot support to adapt to the level of heat that you want.

There are basically two safe kinds of rocket stoves: metal can and red fired clay brick. DO NOT use concrete blocks, as they are dangerous when the concrete heats up and starts exploding small bits of hot material at your eyes.

For the red brick stoves, just set a brick (or two) on each side of the chimney to raise the pot. Red bricks from Home Depot (50 cents ea.) are 8x4x2.25", so each pair of bricks gives you either 2.25" or 4" of height above the chimney. Still too hot? Two bricks on each side will give the extra choice of 6.25" or 8". A smallish rack is nice to use as a bridge.

For the can stoves, stacking a few red clay bricks as above will 'adjust' the heat for you.

A makeshift way if you've got some sturdy limbs or sticks handy: http://momgoescamping.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/campfire-cooking.jpg

And there are the tripods with a chain and hook that hangs your pot above the stove that you can make with sturdy sticks or 4-ft lengths of rebar or pipe, or just buy one ($23): https://www.amazon.com/ChezMax-Outdoor-Ultra-light-Hanging-Campfire/dp/B01DX9E0GO

Or a commercial pound-in rack on a stake w/an adjustable rack (probably not so great in hard desert soil): http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabe...H0aUplPc-oqSUPSBQqMaAhIHEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

This last one might be better if it had a counter-balancing ring base, but I've never seen one.

But what HighDesertRanger says about burn bans is true. The fine from illegal burning in WA National Forests can range from $100 up to $5,000 and/or 1 year in jail. https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/okawen/alerts-notices/?cid=fsbdev3_053600#fines Other states aren't much different.

 

[steamjam1]

I have seen some ads for small wood/twig type rocket stoves for cooking. I have also seen some of these in the developing world for homes without electricity or other resources. 

Has anyone tried them? Do they work? Are they legal to use in the western part of the US where it is dangerous to use fire? Thanks. I have posted a few sites below for more information. 

https://www.solostove.com/solo-stove-lite
http://simplegreenliving.com/437/rocket-stove-make-one-and-cook-with-twigs/
https://www.treehugger.com/clean-te...makes-efficient-offgrid-or-camping-stove.html

When I first started van dwelling, I did alot of experimenting with wood stoves like those. I bought a Wild Stove from here:
https://wildstoves.co.uk/. Ive also made them out of a #12 coffee can and a Progresso soup can.

At the time (Nearly 5 years ago now) I paid nearly $95 dollars for what they now call a "budget model". It came as a kit with carrying bag, alcohol stove, and an MSR billy pot it nestled into when not in use. They are really well built, almost German-style over engineered. I still have it. It's in my RV along with a Kelly Kettle "just in case"

Just for the heck of it, a few years later I bought a cheap chinese Ebay rip off for $18 shipped. It came, and it's almost as good as the original. I've been using this one off and on over the last three years and its held up just fine. Makes very very little smoke when cooking, and regulating the heat is pretty easy by slowing down, or speeding up the rate you add fuel.

I want to give their Ezystove a go someday...

Anyways out here in the west coast burning wood is a sensitive subject due to years of drought. I don't do it when I'm on the road no matter where I am unless I really really haveto.

 

[theinfamousj]

theinfamousj: What kind of temperatures do you cook in?  I've used my X-GK with white gas in -50ºF.

Not sure what the temperature was, but water froze in their water bottles. Also, no one was backpacking with a white gas stove, just propane, butane, propane/butane mixes, and alcohol. None of those would light. It was too cold. It was 9 people sleeping in a dog pile cold night.

The thing about these stoves is that they are designed to be compact bushcraft stoves. By the time you add in cast iron heat shields and deflectors, you have now eliminated their usefulness over just getting a propane Coleman single burner or a proper wood stove with air intake adjustment (which allows for setting the temperature of the burner).

Also, the Super Cat, Cat, Penny, WoodGas, etc stoves don't allow the end user to adjust fuel or oxygen so there really is no simmer. They are beautifully designed to be water boilers. Nothing more.

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[theinfamousj]

But if you want to go the Rocket Stove route, it certainly stores compactly, no need to reinvent the wheel. Just steal lessons learned from the backpacking and bushcrafting communities.

https://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=111595

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[lenny flank]

Ever considered making your own from a cat or tuna can using hole puncher and using delated (or somethong) alcohol. I made 2 and they work good. Cheap fuel too

Denatured alcohol.

My homemade alcohol stove is made with two empty soda cans, some aluminum tape, and a handful of cotton balls:

https://lennyflank.wordpress.com/2017/03/14/my-alcohol-stove/

With it, I can cook anything that I could make on a stovetop in an apartment.

 

[highdesertranger]

just a hint on the homemade alcohol stoves. they are more than likely illegal during the burn bans. for a stove to be legal it must have a valve to shut the flow of fuel off. charcoal BBQ's are also illegal during the bans. highdesertranger

 

[Almost There]

I own a Trangia stove for backpacking use but I found it to be too tippy for safe use inside the van. It also meant that I had to use the Trangia pots with it so they'd fit on the stand. They're so lightweight which is great for backpacking but not so great for cooking all the time and from scratch.

The Trangia is legal when there is a burn ban because of the smother lid, it counts as a method of turning off the fuel. Well, it does in Ontario anyways!

For cooking inside the van I far prefer my $15. butane stove. Compact, portable so it's not always taking up room on my kitchen counter, simmers well and fairly economical to run if you purchase the canisters in Quartzite by the case...  

I also carry  my old favorite - a 2 burner propane stove for cooking outside which I do whenever and wherever I can. Hooked up to the 20lb propane tank it's the cheapest to run but not as convenient when I'm on the road.

 

[Weight]

It would be cold if propane did not burn. Butane can be a problem. Homemade alcohol stoves are more dangerous than effective. Remove the bottom of a quart paint can and a progressive soup can will snap into the inside of the rim. Carefully located holes will make a fine stick burning gassification stove.

 

[user 423]

For cooking inside the van I far prefer my $15. butane stove. Compact, portable so it's not always taking up room on my kitchen counter, simmers well and fairly economical to run if you purchase the canisters in Quartzite by the case...  

Which brand/model do you have?

 

[Almost There]

It's an 'Alpha' that I picked up at K&B Tools in Quartzite 2 winters ago. W/M sells another brand for more money but still quite reasonably priced.

It's actually quite well made for being a cheap stove. The safety features are quite well thought out. The canister cannot be engaged unless the stove is turned off. The pot support thingie has to be turned upside down for packing in the plastic tote and that can't happen unless the canister is disengaged. Nor can the canister be put back in to lock position when the pot support isn't turned right side up. It's quite idiot proof which I've managed to prove to myself a few times.... :angel:

It has electronic ignition on it which is great.

Butane canisters can be outrageously priced in W/M and outdoor stores so I try to stock up when I'm in Quartzite and definitely before I head north for the summer.

 

[Weight]

My Coleman from WM doesn't have that many safety things. It does need to be off before removing the canister. I get canisters at Asian markets for less than $2 each. Stove was less than $20.

 

[wagoneer]

I have the stove tech version that comes in a bucket It works well but quite heavy made coffee and breakfast from Omaha to San Francisco.