Vango Stove Failure

[Bishop]

Purchased some eighteen months ago after the wife voiced her disapproval of me practising trail recipes with the petrol stove in kitchen. It soon warmed its way into her heart as she discovered how much better it was than our geriatric electric hob for things like pancakes, stir fry and the occasional bacon butty. The stove has had a good life seeing action regularly averaging two or three times a week on the kitchen table, its gentle roar signifying all was well in the world and nobody was getting cereal for breakfast. Fuelled with nothing but the best Coleman gas, never has it been left out in the rain, stepped on, dropped or hurled flaming into the darkness. So when the usual noise of the burner suddenly changed to more of a rapidly pulsating squeal everybody noticed.

Lifting the frying pan off instead of revealing a rose of flame to my horror the gas was actually burning inside the exposed wire mesh of the head and the metalwork was glowing alarmingly bright orange. Would of liked to get some pictures of it running but you know, common sense, healthy respect for fire and knowledge of absolute certainty that the wife would murder me if I tried.

Here it is after it cooled down.




Can't grumble to much, purchased during sale at local garden centre for £20 but the sudden nature of the failure gives me pause for thought. On the whole though a sad end to what's been a terrific little item of kit and if anybody out there has Vango Gas Stove, then you may want to make a close inspection of the burner cap.

 

[bopdude]

Wow, close call.

 

[Nice65]

I had exactly this happen with a Gelert (probably the same stove rebranded). Flame popping and whistling. Does it fold into a red plastic box?

I got onto the Gelert products website and found they're not designed to run a propane mix, it burns out the gauze. Butane only. I suggested that as I was working in minus zero conditions and wanted a sausage sandwich and cup of tea daily, it ought to be written loud and clear in the product description. I got a refund.

 

[Bishop]

Yes squarish red/orange plastic box as I recall , may still have it in a cupboard.

 

[petrochemicals]

Very alarming. The same thing has happened on a primus, but it didn't self distruct to quite that. And the primus took a he'll of a lot of abuse too, left in the rain water spilt upon it when it was hot many times etc. The wire mesh is there to stop the flame passing through from the outside and burning inside the stove in the way you describe, usualy when the stove is on low, this is according to primus, so when it gets a hole in the mesh the flame passes through and burns inside. A bit poor that it was so well cared for.