Alcohol Stove Build - looking for a little fibre glass wool

[Colinski]

Hi everyone, I am very new here , infact i just signed up.
I am making some Alcohol stoves for my friends and myself.
Ultra light Alcohol Stove. The funny thing is that a month ago i saw Fiberglass in skips everywhere
but now i can't find any. I don't want to go out and buy a full roll and hate how it itches and no where to store it.
My request is: If someone can donate some used or unwanted Fiberglass. in a gesture of thanks i will finish off a couple of stoves
so i can test one and send a brand new one to you for your help. The fiberglass must be the layered type, preferably pink (The itchy stuff) I would probably need in total about a half square meter.

Please check this link and you can see what i am upto.

Some improvement ideas are very welcome.
I would like to be able to control the flame rate and pasibly a cover (Even though it is leak proof.)
Thanks for any help
Regards Colinski (Colin) (I used to Ski hence the Nickname)

 

[Mesquite]

Do a search on ebay for ceramic fire insulation. There's plenty of suppliers there who do small quantities if you can't get a piece donated

 

[Colinski]

Thanks for your reply Mesquite, The ceramic fire insulation won't work. The point with Fiberglass layers is that it absorbs and retains the alcohol. I believe due to that fiberglass are packed with hollow fibers that this would be the best material. The itchier the better as it indicates broken ends of the fibers. I believe Rockwool might also do the job. Its the only thing i am missing to complete the build.

 

[C_Claycomb]

Hello Colin,
I have moved this thread here from its original spot in Resources. While it might be made clearer, purpose of Resources is to share where to get stuff and learn stuff, not to ask where to get stuff, and not to ask the membership for stuff. I have also tidied the other post made on the end of another thread. There was too much of a spam flavour starting to come through. Please keep further posts on this stove build here.

I have a small bag of loft insulation fibre. I think it is fibre glass, but there is a chance it is rock wool. Probably glass though. Not pink, it is kinda beige. Drop me PM and I will send you a care package. Not looking for a stove, thanks. I did my Coke can stove phase in 2014

ATB
Chris

 

[Colinski]

Hello Colin,
I have moved this thread here from its original spot in Resources. While it might be made clearer, purpose of Resources is to share where to get stuff and learn stuff, not to ask where to get stuff, and not to ask the membership for stuff. I have also tidied the other post made on the end of another thread. There was too much of a spam flavour starting to come through. Please keep further posts on this stove build here.

I have a small bag of loft insulation fibre. I think it is fibre glass, but there is a chance it is rock wool. Probably glass though. Not pink, it is kinda beige. Drop me PM and I will send you a care package. Not looking for a stove, thanks. I did my Coke can stove phase in 2014

ATB
Chris

(Thanks Chris, I wasn't sure where to post it.)

 

[Colinski]

Hello Colin,
I have moved this thread here from its original spot in Resources. While it might be made clearer, purpose of Resources is to share where to get stuff and learn stuff, not to ask where to get stuff, and not to ask the membership for stuff. I have also tidied the other post made on the end of another thread. There was too much of a spam flavour starting to come through. Please keep further posts on this stove build here.

I have a small bag of loft insulation fibre. I think it is fibre glass, but there is a chance it is rock wool. Probably glass though. Not pink, it is kinda beige. Drop me PM and I will send you a care package. Not looking for a stove, thanks. I did my Coke can stove phase in 2014

ATB
Chris

I am not sure how and where PM section is as i don't use forums often, I would love your offer and happy to pay any expences etc.

 

[nigelp]

‘Click’ the the username of the person you want to message - press start conversation

 

[C_Claycomb]

Hehe. I have sent Colin a PM.

 

[TLM]

Fiberglass insulation fibers are not hollow. Rockwool is just a trademark for set of insulating fibers in the silicate family, glass being a cousin. The finer the fiber the more surface area it has for given weight and generally the better it holds alcohol.

 

[Brizzlebush]

@Colinski : Sent you a pm

 

[Colinski]

Cool. I will keep you guys updated and perfect the device and publish online.

 

[forrestdweller]

so how would you know if it's the right kind of material for a stove? (=not much use for insulation where i live, so my only source would be some from a trash pile.... i just stumbled across this thread and it gives me some ideas for a project some point in the future)

 

[gg012]

so how would you know if it's the right kind of material for a stove? (=not much use for insulation where i live, so my only source would be some from a trash pile.... i just stumbled across this thread and it gives me some ideas for a project some point in the future)

Pretty much any rock wool type insulation should work in this situation as long as it is nice and dry when you build the stove. If you come across some then i would build one and see how well it works

 

[Pattree]

They will work without any wicking material at all but you have to light a bonfire under them to get them going. I used a shallow tin lid with a paper handkerchief in the bottom soaked in meths. I put the beer can burner on that and set fire to the lot. After a few minutes it settled down and the flame “bloomed”. My burner was only 55mm high but I’ve seen illustrations of a magnificent “empty” version made from the thick aluminium base of a Bialetti moka pot.

Edited to add:
I didn’t waste time waiting for the flame to bloom. It was under my cooking pot s soon as I lit it and it went ballistic.

 

[Colinski]

Hi Guys, I have been offline for a little while with multiple projects.
Thank you for the material contributions. C_Claycomb and Brizzlebush.
The materials you donated where more than enough. The Yellow and Beige material was Fiberglass. The Aliminum covered White material was mineral fiber. All three of them worked equally as good and quite furious lasting over 14 minutes with a 15cm flame, Flipping a penny over the middle hole helped with the flow a little (More constant jet flow).
Methanol is probably not the best of Alcohol fuels as it had a lot of yellow flames that left soot at the bottom of the pot. Ethanol or Bio Alcohol would probably work cleaner and better. Boil time for 60ml or 0.6 of a liter took around 7 minutes after the jets ignited.
A word of warning though.... Don't try it indoors or hallways etc. and don't rely on the stove to be extinguished when the flame goes out. Lol after testing with my thumb on the middle port and i was sure it was out. I tried to top it up from a 500ml bottle and boy was i wrong, it burst into flames and as i pulled the bottle away it set flames on the hard flooring and also the bottle. The flames where inside the bottle but i starved the flame and shook the liquid about a bit to overwealm the flame. The floor was easy put out and the spread of liquid was thin so no damage. But it scared my neighbor, he paniced. The other thing is you need an insulator like wood, stone etc as the aluminium will get hotter and can melt any material. I used the Lixada Portable Alcohol / Wood stove and filled the Alcohol tray with Methalated Spirits and it boild the same amount of water in 4.5 minutes.
I am here to try my best to contribute if anyone else needs any.

 

[Pattree]

I think you’ve just been to the same bush school as the rest of us. They make you take the exam before you learn the lesson.