Meths question

[Man of Tanith]

hi all
bit of a bizzare question for you all this evening
how much meths (approx) do you take away for 4 nights'days camping?
ive only ever really camped either overnight or when its been longer it was with the scouts a very long time ago and the leaders worried about that sort of thing,
any advice/suggestions gratefully recieved
Sam

 

[rik_uk3]

Depends on what you cook. Cook some of the meals you will be making when camping and work it out from that. I would think a litre would be enough, unless if you live on noodles type of food.

 

[Neanderthal]

I usually work on about 500ml for 5 days backpacking. This gives me a morning and evening brew and a hot meal each night with the odd extra brew.

As has been suggested, why not try out your food at home then you will know more accuratley what you need. You may also find that the food you were planning to take is inedible or too much trouble to cook.

Happy Trails
Stu

 

[Sniper]

If I'm going out for more than a couple of nights I take about a litre, however I also try to find someway of having a fire. I love my Swedish army trangia but nothing beats a good old cooking fire, and it helps eak out the fuel a lot longer. Why not consider carrying some sort of fire tray. I recently came across an old cooker grill tray (from the grill part) and sit this on top of a few stones or logs, sort of like a BBQ style thing. It means you can have a fire in a pan which is usually more accepted than a ground fire, plus it doesn't leave a scar if it's high enough off the ground. By using this, it means you don't have to carry quite so much fuel with you and the pan does'nt weigh that much.

 

[Chainsaw]

yup, I had 1 litre on a 4 day canoeing trip, lasted very well, still had about a third left but was using a ghillie kettle to boil water. Was cooking both lunch and dinner on it though.

Cheers,

Alan

 

[rik_uk3]

Also don't be tempted to water down the meths by 10% as some suggest, all it does is slow down the cooking process, there is only so much energy in any fuel.

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

yup i agree, 1 liter should do it with some spare for emergencies.

By the way another idea, if you aren't sure keep a small bottle with a burn or 2's worth of meths in the bottom of your bag then you always know you have spare!

 

[Man of Tanith]

hi all
thanks for the advice i think ill go with a litre and a lil bottle as a contingency.
as a rule the grub i take with me is rat packs as i am still finding my way food wise and rat packs are pretty simple to do.
most the places i go dont allow fires which is a pain in the posterior so not muchchance of eeking out the fuel i'm afraid
and yes its the swedish army trangia ill be using
thanks all for youre advice its really appreciatede and one of the reasons i love this site/forum
cheers again
Sam

 

[Improviser]

When i bought a S.A.T it looked unused but the rubber o ring was missing from the cap so while in tamarack one day i bought a 2 pack trangia o ring set.
The o ring fit okay- wouldnt say an exact fit but near as dammit to hold itself in the cap also no meths leaks, supplied burner is the svea version.
I also have a highlander brass meths burner which came complete with simmer ring & this works well only cost £5, much cheaper than purchasing trangia burner and seperate simmer ring.

 

[Chinkapin]

I did some experimenting with my pepsi can stove and my large stainless steel mug. (It probably holds about one and one-half to one and three-quarters cups of water.) Result was 4ml of alcohol (91% isopropyl) would bring the cup to a brisk boil with a bit left over. I make my estimates based on that.

My experience is that 70% alcohol is the bottom of acceptable alcohol content. The 91% is much better , particularly if you are using a pressurized stove.

For any fellow Yanks reading this, the 91% alcohol is available in the pharmacy at Wal-Mart at a reasonable price.

Something I was told when I started using a pepsi can stove was to not save any left over alcohol, on the theory that the majority of the alcohol had already vaporized and been used. That which was left was of a much higher percentage of water. Because of this I try to measure out as precisely as I can, so there is not very much left over.

I would be real curious to know what you think about this as you have more experience with "meths" stoves than I do.

 

[Lithril]

Personally I know that with my cup (about 750ml) and stove (caldera) it takes 17ml of meths to bring it to a boil (yeah I know I'm sad) so I generally try and take 300ml of meths for a weekend which gives me plenty. The trouble I have is finding a small bottle that doesn't leak meths, the only thing I've found which is reliable is either the bottle the meths come in or the red plastic trangia bottles.

 

[Humpback]

I disagree completely 1 litre is clearly not enough!

You need at least 1.76 British pints.

And of course if your planning to camp in the USA you'll need 2.11US pints as they are inferior (the pints not the Americans).



I'll get my slide rule.......
Alan

 

[Bravo4]

And of course if your planning to camp in the USA you'll need 2.11US pints as they are inferior (the pints not the Americans).

If you do get a chance to camp in the USA, go to buy fuel and you ask the store clerk for "fuel for a meths burner" they are of coarse going to assume you are talking about methamphetamine and may or may not point you to aisle #7, in with the paint supply, "denatured alcohol".

Chinkapin, I'm curious why you use Isopropyl instead of denatured? Isopropyl sure costs alot less and this I understand, but you don't get 100%.

 

[Chinkapin]

Bravo4 - - Actually I usually buy denatured alcohol (ethanol) in the paint section at Wal-Mart or Lowe's. However, the 91% isopropol that I mentioned above is cheap, and works very well. Also, none of it is 100%, there is always some water left over after distillation. The burn difference between 91% and 95% is negligible in a typical alcohol stove. The only thing that I avoid is methanol, (wood alcohol) which is VERY poisonous, and I don't want to deal with it.

The best thing to use would be "Everclear" which is 190 "proof" (95%) grain alcohol and is drinkable! But unfortunately is expensive compared to all the other alcohols.

(Brits: FYI Everclear, is a brand name for a cheap and very potent alcohol sold in liquor stores in the U.S. It is not aged in oak casks or anything like that. It is aged in the glass bottle on the way from the distillery to the liquor store!) Essentially it is the same thing as "mountain dew," or "moonshine."

 

[Chinkapin]

Humpback - - I resemble that remark! LOL

 

[Bravo4]

The best thing to use would be "Everclear" which is 190 "proof" (95%) grain alcohol and is drinkable! But unfortunately is expensive compared to all the other alcohols.

hmmm....I like the multiple-use aspect, maybe we can offer this as an alternative energy source and get the cost down. Thanks for the tips.

 

[stevec038]

Hello Bravo4. The alcohol advice works overhere also, about a liter. I use a catfood can stove and/or wood. For a really handy way to prepare food cheaply and only have to boil water for it, take a look at "trailcooking.com" and "freezerbagcooking.com." Used the approach several times, even made a dehydrator from 4 lightbulbs, an old bathroom exhaust fan and some pegboard so I can make up my own food preferences rather than buying it. Eat, drink, and have fun.

 

[leemann]

I use denatured in this http://www.whiteboxstoves.com/ home depot is where I get the fuel 1 us gal.

Lee

 

[wistuart]

Personally I know that with my cup (about 750ml) and stove (caldera) it takes 17ml of meths to bring it to a boil (yeah I know I'm sad) so I generally try and take 300ml of meths for a weekend which gives me plenty. The trouble I have is finding a small bottle that doesn't leak meths, the only thing I've found which is reliable is either the bottle the meths come in or the red plastic trangia bottles.

I use a Codysil mouthwash bottle. Hasn't leaked on me yet, holds 300ml (from memory may be a little +/-) and has a basic measuring cap.

 

[sapper1]

Here's a fuel saving tip for you,and you'll be surprised how much it will save.
When boiling water for a brew pour the water into your cup and then pour it into the kattel/billy.This way you are only boiling the exact amount you need and not burning fuel to boil water unneccessarily.
I am amazed how many people boil more than they need ,then pour away the excess.