Pepsi Can Stove

[rickety-root]

I'm having something of a problem with my pepsi can stove. I saw these on various web sites so thought I'd have a go at making my own - heaven knows the cans are easy enough to come by so with a little time investment, I thought, i could save myself a little cash and get a bit of satisfaction at the same time. Not so easy!

Although it's not the prettiest thing I've ever seen, I was quite pleased with the results until, that is, I came to try it out. Now, having never used a spirit based stove before (Trangia etc) I didn't know exactly what to expect but i realised something was wrong when the flame burned from the centre and never moved to the jets. What's the point of going to all that trouble constructing the stove if it's only going to burn from the centre, I asked myself? I could have just poured meths into the bottom of a coke can!

Anyway - I'm sure there are plenty of you out there who have constructed such stoves. Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong - have invested too much time to simply give up and buy a Trangia (is that sad, or what?)

 

[Ogri the trog]

Give it some time to warm up Rickety.
Or you might have to experiment with the number of small holes around the rim. Half of the appeal with these things is the trial and error sessions until you find something that works.

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[Hunter_zero]

Anyway - I'm sure there are plenty of you out there who have constructed such stoves. Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong - have invested too much time to simply give up and buy a Trangia (is that sad, or what?)

Try making the holes (jets) slightly bigger & Make sure you have an air gap between the inner wall and outer wall as well as a good size hole (that little square cut out bit).

I have made and used many of these stoves, they work well (in fact I have two in the boot of my 4x4). Once you get your one up and running try making a mini-stove with Red Bull cans!

John

 

[clcuckow]

One tip, check what the can is made from.

In the UK Pepsi use steel and Coke use aluminium, both work but aluminium is both easier to work with and In my opinion the stoves work better. I think that it might be due to the fact that aluminium is a much better thermal conductor thus heating the pressure/vaporisation chamber quicker.

 

[cyclist]

welcome to the club of stove scientists

alu is indeed a bit faster ..
you could also use tuna or catfood tins, Kiwi shoe-polish ...
you could also play with different designs: open flame, pressurized, ....

make sure the burner is insulated from the ground - three small pieces of wood (matches) do the trick as long as you are testing your stove in the secret laboratory (commonly known as kitchen) - the other way round just have a "going" burner and place it on an ice block

the more mass (burner weight, amount of fuel in the burner ...) the longer it takes since the alc. has to be boiled to evaporate to burn. The lightest alc. stove I´ve seen on the net is the "Orion Stove" with burner and stove/pot stand at a total of 2 gramms

best ideas, stove science and links on stoves I´ve seen on the net are at www.zenstoves.net

 

[Robbo]

Only have holes from the inner chamber to the outer chamber on the bottom of the inner wall.

You want the heat from the inital flame to vapourise the fuel in the outer chamber and force it through the nozzles before being ignited by the starter flame.

Any holes at the top of the inner wall will let the vapourised fuel back into the central inner chamber where it will burn in the starter flame.

You dont have to be too anal about sealing the top of the inner wall just a tight fit should do it.

Andy

 

[clcuckow]

One thing though. These stoves are very, very addictive you can very easily end up making loads and there are so many designs out there I must have over 20 in various designs including one that you can make with pratice in under 60 seconds with a single can and a 'leatherman'. (http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=12739)

 

[bikething]

i've looked at the photo you posted (lightened in photoshop) and i can't really see any holes at the bottom of the inner wall to let the fuel into the cavity - may just be the camera angle though..

also, once the stove gets going i should think the glue on the electrical tape round the outside may soften and release...

HTH
Steve

 

[Philbert]

I have made a few of these and have found that the more anal I was about making them to perfection the less well they worked. You definately have to leave a gap at the bottom of the inner wall. The less 'well' made they are the easier it is to get those small gaps.

I havent bothered with the tape on the outside just a tight fit between the cans seems to do, making the holes at the top will help also.

Good luck and dont burn your fingers!

 

[Philbert]

I have made a few of these and have found that the more anal I was about making them to perfection the less well they worked. You definately have to leave small gaps at the bottom of the inner wall. The less 'well' made they are the easier it is to get those small gaps.

I havent bothered with the tape on the outside just a tight fit between the cans seems to do, making the holes at the top will help also.

Good luck and dont burn your fingers!

 

[scoops_uk]

Hi Rickety Root,

As Andy has already said, it's the gaps at the top of the inside cylinder are letting all your nice fuel vapour escape towards the fame in the centre instead of getting pushed out through the jet holes.

If you havn't, you must have the holes at the bottom of the inner wall to allow fuel into the void between the walls.

Get some aluminium exhaust repair tape from a car shop and use it instead of the insulation tape. Exhaust tape is heat resistant.

Good luck!

Scoops

 

[clcuckow]

i've looked at the photo you posted (lightened in photoshop) and i can't really see any holes at the bottom of the inner wall to let the fuel into the cavity - may just be the camera angle though..

also, once the stove gets going i should think the glue on the electrical tape round the outside may soften and release...

HTH
Steve

Good point. I had thought that there was a hole just to the left of the join but after photoshoping myself it does not look like it. But then again they could be just out of shot.

 

[rickety-root]

thanks guys for all you helpful remarks and comments - I'm sure that they will come in handy for marks 2 - 2000 (or until I get fed up of trying different methods!)

I have made three semi-circular holes at the base of the inner wall but they are hidden on the photo by the convex at the bottom of the can - I did wonder if this convex were actually blocking these holes and preventing proper ignition. As for the tape - it's purely cosmetic. I sealed the top, bottom and outside wall with heat - resistant exhaust glue which I'd intended to clean up later with my Dremil but wanted to show it to my brother before it had properly dried enough to sand smooth. After your various comments about being anal - which in my striving for perfection I do have something of a tendency for - I don't think I'll bother.

your comments about space between the inner wall and the top were interesting, but I think it's a fairly snug fit. Will try enlarging the holes at the bottom of the inner wall and possibly punching the jets holes fractionally bigger if that doesn't work.

Thanks again.

 

[clcuckow]

As for the tape - it's purely cosmetic. I sealed the top, bottom and outside wall with heat - resistant exhaust glue

I never use glue with this design and have never found the need. I do use it though when making pressurised stoves like in the one in this tutorial that the boss man over on BB wrote.

http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5613

 

[rickety-root]

I wouldn't have used glue either, except that, due to my raging impatience, I couldn't wait to find a different sized can (on the site I was looking at they recommend Stones or Guiness) so that one would nest snuggly inside the other. Instead I used two identical cans and so had to make an outer wall insert to hold the two together, and then glued it - this probably doesn't make too much sense - suffice it to say I need to learn patience! More haste, less speed, or something along those lines.

Any way, I made my jets slightly bigger and now it works, but only when I have a cooking implement (pot, pan) sat just half an inch above the flame - it kind of forces the flames down the centre and onto the jets.

Either way, I wish I'd come across the tutorial on your link before I started 'cause it looks proper and will no doubt do the trick nicely - I guess I know what Mark II is going to look like!

Thanks for that clcuckow!

 

[clcuckow]

I wouldn't have used glue either, except that, due to my ragging impatience, I couldn't wait to find a different sized can (on the site I was looking at they recommend Stones or Guiness) so that one would nest snuggly inside the other. Instead I used two identical cans and so had to make an outer wall insert to hold the two together, and then glued it - this probably doesn't make too much sense - suffice it to say I need to learn patience! More haste, less speed, or something along those lines.

Any way, I made my jets slightly bigger and now it works, but only when I have a cooking implement (pot, pan) sat just half an inch above the flame - it kind of forces the flames down the centre and onto the jets.

Either way, I wish I'd come across the tutorial on your link before I started 'cause it looks proper and will no doubt do the trick nicely - I guess I know what Mark II is going to look like!

Thanks for that clcuckow!

That's alright. One thing though I think that most of us that make the Pepsi stove use the same can top and bottom there is just a knack to it. What you do is take to top piece and gently stretch it over the bottom of another can and roll over the edge of the bottom part again Alu can make this far easier.

Here are a few energy can version made out of Coca-Cola Blak which are Alu (but are only available in France and the USA which is a dam shame as by adding vodka they make a dam passable black Russian'a'like )and a quite heavily used photon stove.

The 33cl kronenbourg bottom was intended as a preheater for all these stoves but it could do with being a little wider as is it can blowout. I does make a good snuffer though.​