Alcohol vs Propane Cooktops

C

chaco

Member III
Well.......one of my First Projects many Moons ago was to TEAR out the CNG
Tank (2000 PSI Natural Gas Bomb) and Crummy Rusted 70's Range.
Now I am finally confronted with the Cooking Stove delemna :rolleyes:
The DockFather says Go Alcohol.....I likethe idea of Propane
I checked out ALL the Propane Gear required:
1. (2) Burner Force 10 CookTop -$400
2. (2) 10lb Aluminum Tanks -$540
3. Trident Tank Locker -$800
4. Regulator/Solenoid/Hoses/Valves - $400
Whoa....TimeOut :cool:
The (2) Burner Alcohol CookMate CookTop is $250 (Swego.com)
I am not going Cruising to Sunny (UnSafe) Mexico any time soon like I planned and will be Happy DaySailing and taking Trips on the CA Coast.
Am I MISSING something here :confused:
The Alcohol CookTop looks like the correct choice for my planned use.
Would really appreciate some FeedBack....Thank you :nerd:
 
Sven

Sven

Seglare
Origo

Take a look at the unpressurized Origo.

"As simple as possible, but not simpler"



-Sven
 
N

newpbs

Member III
Unpressurized Alcohol a Good Choice

I also like the alcohol option. My Dad had one for many years without any trouble. There are a few things to get acquainted with like how the flame looks in sunlight, but once you figure it out things are good. The cost savings can be real.

Good Luck
 
T

Tom Plummer

Member III
On of the first changes the Admiral demanded was that the alcohol stove go. Alcohol molecules have an affinity to water and when they bind themselves to the water molecules they alter ever so slightly the taste of the water. The admiral is a tea drinker and verrrry fusssy about her tea. Hence the banning of alcohol stoves.

My solution was to buy a Kenyon Express II butane single burner stove. It is portable, runs for about 3hrs on a cartridge. The cartridges are inexpensive and readily available. It has instant heat, boils water quickly, and most importantly the Admiral is happy.

If I need to bake something I use the magnum gas barbecue and a Dutch Oven. Yes you can bake a cake in it as long as you are in still waters.

Please note Butane is heaver then air so when not in use the cartridge needs to be remove from the stove, easily done they just drop in no screwing required, and stored properly. I store mine in a canvas bag topside.
 
R

rwthomas1

Sustaining Partner
I don't know the layout of the 35-2 but are you only looking for a range top? If so, it would certainly appear that an alcohol unit would be cheaper. Your prices are a bit high, IMHO. A custom/compliant propane locker can be built for $100. Propane tanks run $100-$150, hose is about $3/ft and a complete control system is $280. Range choice is up to you. You don't really need two tanks, just keep an eye on it and a small 1lb camping bottle as a spare. The advantage to propane is the ability to install a heater in future and/or an oven in the galley. The negative I see to alcohol is carrying one more liquid fuel, and one that burns invisibly. Obviously any fuel system needs to be handled with care. RT
 
Lucky Dog

Lucky Dog

Member III
Half the heat

I ran across, but can't relocate a chart that shows butane is about half the BTU's as propane.
 
T

Tom Plummer

Member III
Mark's comments on the BTU's got me to wondering about the relative btu' for the common fuels. Here they are in order.

Alcohol = 9,000 btu/lb
Gasoline = 18,000 btu/lb
Diesel = 19,300 btu/lb
Butane = 21,221 btu/lb
Propane = 21,548 btu/lb

While this is interesting information and useful in calculating how much fuel you need to carry there is one other very important item to be considered. That is how many btu's does the burner for your stove put out. This is the true test of how long will it take to boil that quart of water. What follows are the manufactures claims for burner btu's

Man. / Model / BTU's / Fuel
Kenyon / Galley Express II / 9,925 / Butane
DICKINSON / 00-2BP / 11,000 & 7,000 / Propane
FORCE 10 / 60100 / 8,200 & 4,100 / Propane
ORIGO / 9581409-99 / 7,000 / Alcohol
 
Loren Beach

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
The Cinnamon "Test"

For a truly unscientific stove fuel comparison...
Last weekend was one of our club's last official weekend outings and a bunch of us were at a nearby island dock for two nights. Sunday morning a couple of boats decided to bake Pillsbury cinnamon rolls in unison.
We fired up our alcohol Origo oven and another boat their propane oven and both put a pan of rolls in to bake at the usual 350 to 375 deg.
Both were done within minutes of each other...
We all sat around the dock and enjoyed hot rolls.

Nothin' like a tasty stove fuel comparison! ;)

I agree that the btu differences are quite real, but in real world cookery, it does not seem to be all that significant.

Matter of fact, one of the gang is a professional chef with a way cool UK-built Fisher 25 ketch, and he walked by as I was filling one of our stove canisters and said he had the same stove and liked it a lot. :cool:

Cheers,

LB
 
Sven

Sven

Seglare
Loren Beach said:
Matter of fact, one of the gang is a professional chef with a way cool UK-built Fisher 25 ketch, and he walked by as I was filling one of our stove canisters and said he had the same stove and liked it a lot. :cool:
Click to expand...

The "Cruising Chef Cookbook" author Michael Greenwald agrees with us. He says it is the only way to go. Lin Pardy says she only uses his book and The Joy of Cooking.



-Sven
 
u079721

u079721

Contributing Partner
Well I will admit the safety and convenience of an alcohol canister stove are pretty attractive.

BUT, we found the aldehyde odor from burning alcohol to be pretty nauseating, and could never put up with it long term. Maybe our stove just wasn't hot enough to burn the alcohol completely, or the ventilation good enough to remove the fumes. But maybe that's just us......?
 
Loren Beach

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Last edited:
R

ralph roddam

Member I
kenyon butane stoves

I have an origo and a Kenyon on my E35-2. I like them both.prefer the Kenyon.However the conistors are no longer easy to obtain.WEst marine has in fact dicontinued this line:mad:
 
Loren Beach

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
ralph roddam said:
I have an origo and a Kenyon on my E35-2. I like them both.prefer the Kenyon.However the canisters are no longer easy to obtain.WEst marine has in fact discontinued this line:mad:
Click to expand...

Just checked on line, and We$t Marine now carries only the Origo countertop models.
I note that Defender carries the whole line, including the range that we use.
BTW, why would one ever need to replace (not sure of what you meant) a canister? I can well imagine those parts lasting as long as I own the stove, and several more lifetimes as well.

LB
 
R

ralph roddam

Member I
Alchol vs Protene cooktops

I meant the actual fuel canister that fits into the stove,they are not readily available,does anyone out there know where to get them?
 
T

Tom Plummer

Member III
Found them at Amazon.com 12 cans for $17.00 and because they are used a lot by restaurants the Costco Business centers carry them.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top