[at-l] Alcohol Fuel Comparison

[Tim Hewitt <thewitt@fairchildsemi.com>]

Hi,

Though not exhaustive, I thought I'd publish this little piece of alcohol stove
fuel trivia.

I tested three different fuels last night in my Trangia Mini. The test was done
with cold tap water (no temp taken - this is a relative test - outside temp was
20 degrees, water was very cold to drink), in my kitchen under controlled
conditions (no wind, 70 degree, etc). The stove was allowed to cool to room
temperature between tests.

The three fuels I burned in the stove and the time to boil 2 cups of water are
below. Boiling meant large bubbles coming off the bottom.

I used a titanium pot with cover in place - looking under the lid every 10-15
seconds after 8 minutes burn time. The pot was placed on the fire right after
the fuel was lit.

   Fuel                 Boil Time             Notes

   Denatured Alcohol     9 min 30 sec         Stove liked this fuel
     label reads:
     "Shellac thinner. Alcohol stove fuel. Contains: Ethanol,
      Methanol, Methyl Isobutyl Ketone, Acetone"

   Rubbing Alcohol      17 min 20 sec         Seemed to burn "cold"
     label reads:
      "70% Isopropyl Alcohol by volume." The rest is water.

   ICE O-Dry             8 min 30 sec         Really dirty - sooty burn
      lable reads:
      "Isopropyl alcohol based gas line anti-freeze"  

The gas line antifreeze worked well as far as heat content is concerned, but it
blackened the pot as badly as a poor wood fire wood have. The Rubbing Alcohol
just sort of lazed around the burner and never really took itself seriously. The
Denatured Alcohol burned hot, clean, and the stove jets were really screaming at
the end. I suspect that subsequent boils would have been very fast - Trangia
tests in the past have resulted in 5 minute boils once the stove heats up.

Just thought I'd share.

-Paddler

ps I think this made my decision on what to do when my son joins me in June and
we start cooking two dinners. I was going to swap out the stove for a gas stove,
but I think I'll just add more fuel to the resupply plan and cook two meals. One
cozy will work for two meals and the cooking time will not really double. The
kid eats first :).
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