27 Responses

  1. avatar
    Antonio Ávila at |

    Thank you, for the detailed information.

    Reply
  2. avatar
    DanDan the Camping Man at |

    Really great article. So helpful and informative. Thanks!

    Reply
  3. avatar
    Chris W at |

    You mention weighing the canister to determine fullness… I just switched to Iso Butane I used to use coleman fuel back in college and just bought new gear to start back up.

    Not sure if stuff changed since you read the article.. BUT…

    http://www.advdesigns.com/msris8ozclbu.html?gclid=Cj0KEQiA592lBRCXy8yl4bjK17wBEiQAg1Az_dR6HnxR9FXIIl6BU2bwTE1P5kBeSslWLjqzf3PJJngaAngU8P8HAQ

    to the left of the MSR Iso Pro label you can see a pic of the canister in water… and an E and F with lines between them… float a full canister… it lines up with F… as you use gas the weight of the canister changes but it’s volume does not so it’s buoyancy changes… which is reflected in how deep it sits in the water giving you a gauge.

    This is handy because you can measure it out in the woods… or in your kitchen sink.

    I was fairly impressed by that… not sure how recent the labeling changed but it’s awesome…

    Reply
    1. avatar
      Marion Sutcliffe at |

      I assume you have to tip it sideways as you submerse it so there is no air trapped underneath?

      Reply
  4. avatar
    David Lagan at |

    chris
    Thanks for sharing yhat info. My wife (58) and myself (64) heading out on a 30 mi backpack/flyfishing hike
    we figure will take us 7-8
    days.
    We really had no realistic idea what to expect from
    an 8 oz cannister.
    Thanks to you we now are much more confident
    as you have given us a
    much better feel for what
    cook times to expect.
    Good job. Dgl

    Reply
  5. avatar
    Matt at |

    I’ve used one of the 8-ounce canisters the last couple weeks for boiling 16 ounces of water to make coffee and tea. So far, I’ve boiled 3.4 gallons in total and believe there’s enough left in the tank to get to 4. These things are great.

    Reply
  6. avatar
    Kevin at |

    Warning re: SVEA stove. The gasket on the fill cap failed (age), which resulted in a leak, which resulted in a huge fireball that burned until the tank ran out of fuel. This once left me stranded on a long remote trip with no way to cook my food.
    Lesson 1: Operate stove away from tents, backpacks etc.
    Lesson 2: Carry a spare replacement gasket.

    Reply
  7. avatar
    steve at |

    Really great article and comments all round.
    We were thinking about this issue a while back and decided to create a “Gas Canister Calculator” to allow people to fairly accurately estimate how many gas canisters they will need (and whether small, medium or large) based on number of people, number of days, hot water requirement and type of stove (canister top, integrated and remote canister).
    We calibrated for our three different class of gas canister stove with data from real outdoor usage over several years (rather than using unrealistic laboratory data).
    Our calculator enables you to change various variables e.g. type of stove, size of canister, to work out the optimum stove and canister combination for your trip.
    Check it out here: http://mercatorgear.com/index.php/frequently-asked-questions/canister-calculator
    Any feedback, or suggestions or questions would be welcome. Meanwhile, we hope this is useful, and keep up the great work!

    Reply
    1. avatar
      Steve at |

      We are an outfitter looking to change from white gas use to isobutane for our customers. A calculator for estimating fuel use with a variety of group sizes would help. How do I get a calculator?

      Reply
  8. avatar
    courtney at |

    I’m confused by this statement: “Now, if you’re a Ramen ultralighter who only boils water to make those noodles soft enough to slurp, you won’t get even close to that much time out of a fuel canister.”

    Are you saying it takes more fuel/time to boil water for ramen thats barely cooked than it does to sautee fish etc?

    Reply
  9. avatar
    Marc Ritz at |

    You don’t need to cook ramen. Ramen is pre-cooked and dehydrated. You could eat it cracker-dry or just soak it until it’s soft.

    Reply
  10. avatar
    J.Murray at |

    N1, really appreciate this article & the adjoining comments – learnt a lot & looking forward to doing my own field tests.
    My thanks.

    Reply
  11. avatar
    Sandeep at |

    Thanks David ,
    It was really a very good article and helped me to figure out how much canister do I need for a trip 🙂
    I am quite confident now about the number of canisters do I need for my trip. Definitely will try to check the weight and usauage and how long they last.

    Reply
  12. avatar
    Philip Willington at |

    David,

    As a first time user of an MSR Windburner 1 litre stove system on a planned 17 day hike with no possibility of additional gas supplies, I found your research and article to be really helpful.

    The MSR website is very helpful, and your research confirms their gas consumption figures, so I can start trekking with confidence knowing that I won’t end the hike eating cold dehydrated food.

    I had planned to take almost 3 times as much gas (and weight) compared to what I am likely to need based on your findings. With the benefit of your research I can cut this in half and still have quite a lot of spare gas as a contingency. This will save me a lot of unneccesay weight and will really help.

    Thanks, Phil (Australia)

    Reply
  13. avatar
    Brian at |

    I am looking at using one of these for my motorcycle camping trips… weight doesn’t matter but size does. Thanks for all the great info!

    Reply
  14. avatar
    Paul Kavanagh at |

    I have a Soto pressure regulated stove, at jet engine afterburner rate, it brings 1 cup of water 1.5 mins to boil (with an olicamp 1l pot with grilled base) using 1 oz per 1.5l of water. Therefore scaling up a 4 oz tin of fuel will bring 6l of water to a boil. Container was weighed before and afteruse.

    Reply
  15. avatar
    Jeff Welty at |

    Our cook system is now very simple. We realized we don’t drink hot fluids and eat at the same time, so our only “dish” is a GSI infinity mug. We boil water in a Evernew 900ml mug pot. (230g canister fits perfectly in the pot).

    Dry food goes in the GSI mug first, then boiling water is added to the GSI mug for rehydration. We may have a hot chocolate after the meal. Same process in the morning. The only items that need food cleaned off are a spoon, and the GSI mug.

    i found an aluminum splatter screen at an asian food market, it is a trifold, folds flat and fits the stove/pot perfectly for a windscreen. I can tilt it and lean it against the pot so there is plenty of air flow around the base of the canister to make sure it doesn’t get hot (never does BTW), but still blocks the wind and keeps heat around one side of the pot. The stove head is a primus express with piezo lighter. Lighter still works great after six years.

    Our typical situation is boiling water at about 4000′ elevation, and a water temperature of about 50 degrees F (water temp is just a guess)

    To boil one cup of water I typically start it at a low setting and run it for about a minute, then turn it to a high output for about another minute.

    After several outings, and careful tracking of fuel used (weigh canister before/after trip), we very consistently boil 2.06 pints of water per gram of fuel used.

    Reply

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