Soda can/beer can alcohol stove.

This is a DIY project.  There are many YouTubes on this and many variations.  I made my first 2 stoves in March after going to a talk by a thru-hiker at the town library.  It was the stove he used on his hike.  Simple, extremely light weight  and not very expensive.  Today I tried some of the variations and this is the stove I will be using on my hike. I think.

soda can alcohol stove

It is made from the bottoms of 2 diet coke cans and a strip of the side wall of a can inside of the 2 bottoms. This variation is called a penny can stove because you cover the fuel fill holes with a penny when using the stove.  My pot rest is made from 2 pieces of 1/2″ by 1/16″ aluminum notched to form an X.  There are 16 burner holes (#56 drill bit) around the edge of the stove.

I tested this stove in the garage using 1/4 cup of denatured alcohol for fuel and 3 cups of room temperature water in the pot.  One minute after lighting the primer the stove was burning away.  Placed the pot on the stove and in 7 minutes the pot was at full boil.  It boiled for another 14 minutes until the fuel ran out.  This worked very well in a heated garage.

stove test in the garage

I decided to try this on the deck, on one of the coldest days this winter.  It was -12 degrees F this morning.  For my test it was a delightful 23 degrees F with light, cold winds.  My first try didn’t work, I didn’t use enough primer.  Second match, success, and in one minute again the pot was on the stove.  Using a windshield on the deck was the only way the stove would  work.  The 3 cups of cold water came to a full boil in 11 minutes and boiled for another 9 minutes.  Not bad, this will work.

stove test on the deck, please note the snow in the background

hoba caitbe