Isopropyl is very sensitive to the air/fuel ratio. A 1" gap allows the mixture to run too rich (hence the yellow flames), the 1/2" gap allows the flame to burn cooler and at a better ratio. A smaller gap will work as well, however; the time to boil will be longer.
As usual, your diligence is a benefit to all who watch your studies. All I know about stoves I learned from watching your comparisons. To be informed is a good thing! Thanks!!!
More great info, thank you John from FlatCatGear, and I think a reduced boil time is a worth while trade off for that much cleaner burn. You'll spend more time cleaning the pot than you save with the faster boil. I went way back and watched a couple of Zelph's videos and he's done some using Red Heet and even Coleman gas in his Super Stove with a very short flame gap.
Maybe the black bottomed pot absorbs more heat thus boils quicker as the shiny reflects the heat It is said a shiny pot uses twice the fuel. Wouldn't worry about cleaning the pot bottom.
Hey Hiram, just so you know (and i haven't tried it but maybe you can since you do these a lot) if you take liquid joy or other dish soap and put it on the pot before putting it on fire or iso, apparently it'll wipe right off once cooled.
+eakinj We used this trick back when I was a kid. Working up a later with a bar soap and coating the pans works just as well. It's nice to see someone else who knows this trick.
Hiram, Your doing fine stud love your mentoring. I got a chuckle out of your Maine State Prison cap. WoW 8-) Seventh Seal warrior stole my clothes.........Again lol
About potstand for the Fancee Feast, see the comment i just posted to your video of Jul 12, 2013: Ultra-Safe & High Capacity Backpacking Stainless Steel Alcohol Stove - Boil Test #1. In short: The stand you show in that video fits the Fancee, so does the stand that comes with the ALOCS buner (found on ebay) - if you elevate the Fancee some by placing something under it (coins, lid etc). (Yes I have seen the pot-stand-video by SteinwayGoat)
+Fjell Wood For Out-D burner (from 2013), take the lid off the burner, turn the lid upside down, place it in the pot stand thus, then place Fancee Feast in the lid (cup)...
Does anybody think that the height of the support has anything to do with the overall burn time? I just made a fancy feast stove scaled up. I used a Tuna fish can, and a another can it had chilli peppers in it. I went all over the grocery store to find the right can. But I tell you guys, it boiled a quart of water in 6 minutes. I was absolutely amazed. I wish I had a timer/thermometer like hiram got. I'd do that test in a heart for you guys. maybe ill upload a video if it tomorrow.
Hiram, I recently started making fancy feast stoves, I really like them. I made one at 1 in above the wick and one at 3/4 in above the wick. On burn tests 1oz meth and one cup water the 3/4 took 36sec longer to boil than the 1in but burned 2:21 longer. Seems to be a push. Maybe I'll build a 1/2 in and see what happens.
Hiram, how about making an insert for the tomato paste can that would lift the pot back up to the one inch sweet spot. That way you could switch between isopropyl and methyl alcohol...
Well, sooty pots should absorb heat better, and save you a little fuel. Anyway, I don't use iso, I use pure grain alcohol, but soot doesn't bother me. I also use campfires, and they always soot things up. Soot is not a bad thing. Just carry your cookware in a bag or sack that you don't mind getting dirty.
Hiram is there a sweet spot for the wick on the Fancy Feast. By that I mean just above the lip of the can, or just below, or even with it? Thank for the video on Vargo I have one that I could no get to work well. After your video on the a primer pan. I tried it and I have a new stove. F. W. Cupp
The first Fancy Feast stove videos I seen they don't use a tomato can, but instead with a hole puncher they punch holes around the fancy feast can. One role on top and another role below that , and you put the pot directly on top of the Fancy Feast can. I have tried it and it works.later I started seeing the Fancy Feast stoves with the tomato sauce can. Have you tried the Fancy Feast stoves with out the tomotaoe sauce cans.If you have which do you think works better either with the tomato sauce can or without?.Maybe do another test to see which works better? Thanks
These early "Fancy Feast" - due the use of the same cat food can; was named "Super Cat Stove" and are "low pressure side burner", some early models use two cans of different sizes for a chimney effect. The type have good fuel efficiency, but has some drawbacks: - Despite the simple structure - one can, the hole sizes and placement is trick. - Is difficult to lit and run in cold weather. - The flame is very affected by wind. - Difficult to simmer. Probable these deficiencies lead to the wick version, with the tomato paste can as wick support and pot stand. - Is very to make, just require cut one can and make one hole. Or, if pick other types of can, the cut may was not necessary. - Is easy to lit in cold weather. - The pot stand can furnished some protection to the wind for the flame. Reasons why this version, popularly know as "Fancee Feest" (Zelph's Woodgaz-stove name), "Fancy Feast" became _"the best alcohol can stove of the world"_ (well, at least for some). ;) Cons - Can't recover all alcohol that left aft the boil, some remain impregnated in the wick. - Don't work with little fuel quantity, e.g. some stoves work with just 10ml of alcohol, in a "Fancy Feast" this amount is not sufficient for wet the wick. Similarly, the old "Penny Stove" type fell by the wayside - despite their good fuel efficiency,* the type was surpassed the "Fancee Feest", or by the Capillarity Hope Stove, developed by the Japanese alcohol stove guru Tetkobas and other Japanese, type that now has commercial versions: Toaks siphon stove Lixada siphon stove (basically a slight scaled up Toaks knock off) RSR (RiverSideRamble) stove Final Flame Gear FAS-30T (an expensive ~$ 100; 3D printed Titanium capillarity hope system). * But, in the last two years Tetkoba's are trying address the shortcomings of "Penny Stove" type. BTW - In Hiram Cook channel are videos with this early type, under their proper name: "Super Cat Stove", e.g. "Super Cat Stove - Low Pressure Side Burner - Boil Test #1"
Hello Hiram. I see you use methanol in all your alcohol stoves. I have started to use it to, but some time i spill some of it on my hands. Is there any risk for poisoning when you spill this stuff, and breath in the fumes from the stove?
+Hiram Cook - Hi Hiram, I've watched a few of your videos and tried to make an alcohol stove but the flames are very yellow and causing soot. I made a video of my 1st use but it didn't go very well, can you tell me what I've done wrong? The video is called 'Off Grid Isopropyl Alcohol Stove Fail' Thanks!
Over here in Germany we don't have anything that comes even close to yellow Heet. All the stuff that I've used here, from "Brennspiritus" to "Bioethanol" creates soot. If anyone has an idea what to use here I'd be glad to hear it.
+Apfelmann Try adding a little water to your fuel. High concentrations of Ethanol(>85%) tend to generate soot. Water will help in this situation. Best regards, Jon
+jonfong57 Thanks guys, I did do the water trick. Tried different amounts between 10 and 20%. I got the best results around 15%. Also the distance between flame and pot matters. And my experience matches Hiram's test here: too big of a distance results in terrible soot. But I never got a "clean" burn. I guess a big factor in all of this is the stuff, that's used to denature the alcohol. Maybe I just haven't found (Bio) Ethanol with denaturation components that burn blue and clean.
+Apfelmann Hello my man. Here in Norway we don't have yellow heat, and methanoll is hard to find. What i have found out is that i can get methanol from EFOY. it's a little bit pricey, but you can get it in Dutchland. Here is a map of suppliers in Dutchland: www.efoy-comfort.com/de/map?country=de&anwendung=All&plz_ort= And here is the methanol they sell: www.efoy-comfort.com/de/zubeh%C3%B6r Hope this can help you.
Question about the fancy feast stove. I made mine to your specs with a vent hole on top. If I put my pot on before I lite it, pressure builds up and blows my pot off the stove. Any suggestions on this? Maybe a second hole or something?
It's a hat (a cap). It appears in every one of Hiram's home made stove videos. So I think most repeat viewers are already familiar with it. I've seen a few comments about it in other videos. :)
