In part 2 or this two part video I conduct the side by side test of the Solo Lite and 900ml stove and pot set against the Lixada Tower Stove and Camelwil 1.2L set with some unexpected results #ikeahobostove #lixadawoodstove #stovetest
Thank you for doing this comparative review. The fact that you compared two different stoves that burned in essentially the same manner, gave you the compare-and-contrast that made this a much more in-depth and robust review than if you had just done one stove and one review and the other stove in a separate review. The safety factor found in the solo stove is what convinced me to go that route. Keep up your fantastic work with this youtube channel.
Good video Mark and yes your assumptions for the performance differences are correct. 1. More air to the burn chamber increases the burn rate which elevates peaks temperatures and consumes fuel faster. The other design aspect that influenced your results was that the Solo's construction adds an insulting blanket of hot air around the stove to keep the burn chamber hotter - this is why the re-ignition of the 2nd load of wood was faster. The tower stove looses a lot of heat to the outside world. Stove design is fascinating. Keep up the good work.
Hello and welcome to my channel. I have been looking at your new stove since I first saw it on Shane's channel. I hope to be able to justify buying one at some point. I would love to test it out. Thank you for commenting and for your insights.
Great review and I'm really enjoying the series on wood stoves. I was so impressed with the large Lixada tower stove I bought one instead of the large TOAKS. The Lixada has worked as well for me as it did in your demonstration video. Now I've got some extra money for trail food or some other something like the Camelwil pot, thank you. Keep up the good work.
Mark Young I was wondering what size Camelwill you’d recommend for the large size Lixada (I like the larger base due to stability) but found the 1.2 liter’s diameter doesn’t fit the larger base. I like the pore spot on the 1.2 but haven’t found the 160 mm Camelwill has one.
11:22 I don't understand the rush , on the boil time ...My friends make a big thing out of it....but I enjoy the slow process to boil...I enjoy sitting with the fire and feeding it.
Kanzee We're in the same camp about boiling. I always thought sauntering (hiking to other people) was about "unwinding" and enjoying nature. In the last few years I've begun to wonder if someone declared a race in the woods and I didn't get the memo. Of course I'm older now than in the late 1970's when I started backpacking so if it really is all about the miles now instead of taking time to experience the beauty I guess I'd better hang up my boots.
Great comparison Mark. One thing I favour with the tower stove other than price is that if your working with damp wood you can start a more substantial fire on top for the top down burn than with the Solo. Thanks for sharing.
thanks for d well explained sermone, all words u uttered r well taken, EXCELLENT!!! CANADIAN BOY, at 72, I HIGHLY APPRECIATE D TECHNICAL SERMONE U DID, FANTASTIC !!, KEEP IT UP, SO OTHERS MAY LEARN FROM YOUR SERMONE, THANKS AND GODBLESS U AND UR LOVE ONES.
Hi Mark - interesting comparison of two stick stoves. I've used the Solo stove on a couple of trips and found it to be rather annoying in practice. As you say, the burn chamber is small and holds less. It felt like it required constant monitoring (I used dry twigs) and wasn't particularly quick. After using other options I think the Solo is simply an over-priced "yuppy toy" that achieved fame with slick marketing. I totally got sucked in by the it's-expensive-so-it-must-be-good mentality. It's due to good people like you that we are able to know about the more viable and realistic options for making hot water - after all, that's all we want in the end! Smile.
Thank you Paul. I really wanted to like the Solo and actually do but as you say, it can be a nuisance to keep going when I have other chores to do around the camp site. I suppose the advantage is that it uses small sticks but then again, that is its disadvantage. It just goes through them so quickly. Thank you for commenting
Very interesting Mark, can't believe the price difference, good job I like Lixada stoves. I also now have the Camelwil pot as my go to, though I stopped the floppy handle issue by wedging steel garden wire into the handle mounts, worked a treat. Thanks again for sharing Mark, take care 👍🙂
Wish I had found this one before spending so much money on the "better" stoves. Still, they can't beat the Firebox for versatility or the Ikea for cost effectiveness. Thank you for commenting Wade
Amen brother! And no deafening loud obvious music! I hate it when people hold the product and talk without demonstrating its use, or repeat the same point half a dozen times!
The Tests Speak For Themselves, Along With Your Help ! I Still use our Lil Firebox Nano Gen II, Love it & Never In A Hurry, Unless It's For That Morning Coffee ! Thanks for this Mark. Hello Gina ! ATB T God Bless
I agree Terry. I am not in a rush while in the woods either. Boil time is just meant to be a comparison of stove design as far as efficiency goes. Thanks for commenting
I used a solo for some time and found that it was a serious baby sitting job to use. And I do know that cooking with wood fire creates soot, but the solo would cake soot on thick. More than my other wood stove setups. This lixada stove has me intrigued. Thanks for the good work
One thing I found with the Lixada in the field is using various sizes of sticks etc. embers sometimes fall out from the feed hole. So you do need to be cautious and keep your eye on the ground etc. Good Review thanks Mark.
Absolutely. I usually start with a full load of longer sticks that will drop down as they burn but I agree you do need to keep and eye on it. Thank you for commenting
I have the Solo Lite and the Lixada Titanium Tower stove. I have to say, I'm finding the wood stoves a lot of fun to backpack and camp with. I have been an alcohol stove guy (Zelph Fancee Feest) for years, and just got into wood stoves this year. I will admit, I did build a soda can stove (with carbon felt wicking) to take with the wood stoves, just in case (and it has been a good add-on), but I have been taking my wood stoves for the last few months. I think I like the Solo more of the two, because it is so well made and does do such a good job. The tower stove is good too, and I do enjoy using it, but I think the Solo gets a stronger and hotter flame faster, and is a little cleaner to use. It's a lot easier to dump the ash and bag it up, where the tower stove tends to be a little messier to take down. I do find the tower stove cools faster, since it's titanium, but I have been pleasantly surprised how quickly the Solo actually cools down. I was worried about being able to make coffee/tea in the morning and having to wait a long time to pack it up, but in 10 minutes (once you dump the ashes) it's ready to bag up and put away. The alcohol stove comes in handy if it's raining and fuel is harder to process, but I have (out of morbid curiosity) tried to burn wet fuel in the rain (under a tarp) and was able to get it going in the Solo. Not quite as successful in the Lixada, but it did work after a little bit more effort. The trick is finding some material you can split down to get to the dry inner. Altogether, I'm completely entertained by these wood stoves. I really enjoy them both. If you have an REI dividend you want to spend, the Solo Lite and 900ml pot are a great bit of kit. That has to be my favorite pot of any I own. The Lixada is affordable enough (and the titanium one is only a few bucks more than the steel) that you likely won't have to wait to pick one up. I will caution folks to be very careful about who you buy Lixada stuff from on Amazon. Some of the sellers post pictures and descriptions of products that aren't what they are going to ship you. They will ship you the stove, but many feature pots, bowls, pans and such in the pics and descriptions that aren't actually part of the purchase. Just be diligent in your purchase and be prepared to think you're buying a set only to receive just the stove. Still worth it, but a little disappointing when it happens. Love the videos. Glad I found this channel. I have really appreciated all the comparisons and ideas. I made my first Ikea hobo stove this past weekend and need to take it out for a first burn.
I have the Solo stove/pot combination as well, in two sizes. Great stoves. I don't have the tower stove in titanium yet but may give it a try. A properly working wood gas stove is a pleasure to use as you have discovered. Always best to carry and alcohol stove along for wet days or quick boil ups. I have learned about buying from China the hard was seen in my latest video. Thank you for watching and commenting
Greetings Mark, i have that same lixada stove but it doesnt gasify. I only put woodchips below the holes but it does gasify when theres something burning in the bottom between the walls.
I will need to be more clear in future videos. True gasification, as I now understand it, does not happen often even with my Solo stoves (unless I use wood pellets). More often than not, I am getting secondary combustion. Not as efficient as gasification but it still adds to stove performance. I will watch more closely when I use the Lixada in the future. Thank you. Your comment (and a few others) have motivated me to better understand the process
i have the ohuhu and the lixada tower stove. The ohuhu is pretty similar to the solo. I have noticed that the ohuhu/solo is more efficient. If you build it right and tight, you get long clean burns. You leave it and not have to touch it through entire burn. The lixada is nice for my son. It has the big window to add wood all along the way. It seems that it is less fussy for overall burning. It seems that if you top load new wood onto the lixada coals it takes it better than the ohuhu/solo. In raining less ideal weather I prefer the lixada. It is less fussy overall. Also if it was really cold I prefer it over the other one. It seems more versatile overall in design. How do you favour each over other for different scenarios?
Really think you do an awesome job on these videos. I have seen others but you explain the why and how much better than other people who light the stove and just let it burn. There is an amazing science built into these inexpensive tools!
Thank you for you kind words. I have both the Solo Lite (used in the video) and the Solo Titan which is more comparable in size with the Lixada/Ohuhu stoves. Th true wood gas stoves are often heavier than the "Tower" stove as they have more metal. They are usually more "efficient" than the Tower, giving a slower burn with more heat per amount of wood over a longer time as well as being cleaner burning once they get going. The advantage of the Tower is lighter weight, less expensive, more compact and has a larger fuel capacity. It will burn through the wood faster providing more intense heat but for a shorter time. Great for a quick boil-up. The tower will accept longer sticks making it less work to fill and feed. Hope these thoughts help. Thanks for commenting
Interesting results. Since you said that the pots both boiled quickly after adding more fuel, I wonder if the time at the start of the test to let the stoves get working could have been used to actually achieve a boil on a single load of fuel. Not sure of the times, but 5 minutes at the start to get the stoves working seems like it might have been enough to get a boil on the back end. In any case, since the time results were so similar, for me the Lixada price/performance ratio seems hard to beat, certainly better than the Solo. My biggest concern with it has always been the height of the stove, and it seems fairly stable from the videos you've shown. Great video as always!
You make a great point. Had I put the post one as soon as I lit the firestarter they may have brought the water boil before going out. When I use the Lixada in the woods I load it more fully and I easily get my water to boil without refuel, depending on the type of wood of course. I can't say the same about the Solo. It requires constant feeding. I had been concerned about the height of the Lixada but as Long as I am careful using it I don't feel it will tip. Thank you for commenting
Great video Mark. I also live in Halifax NS , and it's great seeing these tests. I'm wondering if you can ever do a video telling us where you shop for gear. I know you've given hints in the past , but maybe take us shopping to some of the stores sometime. And just curious. Do you shop at Costco much for anything and also what about Walmart. Thanks again for a great video.
Hello my fellow Haligonian. For my DIY or inexpensive builds I shop primarily at Value Village in Bayers Lake or Dollarama. I have found things at Walmart and Canadian Tire but not many. For the purchased items I get a lot of them from Aliexpress or eBay. I also like buying from Canadian Outdoor Equipment in Ontario. Hope this helps. Thank you for commenting
I agree with Kanzee what's all the rush on burn time, the fun part is making a fire, sustaining a fire, using your equipment and cooking/boiling your food. For the low cost of the Lixada i will purchase 1 for my kid and 1 for me. Thx for the review.. Take care bud..
For sure no rush. Just a measure to compare the stoves with. It may help with comparing efficiency. I look for long burn time from a single load of wood. Fast, hot burning stoves tend to go through their wood quicker. Thank you for commenting
Loved this videos. Your various videos got me the Lixada titanium version of the Uberleben Stoker. I love it. It RIPS through fuel but the upside is it burns out quickly... you make dinner or a drink on it, you know it'll all be cold and ready to be packed away before you've finished. Some of these gasifier stoves, they look like they can burn for a while... good at camp, not ideal for me for a short brew.
You hit it right on. The Chinese Emberlit copies with there open bottom plates burn hot and fast. Great for a quick boil up but not prefect for slow cooking. Then again, you could always just feed little stick in to keep the fire small. You would just have to do it so often. Thank you for commenting
SOLO KICKS ARSE!!!!!!!!! those coals are very very hot and ignite extra pieces if you want to keep it going Lixada seemed not as well-engineered too. How much so they both weigh and are they easily stacked for backpacking?
I do like the Solo ( I have two sizes) and in comparison to this stove it is a winner but at a higher price. Take a look at part one for the comparison stats. Thanks for commenting
might be silly and not a real use, but I want a solo stove to have as a picnic table mini fire torch for cold evenings maybe it would suck in practice but it seems cool in my head
It would depend on air temperature and whether I dumped the hot coals out (in a safe spot of course). I can estimate five minutes on average with the Lixada being the quicker of the two stoves. Thank you for commenting
Just a thought! It is my opinion that apart from the air flow, the Solo Stove creates a hotter burn chamber due to the three layers of metal beneath (bottom plate, hole plate, and ash tray) which act as insulation of the burn chamber. So wood is hotter, gasifies faster, and you had a stronger rolling boil on the solo stove. I think this is a result of the engineering by Solo Stove, but it also means you have to feed it more often. It's a faster reactor, so to speak. I also have the Lixada stove and really like it also. If like to hear others' ideas.
I believe you may be correct regarding how the Solo design affects heat/flame intensity. In this case, the Solo has a much smaller burn chamber than the Lixada which also contributes to the need to feed it more often. I do have a couple of videos comparing the larger Solo Titan with the Lixada woodgas stove if you are interested. Thanks for commenting
I'm not always good at explaining things, but here's another stab at my theory of why Solo Stoves work so well. Gasifier stoves work by having air travel up between the outer wall and burn chamber where the air is super heated before entering into the burn chamber at the top where the hot air mixes with wood gas (smoke) and burns. In addition to this, the solo stove design brings superheated air through the bottom. The air is forced to travel underneath the "hole plate" where it is heated by that plate, then it travels between the hole plate and the ash tray where it becomes superheated before entering the burn chamber so that you also have superheated air coming in from underneath. The burn chamber is insulated from heat loss on the sides and underneath which would occur if the burn chamber were directly exposed to outside cold air this providing a hotter burn chamber. In addition to all this, Solo Stove has optimized the air flow for heat output out the top. I'd love to know the development process they went through. That's my two bits!
Yup...for me it is like the airplanes other RU-vid creators complain about when they record. In truth, wind is a constant in my yard making recording a challenge. Thank you for commenting
Not an easy question to answer as there are pros and cons for each. I like to provide both sides of the discussion and let the viewer what is best for them. Thanks for commenting
I think a vertical burn may have gone through the wood even faster. In the woods I load the Lixada more fully and get a plenty long burn time. I can't say the same for the Solo. Thank you for commenting
I find that once the Solo starts gasifying properly there is very little smoke. The issue is I find I am constantly feeding new wood into it so it goes in and out of gasification often. Thank you for commenting
You are right on with this. Another way of looking at it is whether the added cost of production produces a better functioning stove. Don't get me wrong, I like the Solo. I own two plus two other wood gas stoves. This is just a bang-for-buck comparison. Thanks for commenting
Ooooooo "Titanium Firebox" That's exciting!!! I was a bit surprised the wood burned up before the boil, but I do enjoy feeding a fire. I love the campfire scent it leaves on my clothes too. Lixada makes it easy to gift a young person starting out. I've built quite a collection of survival tools for my 12 year old grandson.
If I had loaded the Lixada to capacity or at least the way I would while out in the woods it would have lasted plenty long. I don't think I have ever been able to do that with the Solo. Just received the titanium Firebox. Expensive but very nice. Now to get out and start using it. Thank you for commenting
It was not necessary to wait the 5 minutes for sure. How it is loaded and lit as well as type of wood does make a difference as well. Thank you for commenting
Twig stoves are not 'light and forgett'. You have to feed them peu à peu, not all at once, that's the way they work. If you depend on speed and can't/won't babysit the stove, get a gas/alcohol stove.
All wood stoves or open fires require maintenance. Some more than others. Stoves that require constant feeding make it a challenge to do other required chores like meal preparation. Speed is not the measure of a good stove but efficiency is. Boil time was meant to help show potential efficiency as does length of burn time with a single load
I see your point, but I find the Solo stove in particular to be inferior to most stick stoves (some of the rocket stoves are worse). It's not terribly light, compact or efficient. PLUS, they rip you off with that insane price. The IKEA hobo stove (amongst others) will burn a pot of water with zero maintenance at a fraction of the price. I think they are deceiving people with the promise of a great stove that, in fact, is pretty mediocre.
I use the Trangia burner with the pot stand section, it's a really good height, and a windscreen. I drop a pop can simmer ring on it if I want lower heat.
