Save those beer cans for cooking...

[cpaharley2008]

How to Make a Soda Can Camping Stove - CampingRoadTrip.com

[carlkeigley]

That was pretty cool, or is it hot?

[Lynn Musgrave]

They work too

[Mike Magee]

"Add a few tablespoons of alcohol based fuel, like methylated spirits or Heet..." That takes a bit of planning to have the fuel on hand.

I am reminded of something I bought years ago for tent camping... I still have it, too. It's a ventilated metal ring that sits on top of a Sterno can. One can light the Sterno and perch the cook pan on top of the ring. It worked very well. I guess if a person had the Sterno but no metal ring, he or she could fabricate one out of an empty can.

[Roger C H]

Would rubbing alcohol work? I remember a small wick stove I had with a chemistry set when I was a kid.

I assume that gasoline would be dangerous.

[Tom Trostel]

Rubbing alcohol has too much water and does not burn very hot. Best to use methanol which the Dollar Stores sell as octane booster. My favorite version of this type stove is made from cheap aluminum water bottles. Search Youtube for diy alcohol stoves by Nick Van Leuven.

[Donna D.]

I saw this on Facebook last month. A childhood friend posted it and I asked about the fuel. This is her comments:

Grandson Evan and I made this neat little stove today out of a soda can and alcohol. It burned great and in no time we were enjoying a cup of tea! Nice little emergency stove.

91% rubbing alcohol...no wick. Just a pocket knife and a soda can!

[Mike Magee]

Interesting. Having no experience with burning rubbing alcohol (or any alcohol), I would have guessed that it would flare up wildly (like gasoline) and be used up in seconds. But apparently it will burn slowly off the surface, long enough to heat things. That's something to remember.

[Tom Trostel]

Mine burns about 5 minutes and will boil a cup of water in that time.

[Tom Trostel]

here is a photo of mine.

[accrete]

My MacGirlver of a wife has several in her collection of gadgets she's made over the years for the fun of it. A couple tablespoons of _spirits_ (grain alcohol or similar as mentioned in above posts) will boil a cup of water in a few minutes. Nice thing about these simple stoves is once the water is boiled the fuel and fire are out too.

[peterh]

I've built and used these. Penny alcohol stoves are a popular "ultralight" backpacking option. They are so small and light that even ultralight backpackers often carry two of them. With two stoves they not only have a backup, they can also can swap an empty, spent stove for a full one and keep boiling their spaghetti or whatnot while the empty cools so they can re-fill it.

The hardest part, at least for me, was pushing one can inside the bottom piece to stretch it out so the top half can slide in, then out again. The bottom kept getting stuck in the "stretcher" can. The other thing is the cut aluminium edges are sharp, so be careful!

The ones I have built don't have a patch of fiberglass insulation in them. I'll have to try that, see if it makes them burn slower and longer. When I use mine, I fill them to just above the dip in the well where the fill holes are, then cover the fill holes with a penny. (Thus the name "penny stove.")

Rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol burns cooler and is kind of sooty. "Heet" gas additive in the yellow bottle is pure methanol. It's cheap, readily available (we can find it in our local supermarket's very small automotive section), and burns hot and clean.

[Darrell in Al]

Back whe I was a kid I had a WW1 trench stove 2 burner it used alcohol for fuel. Don't know where it went. I had and carried a single burner one for a number of years, then moved to Coleman single burner and /or Esbit tablets stove (Light Inf. Days didn't want to carry extra gear.) Now back a full circle of getting a Esbit alcohol burner last spring... just in case.
Dang I've got to many camping stoves 2 2 burners, 3 single (gas/Coleman fuel) 1 propane, 3 gas cartridge gas and alcohol burner.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by peterh

"Heet" gas additive in the yellow bottle is pure methanol. It's cheap, readily available (we can find it in our local supermarket's very small automotive section), and burns hot and clean.

That's good to know! I appreciate it, truly. I was just thinking for an "emergency" stove, I've always got a few aluminum cans kicking around and alcohol in both the trailer and my sticks'nbricks home for wound care....

[Mike Magee]

I've heard of 'kicking the can down the road,' but with these you could kick the stove down the road!

[Gina D.]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

That's good to know! I appreciate it, truly. I was just thinking for an "emergency" stove, I've always got a few aluminum cans kicking around and alcohol in both the trailer and my sticks'nbricks home for wound care....

that wouldn't be for when you fall down after emptying those cans, would it?

[Donna D.]

Gina! Flying monkeys coming'

[papa-t]

Could use 190 proof moonshine. That is if a person wanted to use it for that. LOL