Solar and induction cooktop

[Borrego Dave]

One of my camping friends uses a one burner butane stove that stores in small 12x12x4 inch plastic case. I know nothing about it but he likes it. Just another option for you to look into. If nothing else there is only the bottle and no hoses to think about.

[Glenn Baglo]

I have two of them and use them along with my BBQ for cooking outside.
They are inexpensive, compact and light. Perfect for heating a cast iron pan in no time.

[Borrego Dave]

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

I have two of them and use them along with my BBQ for cooking outside.
They are inexpensive, compact and light. Perfect for heating a cast iron pan in no time.

Kind of off the OPs question but since you use both types of gas, how do they compare ?

[Raz]

The best solution for using 120 volt appliances boondocking is a generator. A quiet Honda sells for about $1000. Cheaper than the large solar panels, the batteries, the inverter, and the electrician to wire it all.

Of course if you want to throw money at it, anything is possible. There was a fellow with an 15' Aliner. He wanted off grid air conditioning at night. Because of generator restrictions he went with batteries and an inverter. Took up half the trailer. He used a generator to recharge during the day.

When I first got into RVing I was concerned with the propane. Now I have a propane stove at home. On the road one tank covers my cooking needs and runs the refrigerator for weeks. A propane stove is far safer than a coleman white gas stove. Far safer. Raz

[redbarron55]

I have a Harbor Freight 2500 watt inverter generator that does a good job and is (when the intake silencer is added) as quiet as the Honda and puts out more power.
I could get by with the EU1000 as my AC doesn't draw over 1 KW and it is lighter and quieter.

[redbarron55]

I have a question for you guys.
I have the tankless water heater on my Scamo and I want to know if the 1lb bottles can be adapted like they go the the barbecue grills?
I don't think that the heater uses much gas since it runs very little and I would like to try it out to see if I can keep 4 -5 of the cans since I also have a small grille that uses them.
I* could also reduce the tongue weight a little as well. I guess I can see how long the 20 lb tank lasts or use it to refill some of the small cans like I see adapters for.
The reason I went with the barbecue grill size tank was I could just swap it out if I needed a refill away from home.

[Glenn Baglo]

Originally Posted by Borrego Dave

Kind of off the OPs question but since you use both types of gas, how do they compare ?

The butane stove heats a pot of water much faster than the propane inside the trailer. I don't have the numbers or testing to say if one is cheaper than the other.
I just find the butane convenient to use.

[Christian in FL]

Thanks Glenn

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[minke]

Originally Posted by Lisa in FL

... I had hesitated to go with alcohol stoves because there seemed to be no control of the flame. However the Solo stove says that is possible.

On our sailboat we use an alcohol stove and can adjust the flame size. On "high" it runs dry (it uses a canister with a wick) in ~35 minutes. The canister can't be refilled until it cools so you must use 35 minute meals.

[Christian in FL]

Alan, What kind of stove is that? And where can I get one? What kind of 35 minute meals do you make?

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[minke]

It is an Origo that was, I believe, original equipment on our 1975 Swedish boat. Modern equivalents probably are Origo 3000 | Fisheries Supply or MARINE AIR Origo 3000 Alcohol Stove | West Marine . Perhaps at a nautical junkyard you might find one used. If you should chose to get something like this DO NOT fill the canister horizontally!!!

A typical meal would be packaged flavored rice (e.g. Zatarain's stuff) with perhaps canned fish unceremoniously (sp?) dumped on top.

[Denece]

Make sure the smell isn't going to bother you. Burning alcohol has an odor that some find objectionable. We had one on our Vega ( a Swedish sailboat) and it always made me seasick. Even at the dock!

As always YMMY


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[Christian in FL]

Thanks Denece. I will be sure to check that out.

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[MCDenny]

Faced with the same question in our Snoozy we use a butane single burner stove when off grid and a single burner induction hot plate when plugged in to shore power. Cast iron pans work great with induction. The better a magnet sticks to a pan bottom the better it will work with induction.

The butane is very convenient, stores compactly and adjusts from very low to very high heat.

Cooking with any flame (as opposed to electric) in a closed up camper will add a lot of humidity to the air. We used the butane even when plugged in the first year but added the induction plate to avoid the humidity issue.


Denny Wolfe
Wanderingourway.wordpress.com