SGT Rock
2004-01-18, 14:36
As promised, I have been experimenting with tealight candles to make a new lightweight stove. For building material I had to rely on cannibalizing a stove that Rosaleen sent me. It was a standard double wall stove design made from a tealight candle with a center wall made from a soda can and lined with fiberglass insulation.
HOI mentioned that he used a tealight candle and took some pipe insulation to add a double wrap for the inside. He didn’t mention any sort of cap, so I tried the tealight and insulation alone with poor results. The fuel vaporized and burned too quickly.
I tried making various caps and chokes to get it to work correctly with little success. These candles are hard to work with without destroying them and I ended up almost abandoned the idea. But as usual, stepping back and thinking the problem through usually results in success.
Using HOI’s idea as a basis, I took the tealight and lined it with a double wrap of pipe insulation ½” tall, leaving a small reservoir approximately ½” wide. Then take another tealight and cut a ½” hole in the center. Poke small pinholes in the dimples on the bottom. Then cut the sides of the burner ½” deep in about 6-8 places evenly spaced. Push the burner down into the fuel container about ¼” then fold over the sides where it was cut over the reservoir. The entire stove is about ¾” tall and 1-1/2” diameter. The stand should hold the pot ½” above the top of the stove. When fully burning the stove should create flames that turn slightly orange as they contact the pot. The Stove should weigh about 0.1 ounces or so, and combines with a heat reflector, wire pot stand, and windscreen; it should weigh about 0.3 - 0.4 ounces or so.
The stove will boil water with 12ml of fuel. It has a maximum fuel capacity of 15ml when filled to the top of the reservoir. In cold weather a little extra can be added to fill over the top for warming the fuel up – maxing out at about 18-20ml. I have consistently boiled 65-degree water at a 65-degree room temperature using this stove. This has pushed the stove as small as I can possible get it to go and still perform.
The new stove will be dubbed the BIS II. I am working on a prototype BIS III that will have a slightly larger fuel capacity in case the BIS II pushes the envelope too much for you.
HOI mentioned that he used a tealight candle and took some pipe insulation to add a double wrap for the inside. He didn’t mention any sort of cap, so I tried the tealight and insulation alone with poor results. The fuel vaporized and burned too quickly.
I tried making various caps and chokes to get it to work correctly with little success. These candles are hard to work with without destroying them and I ended up almost abandoned the idea. But as usual, stepping back and thinking the problem through usually results in success.
Using HOI’s idea as a basis, I took the tealight and lined it with a double wrap of pipe insulation ½” tall, leaving a small reservoir approximately ½” wide. Then take another tealight and cut a ½” hole in the center. Poke small pinholes in the dimples on the bottom. Then cut the sides of the burner ½” deep in about 6-8 places evenly spaced. Push the burner down into the fuel container about ¼” then fold over the sides where it was cut over the reservoir. The entire stove is about ¾” tall and 1-1/2” diameter. The stand should hold the pot ½” above the top of the stove. When fully burning the stove should create flames that turn slightly orange as they contact the pot. The Stove should weigh about 0.1 ounces or so, and combines with a heat reflector, wire pot stand, and windscreen; it should weigh about 0.3 - 0.4 ounces or so.
The stove will boil water with 12ml of fuel. It has a maximum fuel capacity of 15ml when filled to the top of the reservoir. In cold weather a little extra can be added to fill over the top for warming the fuel up – maxing out at about 18-20ml. I have consistently boiled 65-degree water at a 65-degree room temperature using this stove. This has pushed the stove as small as I can possible get it to go and still perform.
The new stove will be dubbed the BIS II. I am working on a prototype BIS III that will have a slightly larger fuel capacity in case the BIS II pushes the envelope too much for you.