You should ask these questions since the finest camping stove depends on your unique needs. A good piece of advice is to list the sorts of excursions you’ve taken in the past, what you want to do in the future, and what you anticipate consuming. Then, while selecting your new outdoor stove, keep this list in mind. In this article, we are talking about How to Choose a Camping Stove?
What is Camping Stove?
A camping stove is an important piece of camping equipment when planning to spend a night or two beneath the stars. The greatest camping stove cannot compete with toasting marshmallows over a fire, but cooking a whole dinner over a campfire requires more time, effort, and the proper cookware equipment. After a hard day, you want something fast and simple to make that first cup of coffee or get meals on the (picnic) table. And building a fire to cook your meal over isn’t always possible—consider backpacking, scattered camping, severe weather, or no-burn regulations. Here comes the camping stove.
What sort of camping stove you pick will be determined by your preferences, money, and the nature of your camping vacation. Whatever sort of camping you like, having something to rapidly boil water or fry up some eggs at the campground is a game changer, particularly in a big company. We spoke with over a dozen veteran campers and camping professionals to gather their top advice and favorite stove suggestions to help you make the best option for your camp cooking requirements.
How to choose a camping stove?
When preparing for a camping vacation, it’s critical to have the correct equipment. With so much camp cooking equipment on the market (such as stoves), how do you decide which is ideal? This article will assist. We cover what is important and beneficial in camper kitchens and what can be eliminated, as well as design, style, and features best suited for various camping cooking methods – from time-sensitive meals to meals that require minimal preparation.
Before you go online or to a store to compare stoves, it’s important to know what makes them different. Here are five to pay attention to:
Weight
Stoves can be as light as 50 grams or as heavy as over 5 kilos. So, it’s important to know how you need to get around. If you want to carry your camping gear from the trunk of your car to a picnic table, don’t try to save weight. Instead, focus on stability. Choose a gas stove that weighs between 50 and 300 grams if you are a hiker who wants to avoid carrying a heavy load on your back.
Number of burners
Most camping stoves feature two burners, which is all that most campers need. A single-burner stove might save you money if you like simpler meals or don’t mind cooking one dish at a time. Adding a third burner to your setup, on the other hand, makes it simpler to create more complicated dishes for bigger parties.
Burner power
The wattage of your camping stove’s burners significantly influences what and how you can cook. If scorching meals and swiftly boiling water are important to you, a greater BTU output of 15,000 or more is worth paying for.
Wind sensitivity
This may not appear like a big deal, but it can be hard to cook when a strong wind blows on a mountaintop. Most portable camping models have side screens that block the wind to keep your food from getting blown away. On the other hand, screw-on burners could be better because the pan is up high, and the flames need to be covered.
Fuel type
Most camping stoves utilize propane, which is advantageous since it is relatively priced, generally accessible, and operates in cooler temperatures. Propane isn’t the sole fuel choice. Thus consider this while selecting a stove: Multi-fuel stoves may also operate on kerosene, white gas, and butane, giving them even greater versatility.
Stability
When you’re tired and hungry after a day in the great outdoors, you want your food to stay on the ground because your stove needs to be balanced. So, it’s important to test the different models on all surfaces, for example, to see how stable they are. Remote stoves, where the bottle is next to the burner, work well for this.
Stove type
Most camp stoves come into two categories: freestanding (those with legs and tabletop) and portable (those that sit on a camp table, tailgate, or other raised surface). Technically, any stove may be set up on flat ground and function, but you’ll want to include the kind into your regular camp cooking arrangement to assure compatibility.
Compactness
Like weight, compactness is a crucial factor to consider if you need to transport your equipment in your baggage rather than in your automobile. Some ultra-compact burners may be kept in a cup or the cavity of a gas cylinder and are as tiny as the palm of your hand.
Tips for Using Your Camping Stove
- Before shutting off the propane tank, always turn off the burner and wait for it to cool. Otherwise, when you unhook the hose, the gas would blast out.
- Keep a cleaning cloth among your kitchen supplies. You will save time and hassle when you have more than one purpose for an old washcloth with a bleach stain. Use it to clean the drip tray and other objects, including hoses, windscreens, and propane adapters.
- Always use a propane splitter to save fuel if you have two burners. With these culinary ideas, your family may go hiking for days without stopping for fuel.
- If your cooking stove gets slow, you may notice little or no propane flow. Before resetting, turn off all knobs, shut the tank completely, and wait some minutes before turning it back on. Once it’s open and cooking again, adjust the knobs to only achieve medium flames.
Final Thoughts
Regardless of your perspective, the top camping stoves available today can make your time outdoors successful. These cookers pack a lot of heat into a small, portable, durable shell to beat the competition in a wide range of situations. I hope this article “How to Choose a Camping Stove” will help you.
FAQ
What type of food are you going to cook?
Having a slightly bigger outdoor kitchen can be helpful if you want to cook more than just freeze-dried food. Some stoves are coated with Teflon, which might be interesting to you. It can make cooking more stable, like cooking at home with real pans. The ability to control the heat by adjusting the gas is another feature that can be very useful. But if all you plan to do for your freeze-dried meal is boil water, you can save space and weight by putting it here.
What types of fuels are there?
According to what we’ve seen, people spend most of their time deciding where to put their outdoor stoves. In some situations, you have no choice because, as we’ve already said, extreme cold, high altitudes, and the law will make it hard for you to do anything else. Most of the time, it depends on the type of trip, personal preference, and availability. We’ve listed a list of the pros and cons of each fuel type below.
What should the size of the outdoor stove be?
The larger the storm cooker needs, the more people you will cook for. This is particularly crucial if you want to bring youngsters along on your trips, so they don’t have to wait too long for meals. However, even traveling alone, you may save weight and space by selecting a smaller camping stove. So choose the smallest kitchen with the lowest weight that fits the other specifications.
How simple a stove do I require?
Things have to move quickly on certain visits. When selecting an outdoor stove with simple operation might be a fantastic option. After the 14th day of trekking, it’s good to be able to eat fast after the tent is set up and not have to spend too much time prepping the stove for use.
