I've reviewed a couple of butane adapters thus far, both of which were for remote canister stoves. What about upright canister stoves? Well, there's an adapter for them too. Please join me as we have a look at butane adapters for upright canister stoves in Butane Adapters III -- Upright Canister Stoves HJ
Hey HJ, am still a bit wary about using the three legged adapter one because of the plastic parts too close to the burner. These were perhaps not intensively done with an R&D hence I would stay clear of them not wanting to recommend it to anyone IMHO . I still have reservations on the Kovea Butane Adaptor if mounted directly on a small stove so insted I would recommend using a remote mount with hose connected to the canister. Then again its still up to the user to ensure safety is in mind whenever these adapters are used. Ron
Hi, Ron, I included a couple of warnings about overheating. Hopefully that's enough. Maybe I'll go back in and word the warnings a bit more strongly. HJ
Looks to be the same as mine, but I use it with a tube so no danger of overheating it. The idea of using this (plastic) adaptor with an upright can stove does not look like a good idea to me! For that purpose I'd rather use an all-metal one. Best regards, Wim
Yeah, the use of the all metal designed Brunton remote is a better option keeping the Kovea adaptor distant from the burner. Ron
I've got one of the Brunton Stove Stands. They're a nice product, but they weigh 5oz/145g, which is double the weight of my stove! I haven't had any problems with the plastic one, although I haven't tried any simmering or large pots. I put warnings in very large type to keep an eye on it. Hopefully that will be sufficient. HJ
I think, in the end it simply depends on how often the stove is used. These mini gassies fit very nice on an upright can, and if one uses one of the bigger ones they'll last a fairly long hike I'spose. I am not a hiker myself, but guess I'd go for the upright cans following the KISS principle. After all, if not going on very long hikes there's not that much money to be saved, plus the uprights with prop/butane mix give more heat per ounce thus also faster cooking for less weight. Just my thoughts! Best regards, Wim
Hi, Wim, According to EngineeringToolBox.com, butane has a heat content of 49,510 kJ/kg, and propane has 50,350 kJ/kg. These values are so close that in practice, one probably would see no difference in use between a canister of 100% butane and a backpacking type canister of 70/30 butane/propane. However, I agree that the KISS principle applies. My adapter doesn't see a lot of use. Each to his or her own, though. HJ
Hi Jim, I thought the difference was more than that, so this is welcome information! So, the main (only) advantage for using propane is its lower boiling point. We learn something anew every day! Best regards, Wim
Yes, propane's chief value is its lower boiling point. The very reason that propane is put into backpacking type canisters is to provide better cold weather performance. Not only is the heat content very similar, the flame temperatures in air are also very similar: Flame Temperature in Air (ºF) Butane 3,200 Propane 3,450 The vapor pressures however are NOT similar. Propane has much higher vapor pressure and requires very different handling when in pure form. In the US, no lightweight backpacking type canisters sold have more than 30% propane. The remainder is isobutane or butane, both of which have significantly less vapor pressure. Vapor Pressure @70ºF Butane 30 Propane 125 I got these numbers from bernzomatic.com; I assume that they're psi (pounds per square inch). Note that propane has more than quadruple the vapor pressure of butane. HJ
Jim, I thoroughly enjoy all of your blog posts. Can you please tell me where this three-legged stand can be found? I scoured ebay to no avail and I did not see it on your blog though I may have missed it. One of this would allow me to (carefully) try these butane cans with both stoves and my Coleman F1 mini lantern. Thanks. Marcus Also, what is the total weight of the butane cans, again sorry if I missed it in there.
Marcus: The weight of the butane cans varies a bit, depending on the brand, but a Mega1 brand 227g sized canister of butane weighs 335g when full. By contrast, a Coleman threaded backpacking type canister weighs 363g, so you save about 28g by using the cheap butane. Not much, but I suppose it's something. I bought my adapter on eBay. HJ
The adapters are sold by most of the Hongkong based sellers that have camping gear on their list. You can try plus2city or Dealextreme to name just the two. Others will have these as well. ( If memory serves me right, mine came from DealXtreme). Best regards, Wim (correction, my TK800 came from DealXtreme, the adaptor from plus2city)
Hi IMHO those cartridges have no place being attached to any kind of camp stove in the field. The connection is just too delicate. Having said that I've gone through a few, refilling cartridges/stoves where originals are unobtainable or expensive. I feel safe enough doing this as no flame is anywhere near.
Yeah, I've been thinking and I may just save up for one of the Japanese refueling adapters that Jim wrote about. They look well built. Seems like the easiest way to make use of the butane. I'm moving to Puerto Rico where it is warm and the camping cylinders are bound to be expensive.
I have not found myself using the adapters since I bought the refiller from Japan. There are different models of refiller. The one currently on eBay (as of 1/23/2012) is a set (adapter and refiller) and is more expensive than the one I have which is the refiller only. HJ
