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Thread: My first soda can stove......... really works, I was surprised

  1. #1
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    Default My first soda can stove......... really works, I was surprised

    IF YOU WANT THE PLANS, PLEASE SEND ME A PM, I WILL PM THEM BACK TO YOU. THEY ARE TOO LONG TO PUT IN THIS POST

    I made a soda can stove and wind shield/grill today while out goofing around at the National Park near me. I found a few cans in the trash as well as a Coleman gas can, washed em off and made the stove in about 10 minutes and the wind screen/grill in about 5 minutes. Tried it out at the park and made a cup of coffe (foldgers instant coffee bag). It boiled the cup in about 7 minutes (using rubbing alcohol and came to a full rolling boil) with the wind, rain and first use. There was about 1/3 of the alcohol left.

    [/COLOR]This is for alcohol only, do not use petrolium or gas/oil to run this stove (it will blow up if you do)

    Materials:

    2 or more standard soda cans (you can also use 22-24oz cans for a bigger stove or energy drink cans for a smaller stove)
    one (1) emptied coleman fuel aluminum gallon can
    Exhaust or stove chimney metal tape
    White exhaust pipe paint (for the outside of the wind shield)
    Old stripped thread cleaning junked rod
    Brass bendable paper rivet
    Small alcohol flask, this one is 4oz


    Tools:

    Small angled (bandage) medical scissors
    Aluminum push pin
    ruler that reads in Milimeters
    exacto knife #11 or other razor knife
    Sharpie medium width marking pen
    Leatherman (any metal cutting saw will do) to cut the cleaning rod to two pieces to act as a grill
    metal smoothing file or sand paper for all the can cuts and rounding the rod ends
    2 or 3 good flex bandaids (trust me, you will need them), these cut cans are very very sharp until you smooth the edges with a file or sandpaper.


    I tried the following fuels today: rubbing alcohol 70%, brake fluid, Dry gas both blue and red, Ever Clear drinking alcohol 180 proof / 100% alcohol, mentholated rubbing alcohol. The most efficient was the Everclear with the dry gas a close second. Everclear boiled a cup of water in about 3.5 minutes (sad to waste such good drinking booze though). the least efficient was the mentholated rubbing alcohol.

    The little black flask holds three burnings worth of alcohol. It cost .93 cents at Wal-Mart in the camping section, made for alcohol type products.

    Waited til I got home to take the pics though, crappy weather today here near Canton Ohio. I do not have a weather cover for the camera yet.

    I made the wind screen from an old Coleman Fuel square aluminum can. It is held together with a brass paper hole punch rivet, the kind you fold over. I painted the outside with white exhaust pipe paint.


    This is what the Soda Can Stove looks like all set up
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    All folded up and packed into my trek cup
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    Fully constructed stove
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    Flame at first lit and then flame in full ready, looks almost like a kitchen burner flame
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    Large can of soup on the grill
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    My trek cup on the grill.
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  2. #2
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    Wow, That is really Neato ! does it use alot of fuel ?

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    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Nice job. I've made a couple of them and a few stands that I've posted on here. Of all the ones I've ever used the Trangia Spirit is my favorite. I just don't care to use alcohol. Especially in the winter. But you did a dandy job on it and it's sure nice to know you can whip a stove together with next to nothing if you need to.
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    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Made a few my self, from directions for older threads........

    I use "Heat" gas treatment, for fuel....... and if you hear someone around here referring to hunter63 and fire..(not mentioning any RICK Names).......and It's because "Heat" burns almost invisible in light,....... and never add more fuel while its still burning (could see it)........and I have a shirt with no fuzzes left on it as well as grow-ed back hair....Now.
    Actually works well.
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    No, a 14 minute burn with 70% alcohol, 1oz (shotglass), it only took 7 minutes to have a FULL trek cup boil. 1 oz of Everclear took 3.5 minutes to have a full trek cup boil. You can SNUFF out the flame to save even more fuel after you are done, or leave it burn to gain some heat for your shelter. Seems to range from 12 to 20 minutes burn time on an oz of fuel, depended on the fuel.

    It takes longer to read the instructions to make it, than it does to actually make it. It is very important to follow some basic Back Woods physics for the place ment of the burner holes and the gravity holes inside, other than that, it is a very straight forward mini project. Once you make one.... then all others are a snap. I made like 4 today for other hikers once they stopped at the picnic shelter to see what I was doing.

    ONE IMPORTANT NOTE: DO NOT ADD FUEL WHILE IT IS LIT OR HOT.....WAIT FOR THE STOVE TO COOL 30 SECONDS OR SO AFTER THE FLAME IS OUT BEFORE ADDING FUEL.

    I was honestly impressed at the effectivness and the efficiency it operated at. The materals I bought will make about 30-35 stoves.

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    Super Moderator crashdive123's Avatar
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    Well done. I've made several - they're kind of fun to play with and since they work too - bonus.
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    Ok, so I tried this stove out in the woods with a nice fresh winter storm and snow. I found a stump to put it on and level it off. Added some fuel, brought a pork n beans meal with me. It lit immediately and due to the fuel I used (ever clear) there was orange and blue flames, so it was easy to see.

    It took the pork n beans about 4 minutes to get hot and a full cup of boiling water was about 4 minutes to coffee. So I had the beans and coffee in a realistic woods setting. In the time the stuff was cooking I made a fire. I made a cross log bench and hung there for about 1 1/2 hours until real life was calling me away.

  8. #8

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    Great stove, I want to try and make one.
    Last edited by SurvivalKid; 02-21-2011 at 02:57 PM.

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    Kid, yes, I have your PM, I am tweeking the plans to make it easier to make. You will have it tonight or tomorrow morning sometime OK

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    Nice work. The Everclear may have burned hottest but in terms of $, I wonder if it was really the most efficient.

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    LOL I had the half gallon bottle of ever clear here already from a way distant past when I did drink... I do not drink alcohol anymore... so found it's best use in the stove, dang near 5 years of fuel in that bottle LOL

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    Note: Brake Fluid is very sooty and does not burn efficiently. Tried it today after the newest fresh snow we had this morn. So far, rubbing alcohol 70%, gas dryer and Ever Clear works very well.

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    Super Moderator crashdive123's Avatar
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    Heet fuel additive works well - I just use isopropyl though.
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    I was just trying out different fuels that could possibly found in junked or abandoned cars and homes etc...zippo lighter fluid literally melted one can stove so DO NOT USE PETROLIUM BASED FUELS, THEY WILL DESTROY THE STOVE OR AT WORSE BLOW UP AND HURT YOU.

    The other thing I noticed was with everclear or the 90% isopropal, the wind does not affect the flame, barely moves it, much less blow out, with 70% they will blow out. Heet gas dryer works real well, even the no name brand stuff, good effectiveness and efficient.

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    I thought I'd leverage off your thread. Here's one that takes about 1 minute to make and appears to work pretty well. Nothing fancy or pretty, just hot.

    http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to-ma...da-can-174386/

    Hopefully, you can watch without cringing at what he does to his knife.
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    NP, the more the merrier....

    Eh, that knife blows anyways....might as well use it for a can opener.

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    @Rick,,,, You Say 1 minute, The title of the vid says 2 Min,,,, and the Vid is 3 Min Long ??????

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    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Cool stove, and I agree that knife was in the $1 bin at the hardware store.
    Geezer Squad....Charter Member #1
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  20. #20
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    I think Rick was meaning the dangerous way he was using the knife,,,,, that made me cringe !

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