Comments on: Expeditions – Stove Set-Up

By: My Cook Kit « StraightChuter.com – Backcountry Skiing & Beyond

My Cook Kit « StraightChuter.com – Backcountry Skiing & Beyond — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 11:01:42 +0000

[...] My water melting set-up is shown in this previous posting [...]

By: Andrew

Andrew — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 16:31:13 +0000

Hi Paul – Iceland is the land of MANY petrochemicals and it is more a matter of finding the right one, or at least knowing what it is called. We ended up using our XGK’s with regular gasoline (unleaded?) and changing out the jet. I forget exactly which jet it is, but I think the XGK’s only come with two of them, so it is the non standard one. This ended up working well, but it put out a TON of black smoke in the start up process, which gets all over everything unless you light it outside, let it get up to temp, then bring it inside the cook tent (or, cook outside).

After our trip, a friend from Iceland wrote me and said that they do indeed have what we would call “white gas” or camping gas, but it had a different name. You might also try to get it in some of the bigger cities – we waited until we were in a small little town and our options were limited.

By: paul hackin

paul hackin — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 10:36:56 +0000

just bought multi fuel stove [msr xgk ex]for my trip to iceland in july [cycle/camping across the interior]but after reading im a little uneasy about not being able to get any fuel for the stove,and if i did would the thing light…from the above it sounds like some have had problems in this respect…would i be wise to take a canister stove as well

By: Tony

Tony — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:23:47 +0000

Awe inspiring life, lovely article,from a couch potatoe

By: Darrell

Darrell — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:31:23 +0000

I’ve been using this set up for years except with the MSR Whisperlite stove. Cooking inside a tent is DANGEROUS. However it is reasonable if you understand that you need adequate ventilation to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning and that if there is a fuel leak or flare up you need to have an instant way to evacuate the stove from the tent. Generally I only use a stove inside a vestibule and then only if I am in a blizzard. Someone absolutely has to monitor the stove at all times and have a pre-rehearsed plan to move the stove quickly. More than one climber has suffered because they have fallen asleep and the stove has tipped or flared or the wind has shifted and is now blowing the CO directly into the tent.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Fri, 29 May 2009 02:15:11 +0000

It’s a bad idea. I’ve never done it so many times that I can’t imagine not doing anything else in the winter. I really can’t imagine doing it in a Megamid – it’s entirely too convenient.

If you do decide to do it, note that your tent may vaporize in an instant if you screw up.

Andrew – what does your full fuel efficiency-enhancing system weigh?

By: Nathan B

Nathan B — Tue, 26 May 2009 22:18:24 +0000

With the height of this setup, I am reminded of the Flextrek 37 trillion…

By: Andrew

Andrew — Fri, 22 May 2009 04:35:50 +0000

Hi Jonny – If possible, light it outside, then bring it into the vestibule and be careful about keeping it away from the tent walls. Once it is up and running, they seem to be pretty stable. Pyramid style tents (no floor) are ideal for cooking. I rarely cook inside of the actual sleeping part of the tent, but if I do, I clear everything away and am very careful about venting.

By: Jonny

Jonny — Fri, 22 May 2009 04:29:08 +0000

What are the general rules with regards to cooking with a stove in a tent? Everything I’ve ever read seems to indicate that it’s a bad idea, but I’ve also seen ample pictorial evidence suggesting it’s doable…

Muchos Gratias

By: Andrew

Andrew — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:58:11 +0000

Hi Jon – I may be confusing my stoves, but I *think* you can change jets on the XGK..? I’ve burned a variety of fuels in it, but remember having a really hard time in Iceland finding something that would work.

I bring a repair kit with me on most trips, and the main issue always seems to be the little gasket at the pump end. Aside from that, the stoves seem to work really well. I think I’ve cleaned the fuel lines once, if that.