Biolite Camp Stoves

[AdironRider]

http://www.biolitestove.com

Got one of these as a Christmas gift this year. For you gear whores, this thing is awesome and works great. Not the lightest thing in the world so for backpacking might be out of the question, but otherwise this thing is awesome.

Kinda glampish I guess, but for me as an overlander (expeditionportal.com) this is one of my most used accessories out there.

By far the coolest feature is using a camp stove to charge your phone, ipod, whatever. Fucking awesome.

Anyone use the grill attachment?

[GeezerSteve]

Looks like a third world thing. There's no LOS to cell towers in 99% of WA wilderness so there's no reason to have a cell phone (except maybe to check my Sibley's guide for a bird call I don't know).

I bought a Backcountry Boiler via Kickstarter

[AdironRider]

No doubt its pretty glossed over with third world uses.

But that doesnt change the fact that for overlanders, BC types who need to charge GPS units, etc this thing is pretty rad.

I havent actually used mine for anything else than charging Nicads for the headlamps, and for that reason alone, this thing is the best.

Its little fan thing does a damn good job of heating a space with some twigs as well. Also pretty cool for desert type situations where substantial wood is hard to find.

[GeezerSteve]

. . . charging Nicads for the headlamps.

Nicads? Yo, dude, it's 2013. You mean NiMH?

[Tippster]

What the hell do you fuel it with - twigs?

[AdironRider]

The manual seems to imply whatever the fuck you want as long as its a biofuel.

But yes twigs, you have to feed it a bit but considering a branch covers you for like two hours its not that big a deal.

And yes my batteries are old school, but as long as my Petzl from the early 90's holds on, and my old school reusable batteries keep on trucking unbelievably, they continue to serve their purpose.

Yes, I look like Im mining coal when I go camping.

[GeezerSteve]

Twigs or shaved wood, with or w/o Esbit. There's a bunch of packable biomass stoves on the market.

[Hugh Conway]

thought the bigger cook stove model would be awesome for an off the grid cabin. curious to explore.


don't forget shit tipp it burns too

[El Chupacabra]

but for me as an overlander (expeditionportal.com) this is one of my most used accessories out there.

By far the coolest feature is using a camp stove to charge your phone, ipod, whatever. Fucking awesome.

Wouldn't this be a whole lot easier, and cheaper?

[keipow]

looks good, does it burn wet wood? how do you start the fire?

[Tippster]

thought the bigger cook stove model would be awesome for an off the grid cabin. curious to explore.


don't forget shit tipp it burns too

Human shit or just Dung? (Grass based?)

[Hugh Conway]

dried dung. human shits for the rice paddies

[Trapp]

http://www.biolitestove.com

Got one of these as a Christmas gift this year. For you gear whores, this thing is awesome and works great. Not the lightest thing in the world so for backpacking might be out of the question, but otherwise this thing is awesome.

Kinda glampish I guess, but for me as an overlander (expeditionportal.com) this is one of my most used accessories out there.

By far the coolest feature is using a camp stove to charge your phone, ipod, whatever. Fucking awesome.

Anyone use the grill attachment?

This is the first positive review I've read on this thing. Couple questions-

How long does it take to charge, lets say an Iphone/Ipad from dead to full charge?

How much attention does it need? Can you load it up and leave it for awhile or do you have to constantly feed it?

From other reviews I've read it sounds like it takes forever to charge anything and you need to constantly feed it to keep it burning hot. Which is a deal breaker.

[AdironRider]

I know of no live fires that dont require constant attention. Thats part of being safe, end of story. THis isnt an item you can just plug in and forget about like a wall charger, nor was it intended to be. You do have to feed it a decent amount, but again, one branch pretty much covers you for the day, so its really nothing more than proding it with a stick. Pretty much what most people do when sitting around a camp fire anyways.

I havent had a stop watch out or what have you, but over the course of a night of drinking, it charged my headlamp batteries fully.

[acostiga]

Interesting. The Backcountry Boiler is by a guy who lives just across the river from me, and he's got a Work Trade program. I've contacted him, and will see what's up...

[Chainsaw_Willie]

looks good, does it burn wet wood? how do you start the fire?

Like you would any fire if the wood's wet, would be my guess.

that thing and an esbit tab to get it going would be pretty cool for some uses but agree, too heavy for backpacking and the charger would be totally useless for me as I generally don't go out for more than 7 days at a stretch and my headlights last that long on fresh batteries. The idea of a heat powered fan to stoke the fire and increase efficiency is way cool though.

Also agreed the home stove looks like a really cool device for a cabin.