Over the last 6 months or so I have come across some statements on different forums concerning homemade stoves blowing up and some overflowing into a ball of flames.
I had a home made pressurized one blow up because I forgot to put the fuel port screw back in. Only had 1/2 ounce of fuel in it to do a test, blew the top half off, it went straight up into the rafters of my garage The little bit of alcohol was blown out for about a 5 foot radius, some small patches of fire here and there, 2 or 3 on the front of my chest the size of quarters, they quickly extinguished. I was not hurt luckily I walked away shaken but not detered. I also had a small prototype T candle side burner blow up in my kitchen because holes were too large.
I’d like all of you to post your experiences in regards to stove blowup or fuel overflowing in a ball of flame because of over filling the stove.
I hope this thread sheds some light on how we need to be more aware of stove safety on and off the trails.
Most recently in this forum Jazilla inquired : Any one have a problem with small explosions with the penny stove. I had the al bottle penny stove pop twice and I had my Sunkist penny pop on first use. Wondering what would cause this problem or is it just the operator.
I actually had the burner pop out when I first lit my Sunkist penny. It Blows up kind of when I first light the primer in the top of the burner with the penny in place
I had 3 stoves pop like this on the first test. After that they pop no more. When I say pop I mean hop up like a small explosion. The first time this happened to me it blew the burner out of the cup.
ppereira007 wrote:
My first homemade stoves were photons. When you forget to put the filler screw back in, they "POP" when you light them. Happened to me twice, both times when too tired to think straight!
Spock wrote:
Yep, I had a penny stove pop and spray flaming alcohol around the kitchen. Melted the front of my microwave. Unfun. The reason was the holes were too large and the flame was able to ignite the air/fuel mixture remaining in the stove. Smaller holes fixed it.
Knightwalker (WB)
Build a Photon and light it with the screw out of the fill hole. You'll get yer explosion. They pop really good with alcohol when missing the fill screw. Gas oughtta be a real hoot.
Use a VERY long lighter!
Tinney(MBD)
The latest test is up on my adventure site which is a daily blog of my life at ww.minibulldesign.com ---The squirting fuel was caused by a gross over fueling of the SST to the point that there was no room for gas to build up so it pushed out solid fuel.
Tinney(MBD)
Bug bags--Catchup and Exploding stoves
I had an email from a customer who says his TREK exploded and set him on fire. I think he may have filled it to the brim with fuel and then got in real close and lit it.
Salvelinus(HHQ)
Yep, I've had it happen, too. On a pressurized model that wasn't epoxied, I stupidly forgot to replace the screw on the fill port--realized it as soon as I lit it, and just had time to get my hand back when the top of the burner popped off of the bottom. Fortunately I was setup on a fire-resistant surface so I just let the flames burn out.
Gotta be careful with those things, but they sure are fun to play with!
Fireboy(WB) I had one blow up also, left the screw out of the fill hole. Also had one that the fuel expanded while the stove heated up and overflowed into a ball of fire. These little things can be hazardous to your health and equipment. Be cautious
Patrick(WB)
That's interesting. The stove that blew up on me was a wedding tin with only a very small hole in the top.
It's the very small hole. Same with the un-closed Photon. Huge, fast vapor pressure spike. BOOM!
Patrick: (WB)
I had an alcohol one blow up once, so I figured this was a lock. I feel like I really let the team down.
Tinney(MBD)
I probably play with more stoves on a daily basis than the average person. I do a test burn on every new design and also on a few every day just to check my work. After being burned several times ,once quite badly. I now wear a thin pair of leather gloves that weigh almost nothing and are worth their weight in gold. you can also use them for any project that may damage your hands. I would highly recommend that anybody using any backpacking stove wear a pair of gloves. A burn on your hand can really mess up your trip and even cut it short if it is bad enough. Why take a chance. I don't anymore!!! Next time you burn yourself on a stove give this a thought.