Wind Screen - Materials

This series of photos and instructions describes how to make a light, simple pot screen / wind screen for alcohol stoves. It is constructed in one piece, there are no parts to lose, it is sturdy, and weighs less than 2 ounces! It can be made even lighter. It takes practically no room in the pack since it fits around the outside of your fuel bottle.

Similar ideas:

Inspiration – I wanted a windscreen that would hold the flames and heat from the stove around the pot. Flames shooting out to the sides waste energy.

http://www.backpacker.com/gear/article/0,1023,4566,00.html (copy and paste into your browser) describes a similar setup. I used the windscreen described in the article, and had a few problems with it. First, the seam of the ‘Deluxe Quantum’ is permanently fixed, it can’t be opened. This made it impossible to roll and difficult to carry. The next version I made used 2 tent stakes as pot holders and had a detachable seam made as described in the article. It was an improvement, now I could open the windscreen and roll it for storage but my aluminum tent stakes were softened by repeated heating and cooling, and the seam is made to hold in tension, it keeps the edges from pulling apart. But the seam is actually in compression, the two edges are pressing together. The final version shown here has a seam that holds in compression, a pot holder setup that is both permanently fixed to the stove yet detachable, and there are no extra parts, like tent stakes, to carry.

http://www.users.fast.net/~k3ct/sealedcatstove.htm is also very similar. The “Mini turbo cat” is nearly the same as the ‘kitten stove” but the kitten has more air holes, uses tape to seal the bottom, and leaves out the fiberglass insulation wick. I store the stove in my cookpot and I don’t want loose glass fibers in there. The pot support / windscreen is very similar but uses a different seam and separate pot supports, similar to tent stakes.

I am NOT a metalworker and it shows. There are probably other, better ways to make this project and there are certainly better metalworking tools. But this method works and doesn’t require specialized tools or skills.

Materials Needed (shown clockwise, sorta, starting from top left)
+ Aluminum roof flashing – found in the roofing area of Home Depot. You’ll find other uses for the extra flashing.
+ Picture hanging wire – from home repair section of a grocery store. You’ll only be using the wire.
+ Small washers – the smaller the better. Or tiny split rings, or even paper clips. You only need two.
+ Hole punch
+ Ruler. A carpenter’s square will come in handy if you have one but isn’t necessary.
+ Workbench with a 90 degree edge. Could be your kitchen countertop.
+ Small piece of wood with a flat edge.
+ Marker
+ Utility knife OR a pair of heavy duty shears. Or your wife’s good sewing scissors if she’s not looking, but that’s dangerous. Not dangerous to use, dangerous to return. Know what I mean? Shears makes cutting easier, but the utility knife works very well.
+ Leather gloves. Not shown in use in photos, I know. The gloves were worn during construction then taken off for photographic clarity. It’s hard to work the camera wearing gloves! Do as I say, not as I've shown.
+ Hammer and nail or an electric drill. Drill bit should be just larger than the diameter of the picture hanging wire.
+ Pliers.
+ Your cookpot and stove.