Algonquin Adventures / Solo Stove or Trangia?

**Posted by Steve E** 5/07/2019 7:54 am

Looking at adding a second stove type to bring on trips in the event of a gas stove failure and to save on fuel needed. Just looking for opinions on the Trangia system or a Solo Stove system? I'd be using it year round on canoe trips, back country winter trips, etc. I have 2 MSR stoves which I love and would be using as a main stove. This would be for boiling coffee water, etc. I have a couple concerns about each system that maybe someone can speak to?

Trangia
-I hear they aren't great in winter?
-how much fuel do you have to bring for an average 3 or 4 day trip?

Solo Stove
-how much of a pain is it to have to constantly feed it with twigs, etc.?
-ever have any issues when it's been raining and it's hard to find dry stuff to feed it?

Thanks folks!

**Posted by swedish pimple** 5/07/2019 8:53 am

hi steve e
i use a vital twig survival stove with a battery operated fan,, i like the stove,, although a little heavy,
4/5 stars ,, i got mine from a home hardware store ,,

**Posted by RCSpartan** 5/07/2019 3:23 pm

Hi Steve, I have a Solo Stove and bring my Trangia fuel container. When the wood is wet you can drop the container in the Solo with some alcohol fuel and you're good to go. Best of both worlds.
If you use these types of stoves make sure you have a good wind screen.

http://www.youtube.com/user/kayakcamper · **Posted by Uppa** 5/07/2019 4:11 pm

I have a Bushbuddy, which looks pretty much identical to the solo stove. It's been the only stove I've taken for the last 3-4 years of tripping. The best wood to use isn't really twigs - thicker wood that you've cut into lengths will burn much longer, and you avoid the 'constantly feeding' scenario as a result. I've had few issues with finding wood or keeping it burning, but in truly miserable conditions I haven't bothered trying in the first place, I just dig into my snack food.

So the twig stove has been my primary - and only - fuel source for years and I have no horror stories to tell. But this year I'm adding a pocket rocket and a small fuel canister to my kit (for shoulder season trips) just in case. The twig stove will continue to be what I use 99% of the time.

**Posted by Methye** 5/07/2019 7:23 pm

I use an alcohol stove mostly, the Toaks titanium siphon, for boiling water to rehydrate meals. The Solo Stove is my windscreen for that. The combo works well with a Primus Eta 1 litre pot with a heat exchanger bottom—-more wind-screening.

So the Solo is available for meals where I’m actually cooking, taking my time. To be honest if the tinder is wet, I just squirt some alcohol in, since I am already carrying it. It is finicky and needs to be fed regularly, but Uppa is right; once it is going well, put in some larger pieces, and it will handle them.

I originally used the Trangya but found it uses a lot of fuel and is heavy: 110 g versus 20g for the Toaks. And boil times were the same in summer. I don’t have any winter camping experience to comment on that situation.

**Posted by tentsterforever** 5/08/2019 7:12 pm

I carry a solo stove for the exact reason you mention, a failure of the main stove.
The solo works fantastic, boils water quickly, but twigs burn very fast and it takes constant feeding ( every 10 minutes or so) to fuel it. Not hard to use in wet weather as long as you have a few pine cones close by, they burn easily, before adding wood. Will smoke and blacken pots in that situation. I camp in the shoulder season, but would almost prefer to cook over a campfire if the pots turn black anyway, as the fire will give off more heat to warm yourself with.
We have a tendency to use the solo mostly on day trips hiking or canoeing away from camp, so we can make a hot lunch and a hot drink.

**Posted by My Self Reliance** 5/08/2019 7:23 pm

I'm purging right now - you can have my Trangia cheap if you want to try it low risk

**Posted by Shark** 5/09/2019 11:23 pm

Echoing what was said above. Start it on twigs, the get a few larger pieces. Once it starts to draw, it makes good heat and the fire burns longer. Suggest the titan solo rather than the light weight one so you can get more larger pieces in. Still only weighs a pound. I got one cause it’s nice to sit with a fire in the shoulder seasons and it’s not like you would sit there in front of your stove running. Even though you feed it more than a raging camp fire, it uses less wood and gets the job done. My experience so far is that it burns the wood completely. Just light ash left when your done.

Bottom stays relatively cool, so no scorching the earth either. As others have said. Drop a Trangia in and you have primary and secondary cook system. I don’t have a Trangia yet, but seems like a good option.

**Posted by Methye** 5/10/2019 6:54 am

Irrelevant useless fact: Did you know Trangia is 2 syllables, pronounced Trang-ya, not Tran-jee-ya?

**Posted by Steve E** 5/10/2019 8:05 am

Thanks for the info here guys (and thanks for the offer Shawn!). I'm kind of leaning towards the Solo Stove idea as I think it might be less finicky for 4 season use. Does anyone ever use the Solo Stove as a portable campfire pit? I do a lot of hammock camping and I can picture myself tucked under my hammock tarp with a small fire going in one of these....

Again my only concern with this would be when it's pouring rain and everything is soaked...although in Algonquin there's always dry wood you can get from Spruce and Hemlocks I find....

**Posted by ShawnD** 5/10/2019 9:05 am

Hey Steve

if you watch Drop ( formerly massdrop) they will come up.

The solo lite was just up( done now) was $50 USD I think. I buy from them all the time have never been charged any Duty.

https://drop.com/buy/solo-stove-and-900-ml-pot

They also had a bonfire version come up.

https://drop.com/buy/solo-stove-bonfire/talk

I have a Bushbuddy ( lite version ) that I got on clearance directly from their site. It had a small blemish on it.

Last edited by ShawnD (5/10/2019 9:07 am)

**Posted by Steve E** 5/10/2019 9:58 am

Good to know Shawn thanks! I'll keep an eye out for sure.

**Posted by Shark** 5/10/2019 9:02 pm

Works perfect as a portable camp fire. I bought one after a fall wet back country trip, trying to get a fire going to get a bit of warmth. Got lots of smoke in a normal fire pit . So I bought a solo stove . Of course every trip since then, no rain. Very satisfied with mine. They burn really clean. Still some carbon, but not that bad. Most important, you can keep a decent fire, but small. You can use a fraction of the wood. Less impact on the environment.

Last edited by Shark (5/10/2019 9:04 pm)

**Posted by ShawnD** 5/13/2019 9:34 am

The campfire solo stove is back up on Drop.com Steve is one that big interests you.

https://drop.com/buy/solo-stove-campfire?utm_placement=6&referer=S6KRU7&mode=guest_open&utm_campaign=Automated%20Daily%20Promotional%202019-05-13&utm_source=SparkPost&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Daily%20Promotional&utm_content=1557747902096.107887514121774447767351

**Posted by Steve E** 5/13/2019 11:00 am

Thanks Shawn. Any issues ordering from Drop? I'm assuming it's US...any brokerage fees etc?

**Posted by ShawnD** 5/13/2019 11:31 am

Outside of the conversion Steve I have never had any issues. Shipping is usually reasonable too.

I have never been charged any Duty on any of my orders. No guarantee but I never have..

**Posted by Laker#1** 5/13/2019 11:39 am

I made a twig stove out of a paint can, a soup can (slots right into the paint can hole) , and a tuna can (for the pot-rest).
It was super easy to make (took about 10mins to make, just need a can opener and a drill) and is very light. Really it seems to me to be just as good as the $100 buddy or solo stove.