merenpleine
Well-Known Member
I have Recently got a new boat however the cooker set up is not safe! to remedy this will cost around £200 so I have thought about changing over to Liquid fuel..Pro's & Cons Please...
Cooker Spirit Or Gas?
- Thread starter merenpleine
- Start date
shamrock
Well-Known Member
We've just done the same - a gas installation that wouldn't have got past any inspection, so I found an spirit stove and oven (Origo 6000) on boatsandoutboards. The Origo looks really small in the gap left by the old Tasco stove - now only 2 burners instead of 3.
It's certainly slower to boil the kettle, but surely time is not the point here - a watched pot never boils etc etc. Too early to judge on cost, but I'm happy to pay more for fuel. Our british meths needs to be cut with about 5% water to avoid smells from the additives used to stop us all drinking it , and that reduces the heat output too. Smell doesn't seem to be a problem, and we'll try to get some Alcool a Bruleur or whaterver it is from France.
With the family on board, I just prefer lighting the stove without that nagging thought that the boat might just go 'bang'.
Nick
It's certainly slower to boil the kettle, but surely time is not the point here - a watched pot never boils etc etc. Too early to judge on cost, but I'm happy to pay more for fuel. Our british meths needs to be cut with about 5% water to avoid smells from the additives used to stop us all drinking it , and that reduces the heat output too. Smell doesn't seem to be a problem, and we'll try to get some Alcool a Bruleur or whaterver it is from France.
With the family on board, I just prefer lighting the stove without that nagging thought that the boat might just go 'bang'.
Nick
MASH
N/A
But is alcool a bruler equivalent widely available outside France? OK, I know portugal and Spain are probably OK, but what about E med, Turkey & Greece?
VicMallows
Well-Known Member
Do you really like the way meths, when a tiny bit is spilled, creeps around and burns nearly invisibly? .... I'll stick with gas thanks! .... and simply turn off the bottle after I've finished cooking.
Vic
Vic
merenpleine
Well-Known Member
Since my last post I have had lots of advice the prime reason for gas seems to be the "Instant Availability";of the heat source boil a kettle Heat the pressure cooker etc., Its the safety aspect that overly concerned me careful use safe installation should be no problems its the amount! and availability around the world can two full small bottles last a 27-30 odd day crossing? I agree the danger of an invisible flame burning away ...Scary...and as i looked at the nice two ring and oven Flavel cooker yesterday and imagined a two ring spirit in its place I was converted back to gas again! for the mean time....the decision still to be made...Aaaaagh!
shamrock
Well-Known Member
No, but how is that going to happen? you fill the containers when the cooker is not burning and they hold the fuel even when turned upside down, so there's no change of leakage. Any spill when filling is simply washed down, and we'd do that above deck anyway.
I always tried the discipline of turning the gas off at the bottle but given that the kettle is boiled often and the gas locker is just ahead of the mast, it means frequent trips forward, day and night. In the end, you stop doing it every single time. The risk with gas is very small, so many people use it safely, but for the cruising and life aboard that we will do, I'd prefer not to have the stuff on board.
I always tried the discipline of turning the gas off at the bottle but given that the kettle is boiled often and the gas locker is just ahead of the mast, it means frequent trips forward, day and night. In the end, you stop doing it every single time. The risk with gas is very small, so many people use it safely, but for the cruising and life aboard that we will do, I'd prefer not to have the stuff on board.
Trevethan
Well-Known Member
We had the same problem. totally unsafe set up Gas cooker in galley and fuel tank in forward heads linked by some clear reinforced hose.
We don't have space for a gas locker so went with parafin. Some say hard to come buy in some parts of the world, but a gallon will last us 2 months (living aboard cooking 5 nights a week, although we don't tend to use ths oven much as prefert o use the combi micro/convestion oven when opossible)
We also have a small poretable bbq which we use a lot in the summer.
We picked up a second hand marine gimballed stove (off the for sale site here) for about £70. We have had to buy a new burner, which cost almost as much again, and will buy one more so I have a spare to fit while the second gets serviced.
We light ours with a small blowlamp, which lives outside in a small box. Saves messing with meths. lighting time is about a minute in ths summer and two when its colder.
Needs some practice to start with -- we first got the hang of it on the quayside and can send up some pretty big flares if you don't preheat it or have enough pressure which are smokey and a bit smelly,, but now lighting is a doddle.
Hope this helps,
Nick
We don't have space for a gas locker so went with parafin. Some say hard to come buy in some parts of the world, but a gallon will last us 2 months (living aboard cooking 5 nights a week, although we don't tend to use ths oven much as prefert o use the combi micro/convestion oven when opossible)
We also have a small poretable bbq which we use a lot in the summer.
We picked up a second hand marine gimballed stove (off the for sale site here) for about £70. We have had to buy a new burner, which cost almost as much again, and will buy one more so I have a spare to fit while the second gets serviced.
We light ours with a small blowlamp, which lives outside in a small box. Saves messing with meths. lighting time is about a minute in ths summer and two when its colder.
Needs some practice to start with -- we first got the hang of it on the quayside and can send up some pretty big flares if you don't preheat it or have enough pressure which are smokey and a bit smelly,, but now lighting is a doddle.
Hope this helps,
Nick
Trevethan
Well-Known Member
We were in South Dock in London about two years ago. Was about one am and heard a huge noise come through the water. Looked outside and couldn't see anything so figured it was a dream. Anyway next day heard that a boat at the other end of teh dock hhad blown up due to gas leak. " people died I think. one at the time and another some days later.
After that we both felt even if we buy a new boat, first thing we will take out is the gas.
I know the risk of anything happening is small, and detectors and solenoid valves etc etc etc mitigate that even further, but if somthing does go wrong, teh consequences are just too great in my view.
After that we both felt even if we buy a new boat, first thing we will take out is the gas.
I know the risk of anything happening is small, and detectors and solenoid valves etc etc etc mitigate that even further, but if somthing does go wrong, teh consequences are just too great in my view.
RupertW
Well-Known Member
I've gone the other way and paid out loads to get a proper gas locker built in the tiny space available. Not sure where I'll put fenders now but heyho. I like having a cooker that gets going instantly and heats things quickly.
Explosions do happen, I know, but they are rare so I thought it worth the risk.
Explosions do happen, I know, but they are rare so I thought it worth the risk.
Ariadne
Well-Known Member
Yep we had the same problem, but stayed with gas.
Dispenced with gas locker, had two S/S holders made and hung two 13 Kg containers over the stern. Individual regulators, and a single pipe to the cooker. Cooker has own stop valve, and bottles easly and safely turned off by person on watch, without leaving the safety of the cockpit.
I reckon about as safe as you can get with gas. PM me if want photos.
Dispenced with gas locker, had two S/S holders made and hung two 13 Kg containers over the stern. Individual regulators, and a single pipe to the cooker. Cooker has own stop valve, and bottles easly and safely turned off by person on watch, without leaving the safety of the cockpit.
I reckon about as safe as you can get with gas. PM me if want photos.
Abaker
Well-Known Member
Re: "can two full small bottles last a 27-30 odd day crossing?"
In my experience one 9kg/20lb bottle of propane usually lasts about three months. That's with two people living aboard, cooking and eating all meals aboard, using a Force 10 cooker with three top burners, grill, and oven. I have two aluminium bottles factory-installed in hold-down clamps in a gas-tight, properly drained locker with solenoid shutoff located in the locker. The locker, connecting hoses and end fittings meet ABYC (US) standards. The set-up has given no trouble over 16 years. I did replace the bottles after 10 years, when regulations require either replacement or re-certification. Testing for leaks is simple because North American propane regulators have a pressure guage installed on the high-pressure side. While in UK and France I've had to do some jury-rigging to cope with differing threads, and to get other bottles (Calor in UK and le Cube Rouge in France) because most suppliers won't fill mine. For a while in northern France I used butane, but it won't vaporize at zero degrees C or less, so is useless in winter.
In my experience one 9kg/20lb bottle of propane usually lasts about three months. That's with two people living aboard, cooking and eating all meals aboard, using a Force 10 cooker with three top burners, grill, and oven. I have two aluminium bottles factory-installed in hold-down clamps in a gas-tight, properly drained locker with solenoid shutoff located in the locker. The locker, connecting hoses and end fittings meet ABYC (US) standards. The set-up has given no trouble over 16 years. I did replace the bottles after 10 years, when regulations require either replacement or re-certification. Testing for leaks is simple because North American propane regulators have a pressure guage installed on the high-pressure side. While in UK and France I've had to do some jury-rigging to cope with differing threads, and to get other bottles (Calor in UK and le Cube Rouge in France) because most suppliers won't fill mine. For a while in northern France I used butane, but it won't vaporize at zero degrees C or less, so is useless in winter.
Alastairdent
Well-Known Member
I doubt very much that a pressure gauge is any good at all for detecting leaks - it would have to be an extremely bad leak for the pressure to drop appreciably in a short time.
A far better solution is a bubble tester. This fits on the low pressure side, just after the connection from the cylinder. To use it, you press a knob down and the gas flow is diverted through a liquid in a see-through part. The most minute leak shows up immediately.
A far better solution is a bubble tester. This fits on the low pressure side, just after the connection from the cylinder. To use it, you press a knob down and the gas flow is diverted through a liquid in a see-through part. The most minute leak shows up immediately.
Abaker
Well-Known Member
Re: Pressure Guage for Testing
The procedure for using a pressure guage on the high pressure side of the regulator to test for leaks is:
1. Turn off all burners.
2. Turn on gas bottle and solenoid.
3. Read pressure.
4. Turn off gas bottle.
5. Leave for an hour or so.
6. Read pressure. If it's lower, there's a leak.
The procedure for using a pressure guage on the high pressure side of the regulator to test for leaks is:
1. Turn off all burners.
2. Turn on gas bottle and solenoid.
3. Read pressure.
4. Turn off gas bottle.
5. Leave for an hour or so.
6. Read pressure. If it's lower, there's a leak.
