Camper van kitchen galley - alcohol stoves?

[zuren]

Does anyone here use an alcohol or alcohol/electric stove in their rig?

I'm laying out plans for some sort of kitchen/storage unit; something I could take in/out when it was needed. I'll want this unit to be mostly self-contained so there is no plumbing or auxillary tanks anywhere. Most RV stoves are propane that need a pressurized bottle that would need to be secured. I've been looking at single burner recessed alcohol and alcohol/electric stoves that could mount in a countertop and hoping someone could comment on their experiences. Here is where I'm getting my design ideas:

http://www.campervanlife.com/building/layouts

I know alcohol doesn't have the BTUs of propane but I'm just looking for something to boil water or heat soup for my g/f and I or just me rolling solo when stealth camping or the weather is bad. Most cooking would happen outside of the van with my Coleman stove as I don't want to load the vehicle with food odors. And alcohol can be extinguished with water so its a little safer.

Contoure Cookmate - under $200


There are alcohol and combo alcohol/electric units. The combo units cost $500+ while alcohol cost <$200. The 2 brands I'm finding are Origo and Contoure/Cookmate. Unless someone has an argument why the combo unit is better, I'm leaning toward an alcohol-only stove. If I'm in a place to run electric, I can keep a $20 hot plate onboard for my electric needs and be ~$300 ahead for building the cabinet. Thoughts?

Thanks!

[Kohburn]

not in a camper - but I do use alchohal to cook often when backpacking. I have lookined into the alchohal electric options for my future camper and settled on seperate alchohal and inductive cooktops.

[CSG]

While I carry a little alcohol stove (White Box) in each of a few bags I've got, in a van why not use a butane burner like the restaurants use for buffets. Yes, you have to have a can or two of butane but they work great. I often use mine instead of the propane cooktop in my Traverse.

[HMR]

I have a camper van with a recessed, propane stove. It works great but I only cook inside when the weather's bad or the bugs are swarming. If it were me, I'd skip the alcohol stove and get the Li Baja Burner from Snow Peak. It's a high quality stove and works great. You can use it on a counter top/table or outside on the ground. It's also designed to sit in a recess.


If you like the Snow Peak idea, I HIGHLY recommend contacting the good folks at Overland Gourmet for more info. They have good prices and some of the best customer service in the business.

[Toolman]

In the planning stages of my build I often look to the Marine industry for advice. I found this article on the selection or your galley stove to be helpful:


http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs...01&page=Stoves

[zuren]

not in a camper - but I do use alchohal to cook often when backpacking. I have lookined into the alchohal electric options for my future camper and settled on seperate alchohal and inductive cooktops.

This is the way I'm definitely leaning. I need to look into the inductive cooktops closer.

The LI Baja Burner is interesting but I don't like that you are reliant on the fuel canisters. I've camped with people before where finding replacements became an issue when they didn't pack enough. I'll have to give it more thought...

Please keep the ideas coming!