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TIL my camping stove loses 30% efficiency just from wind - tested it myself last weekend

I was out at Lake George last Saturday and my little propane stove was taking forever to boil water. Like 12 minutes for a cup. So I grabbed a cheap wind screen I had lying around from an old Coleman kit. Set it up and timed it again. Same water amount, same stove, same fuel level. It boiled in 7 minutes flat. That's nearly half the time cut off. I looked it up later and apparently wind can drop efficiency by 30 percent or more on these little burners. I felt kinda dumb for never using a screen before. Has anyone else noticed a huge difference with wind protection on your stove?
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2 Comments
willow_garcia
Flip the stove upside down and check if the regulator is actually working right in the wind. Some of these cheap propane regulators get finicky and start sputtering when air hits them, not just the burner. Could be the stove itself is a bigger factor than just the screen.
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finleycooper
Respectfully disagree. My stove barely slowed down in a stiff breeze.
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