Esbit Stove

by Buck
(Oklahoma)

I was looking at camping gear online. Soon I found myself reading reviews on the simple little Esbit Stove which I've used for years.

If you've never read product reviews your missing out on a good source of information, and some you'll laugh at.

The Esbit Stove is ranked very well on the three well known camping supply websites I visited.

I'd feel dumb if hundreds of people told how well a product worked and I was one of a few who said it didn't. This product is 75 years old! I'm going to make a wild guess that it works for most people :-)

The Esbit Stove and Esbit Fuel Tablets are not intended to cook with. It's an extremely compact, simple, dependable, source for heating up food or boiling water. It's also dry, stable, easy to pack, and arguably safer than most fuels.

The user must do everything possible to utilize the tiny flame and heat it produces. Guard it from any wind by placing it behind something. I moved a flowerpot to block some wind in the picture above.

If you want to increase the heat output and have the tablets burn longer you can add some kind of heat shield/wind screen around part of the stove. Tinfoil would probably work, but I haven't found that necessary. Don't close it off completely; a fire needs oxygen to burn.

It helps to fold the stove "wings" in so the flame is closer to the container your heating. Use a lid on your cooking pot/pan; otherwise much of the heat is lost.

The tablets do not light instantly; you must hold a flame to them for a few seconds. They do leave a little residue on the pot/stove, but I haven't found that a problem. It's much cleaner than wood, but I like a campfire when there's time.

The fumes are nontoxic, but would still burn up the oxygen in a small enclosed area. Some people complain about the smell...

Compared to my propane stove this thing is a whimp. Still, it's so small I take it more often, and use it more often. I think it's a great product.

Click on the stove to shop!