Camp stoves at high altitude?

[devinsixtyseven]

High being 12K-14K feet. I have a JetBoil, do they work fine at that altitude?

Thanks,
Sean

 

[ZooJunkie]

Yes, it's not the stove you should be worrying about, it's the boiling point of liquids. If you are boiling water for drinking, make sure it's at minimum 5mins.

 

[phatman]

jet boil

well, i have yet to use mine at 12-14k, but i have used it at about 10k and it worked great. i've used several and i got to say the jet boil is by far my fav.

 

[DaveInDenver]

At altitude liquid stoves have historically held the title, but most anything out there now shouldn't be an issue. I use a white gas stove and it's never let me down, but the highest I've used it is just barely 13,000'. What seems to me to be more of an issue using canister stoves for mountaineering is keeping them warm. I dunno, never used a Jetboil and they are supposed to be da shizzle.

 

[BigAl]

High being 12K-14K feet. I have a JetBoil, do they work fine at that altitude?

Thanks,
Sean

Slightly off topic, I see you are from CO, how high are the rockies? The highest I've ever camped was ~4700' on Spruce Knob WV. All the mountains where i normally camp are 1800-2300' tops.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Slightly off topic, I see you are from CO, how high are the rockies? The highest I've ever camped was ~4700' on Spruce Knob WV. All the mountains where i normally camp are 1800-2300' tops.

The high point of Colorado is Mt. Elbert, 14,433'. We have 53 peaks above 14,000' (58 if you take use the liberal definition). You might say we're the highest state and we've got lots of mountains, too. But really the highest typically you camp here is 12,000 to 13,000 feet, places like the bivy overlooking Chasm Lake on Long's Peak or something. Treeline here is about 11,500' in most places and above that it can be miserably windy and sparse most of the time. Not to mention that it's mostly alpine tundra and so you can't just be stomping around indiscriminately.

 

[longbed]

I have used several stoves at the altitude you are going to be at. The ambient temperature is more of an issue for a stove like the jetboil than the altitude. Propane causes the small gas canister to get pretty cold and if your outside temp is cold than the stove wont work so well. This is especially true as the canister gets closer to being empty.

Having said that alot of high altitude mountainers use some type of stove like the jetboil as you can get around the cold issue pretty easily.

 

[devinsixtyseven]

Sounds like we'll be fine, then...we bring water so purification isn't an issue at the moment, and the JB fuel canisters are a propane/isobutane mix that's supposed to work well at colder temps.

 

[Jacket]

Yea - I find that in those conditions, the less work my stove has to do, the better. Use a filter for water (or bring in drinking water), have foods cooked and prepared as much as possible, and find a place where you can hide from the wind.

 

[Mlachica]

I think the only one's that suffer at high altitudes are the propane fueled stoves and grills. My propane tank for the stove never froze but it seemed like it was starving for o2

 

[bigreen505]

If you are expecting cold temps overnight keep the canisters in your sleeping bag.

 

[Christophe Noel]

Sounds like we'll be fine, then...we bring water so purification isn't an issue at the moment, and the JB fuel canisters are a propane/isobutane mix that's supposed to work well at colder temps.

Most modern canisters from MSR, JetBoil and so on are mixes. Cold is the enemy of a canister stove. Second to that is heat deflection. If you're in a sheltered area with some sort of heat exchanger the stove has a better chance of heating to a quick boil. If you keep the canister warm and create good interface between the stove and pot (like a Jetboil or a good pot with heat exchanger) then you'll be fine. I've used my stoves regularly at 14,000 to probably 15,000 at the highest. No problems.

DaveinDenver is right about Colorado 'tudes. You'll often be around 8,000 to 9,500 feet which really isn't all that high. When you get to 11,000ish the primo camping spots get thin.

And yes....I too have bivy camped at the ledge overlooking Chasm View lake. Awesome. I've also been hit with 60mph winds on the boulder field up there at 12,000. Ugly.

By the way, this is the single best tool for high peaks and fuel efficiency in general: http://www.rei.com/product/401062 You position it a touch below the bottom lip of your pot and it blasts the heat along the sides of your pot while protecting the flame. The added weight of the exchanger is offset by the fuel savings.

 

[rusty_tlc]

Basically it's about BTU's.
Propane and other fuels deliver less BTU's at higher altitudes than liquid fuel. If you are backpacking this is a big deal, more weight to carry. Otherwise it just means it takes longer to deliver the same amount of energy and you need to pack more fuel.

 

[Rezarf <><]

FWIW, when I use a stove (canister style, MSR pocket rocket) at high elevation the fuel runs low quick, then when I get back down to my house at 5500 ft, it mysteriously "refuels" itself... not sure why but it does.

Rezarf <><

 

[Martyn]

FWIW, when I use a stove (canister style, MSR pocket rocket) at high elevation the fuel runs low quick, then when I get back down to my house at 5500 ft, it mysteriously "refuels" itself... not sure why but it does.

Rezarf <><

Drew

Does the same thing happen with your beer?? :beer: