Propane

[eagle90]

How does your troop handle propane for patrol cooking? We are in the process of instituting patrol cooking for all campouts and it is going very well so far. Each patrol has a stove, but we have been using 1 lb. tanks at an alarming rate. Besides being expensive, it is not ecologically friendly either. We have 7 patrols, so I would hate having to haul around seven 20 lb. tanks, and the small 5 lb. tanks are super expensive. What does your troop do? Thanks for any ideas and input.

[moosetracker]

We normally only have 3 patrols so the 7 lb propane tanks are what we haul. They work well, but I can see what you are saying about the 7 patrol problem.

 

Normally ours use one of those propane trees that split the propane to the stove & lantern, but I know it has more then one split out the side, so perhaps you could position the stove so several stoves can use one propane tank, using the tree.

[gcnphkr]

We still use 1 lb tanks. Home Depot was clearing out their 5Lb tanks last year. I think they got done to about $25. But even at that price once you added a tree and hose it was nearly $70. That buys a lot of 1 lb tanks. We figured about 3-4 years ROI and decided it wasn't worth it.

 

We recycle the tanks. We made a valve core remover and remove the cores to make sure they are empty with no pressure and then they are safe to recycle.

[Twocubdad]

Where's Hank Hill when you need him?

 

We have about six of the smaller tanks (I always thought they were 10#), which means a couple patrols get stuck with the big ones. They cost us a few dollars more than the standard 20# tanks, but they're a whole lot easier to handle than the big ones. We've even had trouble finding them, so we keep an eye open and buy them when we can.

 

The cost of refills was an issue for us. Not many places refill tanks anymore -- everyone has gone to the exchange system. Even then, they wanted to charge us $20 per tank, regardless of how much propane we actually bought. Fortunately, we found a local distributor who charges us $20 for one tank, then only charges for the actual weight of the propane we buy.

 

 

[dg98adams]

I've suggested this to my own unit (4 patrols).

 

It takes interest from the Scouts, and buy-in to work and a different style of meal planning.

 

1 patrol rotates out of the normal "propane/patrol box/cooking" EVERY outing. They can either go "full back-pack" (i.e. no cooler, no patrol box, etc) or just no propane, open fire is ok (no charcoal $).

 

Pros for the "No propane/fuels" patrol

-simple/minimal meals

-minimal cleanup

-minimal setup/tear down time

-Patrol can save $ on some meals and splurge on others (candy bars as treats).

-VALUABLE camping skills learned and used!

** this patrol must be exempt from setup/cleanup/assist of any other Propane patrol.

 

Cons

-harder to do efficient meal planning & last minute additions are harder to cover

-back pack food sometimes is not more than just nourishment

-Open fire/Charcoal on wet outings is a challenge

(This message has been edited by dg98adams)

[eagle90]

When I was a Boy Scout, most of our cooking was done over wood. However in our area of the country, most of the parks have restrictions against scrounging for wood in the forest, and you cannot bring in your own due to the Emerald Ash Borer problems, so wood fires would be very hard to do. Another lost art, I'm afraid.

[evmori]

Have ya tried running a couple stoves from one tank? We built a couple rigs to handle two stoves and a lantern of one 20lb tank.

[OldGreyEagle]

How do you maintain 300 feet between patrol campsites with all the patrol stoves run off one big tank? Thats a lotta hose

[Buffalo Skipper]

We use the 10# propane tanks, one per patrol. We have several tanks and extras. We have found that one tank will last just over a year. That is for cooking and lantern. For the past 3 years, one mom was the manager of a tire store which sold propane (4 blocks from the scout hut) and we received all our propane for free. That scout has left the troop, but we have since found a return which only charges $15. At that cost, we accommodate 40 or more nights of camping, stove and lantern, which works out to just over 35/night per patrol. That is pretty reasonable. Currently we have 3 patrols (plus the adults is 4) and we have 6 bottles.

[raisinemright]

Harbor Freight has this really nifty device for about $20 that allows you to refill small bottles off a larger tank. You need to freeze the empty bottle and screw it on. They only fill about 70% of the way, but it works very well. The tool does say that crossing state lines with refilled bottle is unlawful though.

[FScouter]

Use Coleman fuel/white gas. One gallon can will fill as many stoves as you need.

[Stosh]

I use dual fuel, my camp stove will run on both white gas and propane. 20# in car camp setup and white gas when the boys don't want to haul the 20# into the woods. White gas is still far more economical than propane.

 

Stosh

[Gary_Miller]

Twocubdad, "Not many places refill tanks anymore -- everyone has gone to the exchange system."

 

Where do you live that this is a problem?

 

Most any RV service center sales propane, Local farm co-ops, tuck stops, ect.. I have never not been able to find a place that refills bulk propane bottles.

[EagleBeaver]

( raisinemright: on the 1# bottles we use, it says "Never refill this cylinder. Refilling may cause explosion." The bottles also state federal law prohibits transportation of refilled bottles. )

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We use 1# bottles so each patrol is separate. The concept of sharing a large bottle comes up occasionally, but that pulls patrols into a tiny, crowded space and reduces their independence so it has not happened yet.

When the scouts reduce the flame strength to just what is needed and disconnect the bottle as soon as they are done using it, the bottles last a lot longer. A bottle left connected tends to leak its contents overnight. It costs less than $1.00 per campout for the propane to cook 3 or 4 meals.

 

I promote the use of gas backpacking stoves to reduce the waste of bottles and cannisters and the cost, but propane is fast and easy.

 

Another way fuel costs go down is when patrols cook on real fires. Last weekend, 4 of the 7 patrols made something in a dutch oven - one patrol did all their cooking on fires.

 

[Stosh]

mn_scout hit the nail on the head.

 

Using wood is the cheapest, but most difficult.

 

Using charcoal is pricier, but easier.

 

Using white gas is a bit pricier, but easier still.

 

Using large canister propane is getting up there in cost, but no hassles with spilled fuel.

 

Using small canister propane is very expensive, but is very easy on the boys.

 

Notice the pattern here? The easier it is to use, the higher the price. Either figure it into the cost of the trip or take on a more "thrifty" attitude when it comes to making your purchases and planning your meals.

 

My last kayak trip I had no stove, just a $1 butane lighter in my pocket. No cookware other than my mess kit. Had steak (fry pan of mess kit), instant mashed potatoes (boiler in mess kit), and baked beans (cooked directly in the fire) for supper. Boiled some water for clean up and I didn't use hardly anything in my butane lighter, should last me all year for $1. I never even considered taking a stove. There are also no burning bans on sandbars in my area at least. And I also menued it out that breakfasts and lunches would require no cooking.

 

Your mileage may vary...

 

Stosh