Never thought I'd ask about boiling water....

[3GKnight]

It dawned on me during my last camping trip that my trusty Coleman 2 burner stove just doesn't cut it with the lack of heat output. It takes waaaaayyyy too long to make coffee. We're talking my survival here Coleman, step it up!

I've replaced the stove already with Camp Chef's Mountain Series Rainer's Camping Combo. http://www.campchef.com/stoves/mountain-series-stoves/rainier-campers-combo.html Not sure I'll ever use that grill but I almost exclusively griddle on my camp stoves anyway... It got a lot of good reviews. I haven't cooked on it yet but it puts out some high heat.

Besides that though, can anyone recommend a good 12V electric kettle? I have a 120V at home but I'd like a good one for the TD. Doesn't need a huge capacity, but enough for 4 cups of hot chocolate and my french pressed coffee would be good. I searched Amazon but didn't see any with consistently good reviews. I found one on Google that said it took 18 minutes to boil. No thanks. And it cost ~$33. No thanks again. The new camp stove should do it in about 4, so if there aren't any electric kettles that can boil in about 10, I'm might just have to live without it.

Thanks!

[vigilant1]

Any kettle that can boil 4-6 cups of water in tat amount of time is going to need about 1000-1500W. If you are using 12VDC, that means it will draw 85-125 amps. Have you got a source (a circuit) that can provide that kind of current? It will also take a lot of "oomph" from your batteries. So, before looking for a kettle, you'll need to decide if you could even supply the needed electricity at 12VDC. I think, in the end, you'll probably be happier using your camp stove unless you are plugged in to shore power.

[3GKnight]

Good to know. Don't know much about all that electrical stuff. Just enough to complete a circuit.

Thanks!

[Dale M.]

Basic rule of thumb, if a device draws 300 watts (or 3 amp) at 120 VAC when you power it through a inverter from 12 volt battery the power demand is 10x that of 120 VAC on battery... So the 300 watt (3 amp) device will make inverter put a 3000 watt or 30 amp load on battery.... Just remember 10X to convert power from 12 volts to 120 volts.. And it gets more complicated as to sustainability because of amp hour rating battery and other stuff...

Dale

[GuitarPhotog]

Basic rule of thumb, if a device draws 300 watts (or 3 amp) at 120 VAC when you power it through a inverter from 12 volt battery the power demand is 10x that of 120 VAC on battery... So the 300 watt (3 amp) device will make inverter put a 3000 watt or 30 amp load on battery.... Just remember 10X to convert power from 12 volts to 120 volts.. And it gets more complicated as to sustainability because of amp hour rating battery and other stuff...

Dale

No, Watts is Watts. 300 watts at 12 V is 300 watts at 120V. The difference is that 300 W at 12 V is 30A and 300 W at 120 V is only 3 A.

A 1500 W 12 V appliance will draw 120+ Amps, a 1500 W 120 V appliance will draw only 12 Amps.

Power (watts) equals current (Amps) times voltage (Volts)

<Chas>

[Redneck Teepee]

Basic rule of thumb, if a device draws 300 watts (or 3 amp) at 120 VAC when you power it through a inverter from 12 volt battery the power demand is 10x that of 120 VAC on battery... So the 300 watt (3 amp) device will make inverter put a 3000 watt or 30 amp load on battery.... Just remember 10X to convert power from 12 volts to 120 volts.. And it gets more complicated as to sustainability because of amp hour rating battery and other stuff...

Dale

No, Watts is Watts. 300 watts at 12 V is 300 watts at 120V. The difference is that 300 W at 12 V is 30A and 300 W at 120 V is only 3 A.

A 1500 W 12 V appliance will draw 120+ Amps, a 1500 W 120 V appliance will draw only 12 Amps.

Power (watts) equals current (Amps) times voltage (Volts)

<Chas>

No electrical guru here on my end. I read your and Dales post, and I think that Dales post is exactly what you said... just broke out a little different. If not Edjumacate Me.

[3GKnight]

If it makes you feel better, I got lost at 1000-1500W. 1,500!!! WATT?!?!?

[Vedette]

Question is..........what is your hurry??? You are camping! Who cares how long it takes to boil water????
Just enjoy your surroundings while your old Coleman stove boils that water for your coffee or tea or hot chocolate in one or two minutes longer than your electric kettle takes at home.
Let's not take all of the fun out of camping with technology????????????
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi

[kudzu]

Question is..........what is your hurry??? You are camping! Who cares how long it takes to boil water????

It's for coffee! COFFEE!!!!! That's what the hurry is. But... even the low pressure system on my Aliner can make coffee in just a few minutes. That's done in a moka pot. Haven't actually timed how long it takes to boil water. All I care about is how fast I can make coffee. COFFEE! This is important stuff, Brian, and time is of the essence.

[bobhenry]

Damn just put a pinch of fresh ground roast between cheek and gum to tide you over !

But seriously if you want to boil water almost instantaneously here is the ticket......



OH ! By the way it was 1/2 off Saturday at Goodwill I got the burner for $5.00



couple it up with this little pot and 2 cups will jump to attention...



I was truly amazed at the butane burners hi heat capabilities. I was a little concerned with aluminum cookware
half expecting to melt the bottom out of the thin sauce pans.

[Redneck Teepee]

Question is..........what is your hurry??? You are camping! Who cares how long it takes to boil water????
Just enjoy your surroundings while your old Coleman stove boils that water for your coffee or tea or hot chocolate in one or two minutes longer than your electric kettle takes at home.
Let's not take all of the fun out of camping with technology????????????
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi

I'll second that! All this worry about how long it takes to cook or boil something....enjoy another adult beverage and your surroundings while waiting.

[Catherine+twins]

I'm with Slow on this. Propane stoves are wimpy, white gas stoves are power houses. In the mountains we have the added problem of altitude (less oxygen, REALLY wimpy flames), so the white gas stoves are really the preferred option.

I will add that a used Coleman is sometimes a thrifty option. You can often find them on shopgoodwill.com. They are darned near indestructible, and if one needs a bit of TLC there are lots of tutorials on the internet. There are LOADS of collectors, but there are also lots of Coleman stoves in people's garages, waiting for a garage sale.

Catherine