We have just purchased our tent (after much deliberation and lots of good advice from you all) and are now getting our camping supplies in order, so I'm after more of your experience and knowledge. We are considering buying two of the aformentioned cookers instead of a regular two burner. We shall be using them for a couple of weeks per year, and the occasional weekend just for basic reheating and the ocasshional fried egg. Does anyone have any experience of them esp as to how long a gas canister lasts, and to whether this is a good idea. As we have four small children the fact that they pack away into a storage case and are much lighter than a regular camp stove and gas bottle are apealing to us.
Please let us know what you think with regard to this being a viable idea.
They do pack away nice and small - one of the down-sides is going to be the cost of the gas canisters compared with an equal volume of gas in 904 or 907 camping gaz or Calor cylinder, and possibly the amount of time they will last?
We have four young children and although we do have a 'normal' camping double burner and grill, it has stayed in the loft for the past few years since we bought a couple of similar flat cookers.
Big plus's include:
ignition without having to remember to bring the matches!
VERY stable! - important with little 'helpers' around!
No large gas canister to lug around, or gas pipe to trip over.
Base of cooker remains cool so you can use it on a plastic table with no problems.
Seems to burn hotter than normal camping cookers - kettle certainly boils quicker.
So portable you can take one down to the beach for a picnic - hot dogs after an afternoon's bodyboarding!
I guess the canisters are more expensive than buying the bulky cylinders, but for the amount that you intend to use it I would say the benefits far outweight this. Also, by the end of last year the cost of the canisters was coming down - keep an eye out for them in the large supermarkets when they are doing a camping deal. Expect to pay £1 - £2 for a canister - we find that they each lasts the 6 of us a couple of days on average for similar usage to what you describe.
We have used one of these for the last two years and found it to be very good and easy to pack and transport. Bought it from ASDA at the end of the season and got it very cheap.
I have found that it is cheaper to buy a pack of 6 canisters at one time. Found that 1 canister lasted about 4 weekend trips and only took 1 spare.
Colin
------------- There is no bad weather, only inappropriate clothing
B chrystie- you managed to hit on exactley the things that we had discussed, my youngest is not yet two and is into everything, he turns on the cooker at home so I can imagine him spending most of the holiday trying to do the same with one of the regular cookers. Also considering how much I pack to take away not haveing to take a gas bottle would be a diffinite plus.
Colin, we've got an Asda just down the road I'll take a look tomorrow, I never thought of looking there. The gas canisters sound very economical, and we could always buy more on holiday if we ran out.
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Topic: Gerlert Bright spark cooker
