LW,small and free fuel/liquid container

[Franco]

On one of the US forums a guy called "Frenchie" posted a pic of his LW fuel container. Can be used for metho as well as oil or other liquids/sauces..
At Coles (local supermarket...)I found two sizes, one is under 10 g holding 175ml, the other I think it holds 100ml and would be about 5 g.
This would help in lowering again the weight of an alcohol set up for one to 3 days or so .
Took me a long time to find it , in fact I did the supermarket 3 times except for that particular corner where overprocessed yogurt is. In France where Frencie (...) is they have fruit puree in them.
BTW, it is made out of aluminium foil with a plastic cap. Somewhat similar in weight (proportionally) to the Platypus collapsible containers but almost free.

Franco

[Area54]

Aw gawd, pack the ipecac with that one!

Great idea, but for the sake of us with kiddies please modify the label to reflect the contents.

Okay, OHS aside, fantastic as the bladder can expand and contract with temp variation, provided it's filled to 80% capacity and minimal air void. Easy pour too as no need to upend the whole container, however I'd still be fearful of a flammable liquid in a non rated container.

[Franco]

Changed my comment here after seeing the mixed responses from other sites. As usual.. buyer (user) beware


Franco

[ninjapuppet]

I read somewhere about this guy doing an experiment by leaving metho and shellite in a PET bottle for 2 years. the fuel still worked fine and it didnt leak.

Probally not much use without a reference here, but i didnt consider myself to be too worried and didnt take too much much notice of it.

I would generally only leave fuel in this container for a max of 2 days anyway. good example of free UL gear.

[Moondog55]

look in the baby foods section
Lots of good flavours come in those now but I only ever but apple sauce, only free or cheap if you eat the contents tho.

[Franco]

I posted this on various forums.
Looks that they have been used in Europe as well as the USA for some time however a few have reported leaks after repeated use.
For example from the UK :
I have been using a container of this type for methanol for awhile now. I get mine at a Japanes grocery store.

I just decided after my last weekend trip to give up on them, actually. My third one sprung a leak. I got ready to heat some instant soup with my whitebox stove and found that my container was slick with alcohol on the outside and nearly empty. I wondered if the methanol had embrittled the material or if the material might just not be tolerant of repeated creasing.

I think it's the latter. Polyester film doesn't withstand repeated folding. There is a recent thread in which a handful of posters reported the same problem with polyester film waterbags (Nalgene, etc.). They get pinhole leaks anywhwere that there are crinkles in the film. It's too bad. They're so light and compact
It is possible that methanol or ethanol "eats" into the glue. Most likely it is due to repeated folding.
I will start to test mine today, but as with all LW gear you do need to be carefull. My intention was to use it inside the caddy that protects my Caldera Cone . That has my "kitchen" cloth (a Chux) so it would be well protected.
Franco

[Moondog55]

I hope you really are not using methanol as fuel, do you mean Methylated spirits?? By the way Metho no longer has any Methanol in it

[Franco]

I was quoting a guy from the Outdoor Magic forum in the UK. and then carried on that methanol bit.
Yes I am aware that our "metho" does not contain methanol. Maybe that (methanol) is the problem but I think that it is to do with "metal fatigue" or whatever you want to call repeated folding.
But I roll anyway...
Franco

[sailfish]

I hope you really are not using methanol as fuel, do you mean Methylated spirits?? By the way Metho no longer has any Methanol in it

Not that I use methanol but I am familiar with it as model aircraft fuel and racing fuel.
What exactly is wrong with using methanol as a stove fuel?

It is well know to cause nerve damage or death if consumed (Blind Drink) but, it's not like anyone is proposing drinking the stuff?
Do you think unburnt trace amounts might contaminate the food and cause problems.
Heck, some people use ULP.

Regards,
Ken

[Liamy77]

i use these containers for cooking oil, liquid (biodegradable) soap, and just shove a white sticker-label on it.... havn't had one burst yet btw... used it for about 2 and a bit years now.
but i use a new container each trip... hungry kids = good supply!

[Tony]

By the way Metho no longer has any Methanol in it

While some Methylated Spirit manufacturers do not use Methanol some still do, the MSDS which I have linked to below is dated April 2010.

http://www.masteraustralia.com.au/docum ... pirits.pdf

For a full writeup of alcohol fuels check these articles out http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin ... t_one.html and http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin ... t_two.html (I am co-author of the articles) you have to be a member of BPL to read the full articles but for bushwalking gear info and especially info on light weight gear I consider it is the best money I have spent.

Tony

[Moondog55]

OK I stand corrected, the metho I buy is 100% Ethanol, the problems I find with Methanol as a stove fuel are its extremely low flash point and the fact that the flame is totally invisible.

I used methanol as a fuel for my truck and more than once had my eyelashes singed by an inadvertent flash-over, I just shuddered to think about a small spillage when fueling up and the possible result when lighting the stove.

[sailfish]

OK I stand corrected, the metho I buy is 100% Ethanol, the problems I find with Methanol as a stove fuel are its extremely low flash point and the fact that the flame is totally invisible.

I used methanol as a fuel for my truck and more than once had my eyelashes singed by an inadvertent flash-over, I just shuddered to think about a small spillage when fueling up and the possible result when lighting the stove.

The flash point for Methanol is 12 deg C, Ethanol is 13 deg C.
From memory, the calorific value is similar as well.
I really don't think there is much difference in stove flame visability either.
I have used both but not so into planes now so ethanol (metho) is more available.
Methanol can only be purchased in bulk. Many years ago, the smallest container was 20L Shell A.
BP I think did 100L. So not really a viable option and pointless little difference anyway.


Regards,
Ken