Bushwalk Australia

Ms_Mudd wrote:Had my first piezo malfunction on the weekend!!! It still worked, but didnt 'click' first go a few times each use, it was very cold, does that affect it? I don't think my gas mix was great either

That is interesting. I haven't had problems with my original Kovea igniter nor my DIY igniters below zero - but I've only used them around 0 to -5.

Was the igniter not sparking at all? Usually for not sparking, I found it could be moisture/condensation on the sparking rod or conductive metal sheath. Aside from that the only thing I could think of is damage to the hammer or spring that hits the piezo crystal.

What sort of fuel were you trying to ignite? I generally use mine with propane/butane mix canisters. If using alcohol stoves, I have had difficulty igniting trangia style alcohol stoves in cold temps with igniters.

Yes, no spark at all.

It was a cheaper cannister, will look at the mix tomorrow. Used it the following week in the snow, better cannister (jetboil) and no dramas. Also used the following week at about 2c with no problems. Weird.

My first Piezo stove (a SnowPeak model) was wonderful. To reach out blindly from my sleeping bag and flick on the stove with one hand seemed like the ultimate in convenience.

But eventually it started acting up. After a while I removed it. Subsequent stoves with piezos were flaky at best. Worked sometimes, not others. Unreliable. Now I simply remove the piezo on a new stove to save weight and frustration. I carry a small Bic lighter and a second as a backup. I can't remember ever needing the backup.

If you have a piezo that works well that's wonderful. Enjoy it. Realize that it's not the norm.

Well I've now gone a few months without a Piezo and after Craig's reco went with a handful of mini-bics. Well over a hundred boils and the same mini-bic is still kicking. It means I can carry something much smaller and lighter-BRS3000 or much, much smaller and much lighter-Speedster set up. For most of the year and most of the time -Piezoisanogoandhomeitstays

Ahh, am now finding if I crank up the gas the piezo strikes no worries. Perhaps that was my issue before.

For my way of doing things, I always have a method of fire starting that will light the stove and a fire, so a piezo isn't a factor. The piezo only does one thing, and doesn't do it well. If someone wanted to have a sparker that wasn't a lighter and still was one-handed, there are several on the market that are pretty much a flint and striker wheel in a single unit, good enough to light something like tinder-card or the good old PJCB in addition to a stove. The only stove I have that needs a little more thought is if I'm running the whisperlite on kero, I need something more than a spark to get it to prime, but that's a minor factor, and generally a field solvable one, considering it only needs about a second or so of flame.