BioLite USB camping stove. The Camping stove for geeks.

Forums › Off topic › BioLite USB camping stove. The Camping stove for geeks.

dontpanic42

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#97616 17-Feb-2012 23:44

http://biolitestove.com/BioLite.html

Has anyone placed a pre-order for one of these awesome looking BioLite camping stoves?

Essentially it is an air forced camping stove that you can power with twigs or any random bits of (un-tantalized) wood lying around.

Once you get it going initially, the latent heat from the fire heats a thermo-electric system that provides power to an electric fan that forces more air into the fire to get the stove really cranking.

The best part, there is enough left over energy to send to a standard USB port!

I placed a pre-order as soon as it was possible to do so, and personally can't wait to get my hands on one.

gzt

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#583054 18-Feb-2012 06:59

That is just amazing. I'd love to know how the thermo-electric module works.

Dry fuel is required so it is not good for every situation. It will be interesting to see how fuel efficient it is for cooking and/or usb charging.

It weighs nearly a kilo which is a wee bit more than carrying a gas or liquid fuel setup for a weekend trip, but not by much.

alasta

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#583067 18-Feb-2012 08:31

That is very cool! The price looks very good too, at $129 USD if I'm reading it right.

I'd be interested to hear how well it works for you, then I might consider getting one next summer.

dontpanic42

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#583135 18-Feb-2012 11:49

gzt: That is just amazing. I'd love to know how the thermo-electric module works.

From what I've researched (and that's not all that much), it's a sandwich of semi conductor materials that create a current when heat is applied, much in the same way that silicon PV/solar cells create a current when exposed to light.

When heat is applied on one side of the "sandwich" and the other side is relative cooler, electrons start flowing from one side to the other creating an electric current.

This is how I have come to understand how it works anyway, so fair warning, I could just be talking out of my ar*e. ;-)

In any case, it's is an amazingly simple concept, but at the same time, amazingly effective.

Furthermore, if a small camp sized fire can power both a fan and a USB port (I have yet to confirm a full 5VDC 500mA rating, mind you), scaled up, imagine the possibilities.

I truly can't wait. I'll post a review or something when I get mine.

dontpanic42

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#583200 18-Feb-2012 14:55

They also sent me a wooden model of the BioLite some weeks back just to say thanks for pre-ordering.
I plan to ceremoniously burn this sucker (which they suggest to do) when I get the actual stove! ;-)

kyhwana2

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#583206 18-Feb-2012 15:08

Ohh interesting.. I bet those would (have been) be useful in Christchurch!

dontpanic42

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#623247 10-May-2012 22:22

As per this subsequent thread, the BioLite stove has just become available for actual pre-order now, with early bird pre-orderer's units expected to ship between 1st-15th June.

Thought I would post here to unlock and let people already subscribed to this thread know the latest info.

I've just ordered my allocated 2 units, now I just have to play the waiting game. :)

BioLite have advised that any 'new' orders placed now, they expect to begin shipping in late July.
So if you're interested, get your order in now.

EDIT: Oh yeah, here's a link. :)
http://biolitestove.com/

dontpanic42

1574 posts

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#634060 1-Jun-2012 12:10

It looks like my credit card has just been charged for my pre-ordered BioLite Stove, so hopefully that means it's just about on its way to me.

Woohoo!!

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illicit

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#634068 1-Jun-2012 12:22

NZ$ Price?

grant_k

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#634069 1-Jun-2012 12:23

dontpanic42: ...any random bits of (un-tantalized) wood lying around.

LOL ... what do you have to do to Tantalize wood?

tan·ta·lize (t n t -l z ). tr.v. tan·ta·lized, tan·ta·liz·ing, tan·ta·liz·es. To excite (another) by exposing something desirable while keeping it out of reach.

Could be quite hard to "excite" wood...

"Tanalise" is probably what you intended:

'TANALISED' timber has been impregnated with a preservative solution under high vacuum pressure in an industrial vessel.

dontpanic42

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#634083 1-Jun-2012 12:32

illicit: NZ$ Price?

I can't say for sure, because only my balance has changed, and I can't remember the exact balance before that.

In any case, at current exchange rates I'm expecting it to be around the NZ$240 mark.
Partly because there is a US$50 shipping charge per stove.
That's a pretty steep shipping charge, but I think it's worth it. Plus, I hope it means it'll be through DHL Priority or FedEx etc, which means it'll get here in a few days.

grant_k:
dontpanic42: ...any random bits of (un-tantalized) wood lying around.

LOL ... what do you have to do to Tantalize wood?

lol indeed. That one seems to have bypassed my internal spell-checker.
Oops

Damn that 15min edit window.
Nice catch. ;)

dontpanic42

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#637737 8-Jun-2012 11:38

I've just had an email confirming my BioLite has shipped!!

dontpanic42

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#657189 17-Jul-2012 19:26

My stove arrived just over a month ago (got in on the first pre-pre-order wave) and although it has its downsides, it is a pretty impressive unit.

Downsides:
Not quite as easy (or clean) as your basic portable butane camping stove.

You can't just 'turn it on', then 'turn it off'. It's more of a 'do a few minutes of prep' to start it and then wait a few more minutes for the embers to form a good base. Once it's up and running it hums along quite nicely. You only have to put a few "BioLite sized" bits of wood in every 5 minutes or so.

When you're all finished with it, you need to turn the fan off. Most times the fan will restart automatically to prevent the side unit from over-heating. I'm pretty sure it turns off when it is safe to do so.
After that, you can either wait for the remaining embers to burn down, or you can dig a hole, chuck the embers in, and then cover it with water then back over with dirt.

Upsides:
It uses remarkably little firewood considering the heat it puts out.

The USB charging function seems to work well, but I have noticed when the heat goes down in the fire chamber (i.e. down to nearly embers/coals burning in the bottom) the light that tells you the USB is able to charge stuff goes off (actually from green=good to go, to orange=not ready).

When you have a pot on top, it feels relatively stable.

bazzer

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#661937 25-Jul-2012 18:29

Looks cool. I might have to look into getting one for my next camping trip!

Dratsab

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#661978 25-Jul-2012 19:09

dontpanic42: They also sent me a wooden model of the BioLite some weeks back just to say thanks for pre-ordering.
I plan to ceremoniously burn this sucker (which they suggest to do) when I get the actual stove! ;-)

Hang onto it - if everyone else burns theirs, it'll be a collectors item!

dontpanic42

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#662561 26-Jul-2012 18:53

Dratsab:
dontpanic42: They also sent me a wooden model of the BioLite some weeks back just to say thanks for pre-ordering.
I plan to ceremoniously burn this sucker (which they suggest to do) when I get the actual stove! ;-)

Hang onto it - if everyone else burns theirs, it'll be a collectors item!

Oops!! ;)