By Michael Hodgson

Getting the most heat from your stove requires a little care and feeding. The following are tips and hints gleaned from years of guiding and stove use that you can rely on to improve your stove's efficiency:

• Always store a stove and fuel away from food, such is in a side pocket of a pack. Many manufacturers offer padded sacks or special stove cases for this purpose.
• Take the time to test fire a stove at home. This way you will know it works and can learn in a controlled setting your stove's particular quirks and features. Another advantage, you are only a phone call away from either the manufacturer or your local specialty store if you encounter any problems--not the case if the problem is discovered in the high mountains.
• Water (from condensation, typically) and debris (from careless opening and closing of a fuel canister when filling, most likely) can clog a fuel line. Use a fuel funnel outfitted with a small screen to prefilter fuel going into their stove. Also, before filling a fuel bottle, always check it for debris and water.
• Never use old fuel. Fuel stored in a stove's fuel tank for more than a few months begins to break down which results in impurities that will clog a stove.
  

© 1999 Michael Hodgson; All Rights Reserved