Preparing for Winter V

newlywed

We had a power cut that blew our electric meter, some years back. So about 48 hours without electric.

I discovered my heavy based saucepans were the reason it took so long to boil water with tealights and for some time after that, made sure I had a cheap light, pound shop pan in case…. 

All you do is get your grill pan, fill with as many tealights as your pan size, put the grill bit on top and the your pan of water.  But yeah, heavy based decent saucepans do take a very long time to boil.

so I think I will just visit a cheapy shop for a new light pan, as an in case.

Primrose

Jackie0. I can thoroughly recommend the little one burner camping stoves, and a supply of gas canisters for power cut emergencies if you normally have to cook with electricity.  You can boil a small amount of water for a cuppa, heat up soup or a tin of baked beans, or a tin of stewed meat of some kind with a few frozen peas or tinned precooked bans of various kinds thrown in.

You might not be able to warm up the plate/bowl  from which to eat it, but power cuts are an emergency in which normal etiquette is excused, so if you live solo you,re allowed a spoon and can eat it straight from the hot saucepan!  Reduces washing up too if hot water is scarce!

YorksLass

newlywed said: All you do is get your grill pan, fill with as many tealights as your pan size, put the grill bit on top and the your pan of water.  But yeah, heavy based decent saucepans do take a very long time to boil.

That's what we did but with a small milk pan (cheapy one so not too heavy a base) - it still took about 40 mins for water that was hot enough for coffee, but didn't make great tea.  Long time to wait when you're gasping for a cuppa!    

As Primrose suggests, a small camping stove gives you the means of having some kind of hot meal, even if it's only soup, baked beans, boiled egg etc hence the reason why it's a "must" on my wish list.

Floss

I have a gas hob, and as the ignition doesn't work since I turned off my oven I keep a long clicky lighter next to it. I also have a bright blue kettle for making a brew 🙂

MrsCD

I bought a spare camping stove from Blacks a while ago in their Summer sale for £15, but when my dad decided he should have one they'd gone up to £24 'on special offer'. I got one at The Range for £20 for him eventually. It's worth a little shopping around, but they are well worth buying. 

slm6002

I have been looking for a little stove for a while.  Can anyone tell me roughly how long a can of the gas would last please.  I am just wondering how many I would need to buy with it

Primrose

It,s some time since we used our camping stove so I can,t specifically remember how many uses we got out of each cartridge but I,d estimate at least about half a dozen cooks of a one pan  meal.   It helps to use a thin lightweight cheap saucepan so everything heats up more quickly, including water.
Obviously heating a tin of baked beans or spaghetti for example uses less gas than for cooking vegetables example but if cooking the latter, cut everything into very small pieces to reduce the cooking time and gas used.

PS. Since checked snd one website says up to two hours cooking from each canister.

Primrose

MrsCD said:

I bought a spare camping stove from Blacks a while ago in their Summer sale for £15, but when my dad decided he should have one they'd gone up to £24 'on special offer'. I got one at The Range for £20 for him eventually. It's worth a little shopping around, but they are well worth buying. 

I looked at some online prices today and some were  more than this. Suspect there,s an element of profiteering happening given the forecast of possible nationwide electricity blackouts if we have a very cold winter.  It may be a case of having to decide whether paying a higher price is worth it if that  is the only cooking method you have for your household , or means of heating water if power cuts become extensive and your home has elderly, vulnerable members or young children.

skye_blue

Hi

I got a single camping stove a couple of months ago from Halfords as im too all electric - it was £15 (now £18) & £10 for 4 cannisters

Hope this helps

Jellytotts

We camped 3 times this year (2 night each time)  and used our stove for tea/coffee/cooked breakfast/frying onions/heating veg.  I used one full gas cartridge and started another on our last day.  We have a small camping kettle and cheap pan/frying pan so they heat up quickly.  Well worth keeping a stove and some cartridges in if you’re fully electric.