RETHINKING PROPANE USE ON BOARD: Dismantling the Hillerange Stove Part Two

NOTE: BEFORE WORKING ON ANY PROPANE SYSTEM MAKE SURE THE PROPANE TANK VALVE IS CLOSED AND THE SUPPLY LINES/HOSE ARE DISCONNECTED FROM THE TANK.

 A week after spraying some PB Blaster on the screws and flanges. I was back on board hoping it had done a good job penetrating the dissimilar screw and manifold flanges.  It worked pretty well on the twenty seven year old stove. I was able to remove all the burners easily: with no problem even though the flanges were pretty rusted:

But other items like the Gas manifold pipe and the oven gas valve each had one of the stainless steel screws that would not budge. Here a photo of the items I wanted to remove from the stove top as I would no longer be using them:

After removing the burners I started on removing the Gas Manifold. Because one of the screws on one flange did not budge I used a Dremel Tool with a reinforced cutting disk to cut through the flange:

Before continuing I also disconnected the hose that connects up to the manifold using a 17 mm wrench at the back of the stove:

 Even with those steps it still required a little extra "persuasion" to fully remove the manifold:

The last item I needed to remove was the Gas Valve which also had one screw that was bonded to the unit. But, I was able to pry it up easy enough and remove the valve.

I was amazed at the amount of crumbs located underneath the valve. But, I guess after over a quarter century of cooking things will accumulate:

 A quick vacuum took care of most of it. With the burners and manifold finally removed from the stove:

I was able to do a quick check to see if the  Coleman PowerPack 1-Burner Stove I planned to use from now for cooking would fit on top of the now partially dismantled stove:

Success! I was also able to close the sliding counter over it. So now all I need to do is a good cleanup of the remaining grime and then move onto the oven area of the stove to see what I can remove there.

 DISMANTLING THE HILLERANGE STOVE PART THREE CLICK HERE 

DISMANTLING THE HILLERANGE STOVE PART ONE CLICK HERE 

END OF THE SEASON THOUGHTS OF AN ELECTRIC SAILOR

BIANKA is back on land and stored for the winter. It was a fun season though I did not cruise as much as in previous seasons.  I did spend a lot of time on the boat pretty much living on board for the past six months. The electric propulsion system is still going strong and has once again been maintenance free all season. The AGM batteries are still holding up after six seasons as well.

A lot of projects I thought I would finish never got started. That's just the way it is when an hunting Osprey grabs your attention or a refreshing swim and a nap take precedence on ones day on board. Though I did manage to rewire the solar Bimini  a project which was long overdue.  I did add a few new items on board. I decided to replace the Honda BP 2 outboard that got drowned by Superstorm Sandy last fall. It was replaced by an Electric Paddle outboard which I will post a review about in the near future. I also installed an AIMS 48 volt 1500 Watt Pure Sine Wave  Inverter. The inverter was purchased to be able to charge the Electric Paddle battery from BIANKA's 48 volt propulsion battery bank but, I bought a larger wattage unit  than those needs in order to use it for other devices in the future. I will post an evaluation on that soon too.

Most of this years action centered around the galley. A spring outfitting discovery of a corroded Gas header in BIANKA's twenty four year old stove caused me to rethink how I use propane on board.

That yikes moment caused me to experiment with alternatives to using the stove on board and I am happy that both Plan A and Plan B both worked out well for my cooking needs this season and so I will probably use them in the future. Another advantage of my new propane usage plan is some energy savings. I plan to spend some time this winter dismantling parts of the old stove to see if I can incorporate the new cooking burner into it's space.

Another discovery from the gallery was using some freeze dried items in meals for the first time. Namely freeze dried Blueberries and  Bacon Flavored Textured Vegetable Protein TVP .. Both products look likely to be items I will carry on board in the future as they mean less trips to land for provisions when cruising. The Blueberries tasted good straight out of the can for a quick snack and also worked well when one has a hankering for Blueberry pancakes:

The Bacon flavored TVP added some nice bacon flavor as well as being somewhat healthier than meat based bacon. Also it won't spoil as rapidly and and has no grease to get rid of. It worked well mixed in with scrambled eggs and especially added some nice flavor and texture to old standby meals of Ramen Noodles. With the success of these two freeze dried products I plan to expand the selection on board next season. Though the smaller can of Blueberries runs out quickly the two pound can of the Bacon flavored TVP was still half full at the end of the season. A double order of Blueberries and dividing up the TVP into smaller containers may be the plan for next season.

Now that the off season is here I hope to get a started on some of the projects I never got to during the summer. Because "messing about in boats" is always good no matter what the season.

RETHINKING PROPANE ON BOARD: Plan B: Butane Burner

After discovering the severe corrosion on the gas feeder tube of BIANKA's factory installed stove and oven. I decided to look at other alternative burners for cooking. My first experiment was with a Coleman burner which worked out very well. Even though most of my cooking can be accommodated using just one burner. Having another burner available is a good idea. Having it it use an alternate fuel also seemed like a good idea. With that in mind I bought a Iwatani Butane Stove :

It has a smaller footprint than the coleman burner and also comes with a case that makes it easier for storage.  I've had a similar cheaper butane burner on board for years but, when I went to use it earlier this year the flame plate had fallen off making it useless. the Iwatani seems to be better built and I've seen reviews that said they were used in Japanese restaurants for Hot Pot dishes called Nabemono in Japan. So they must know a thing or two about building quality stoves. Though a lot of the stoves may look similar form the outside this Iwatani has an additional metal heat sink goes from the burner to the the butane container area:

This metal heat sink warms up the butane container slightly to prevent it from freezing and reducing gas flow to the burner while cooking.

Another nice thing about this burner is the butane canister fits inside the burner unlike the Coleman's externally mounted propane canister.

 So the foot print is somewhat smaller in the galley than the Coleman burner. But, the butane canister does not hold as much fuel as the Coleman either. Also the Iwatani does not have the raised  loops on the burner grill like the Coleman burner does so pots and pans can easily slide off if you are cooking underway and not paying attention.

I found that the butane canisters using this burner last me about a week where as the Coleman one pound propane canisters lasted two weeks. The butane canisters also have no way of being refilled. But, the Butane Fuel  can be purchased in bulk quantities to provide months of cooking time. Though some have said they are also often readily available in Asian grocery stores at very reasonable prices too.

CAPT MIKE'S USAGE NOTES: 
Though the Iwatani Butane Stove cooked just as well as the Coleman burner and takes up less space. I will probably make the Coleman the primary cooktop on board. The Propane canisters last longer and the burner has the loops that hold pots and pans more securely. But, I will keep the Iwatani unit on board with several canisters as a backup or as additional burner when needed. Also with it's carrying case it is easier to store and allows me to have a chance to find  an alternate fuel if the propane canisters can not be found when cruising. As a plan B backup it should work very well.

RETHINKING PROPANE ON BOARD: PLAN A

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After I made the discovery of some severe corrosion on the gas feeder pipe and burners on my boats original marine stove. I decided to look at some other alternatives to repairing it. Since it was already over twenty five years old and who knows what other issues I might find. Since one of my previous backups on board was a  Coleman PefectFlow 1-Burner Stove that worked well:

But, as you can see it was not the best choice to use on board a rocking boat. It was an emergency purchase one evening when my propane ran out in the middle of cooking and I needed something fast. It works well for cooking but, is too high and unstable for cooking underway or in a rocking anchorage. In my search for a stove alternative I found that Coleman also makes the Coleman PowerPack 1-Burner Stove which is much better suited to using on board a boat in my opinion than the PerfectFlow unit.

 
So I ordered one and spent the past two weeks using it on board.
It has a fairly large flat base but, that's what makes it very stable. Though it does take up a lot of room but, it is portable and still small enough for me to take it out and use it on the cockpit table if I did not want to heat up the cabin on a hot summer day:

It also has a large metal pot holder frame with raised hoops on each end. This helps keep pots secure on the burner which is a plus on board a boat. The burner fits all of the pots I use in my cooking on board. From my favorite cast 12 inch cast iron skillet and tea kettle:

To my four quart pressure cooker:

One has to allow a little more room for the one pound propane canister and metal connection tube which is not shown in the photos. I have not yet decided whether I will use the burner on the pull out counter on my boat or on top of the unused stove top:

Placing it on the stovetop will allow me to use gimbal function of the stove if I need to cook underway which I don't often do. But, it is an option.

CAPT. MIKE'S USAGE NOTES:  I've used the Coleman Power Pack one burner stove for two weeks now. It works as well or better than the built in three burner stove that came with the boat. It heats water fast and used it for my cooked meals for the two weeks. I only used a one pound propane tank for the two weeks before running out. Though it is summer and did not use the burner for every meal.  Still even if a a one pound canister only lasted a week twelve of them  would last for three months of cruising. The cannisters are readily available at least here in the states. I've found them in all kinds of stores from big box superstores to local hardware stores. Coleman also sells the Coleman High-Pressure Propane Hose and Adapter that allows you to connect the burner to a larger propane tank which I have not tried yet. In short it looks like the Coleman PowerPack 1-Burner Stove will work out fine for my cooking needs in the galley and there is no need to put money into repairing the twenty six year old stove on board.
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In hot water?

Bianka had an on demand Paloma hot water heater installed when I bought her. This came in very handy when I was living on board while I was working in New York City. I was working an overnight shift at the time and taking a shower at 11:30 at night in April with unlimited hot water was a luxury found on few sailboats. Today I usually rely on a solar heated shower or a fresh water rinse off from a five gallon bucket I keep on the stern for after a swim. I have not had to use the Paloma hot water heater for several years. Like many things on the boat it will have to be replaced at some point whether I use it or not. But, when that point comes I might consider something like this:

It's a Coleman Hot Water on Demand Water Heater
I can see this having several advantages as a replacement for an installed hot water heating system on a boat. For example it's portability. It could be used in the cockpit on long voyages by the helmsman to make a hot beverage while underway without leaving the helm or disturbing sleeping crew members. It has an optional shower hose and can be turned into a portable on demand hot shower. It can also be connected to the on board propane system or use Coleman portable canisters. The water intake can be plumbed into the on board water system. It could also be taken off the boat and be used at home should some natural disaster knock out power and the ability to take hot showers at the house. Other than making sure that the unit is used with proper ventilation. I see a lot of things to recommend this unit on sailboats of all sizes. Watch the demo video and see if you don't agree. The retail price tag of $250.00 is another real good reason it would make a good replacement.