White Gas vs. Propane

[TIEDTC]

What do people feel is better and last longer for lanterns and stoves??

[aw738]

I've not ever tried propane. It should be more convenient.

[AustinBoston]

I used to use white gas.  I used to swear by it.  Now that I use propane, I'll never go back.

I think white gas is cheaper (but I haven't priced it in a long, long time), but to me, it's just not worth the extra hastle of filling, pumping, trying to avoid getting the stuff on me, trying to not smell like white gas, replacing clogged generators, etc.

Austin

[hoppy]

I'm still from the old school, and still use white gas for my stoves and lanterns. It seams to me that there is more output from my stove, than my SIL's propane stove. It may be my imagination though.

 FWIW: I have used these appliances since my old tenting days, and they are going on nearly forty years now.  One thing is for sure, they can last a long time when taken care of.    

[waygard33]

When I backpacked all the time I used white gas for everything because I could carry more fuel in a smaller package. Now that I mainly camp in the PUP, I've got plenty of room and I'll trade the bulky but clean (contained) propane for the liquid and spillable white gas.

As for which burns better, I'm not sure but I do know that white gas is pretty potent. I once spilled some on bone dry dirt and into a crack in the soil. To get rid of it, I lit it on fire and I was surprised at how long I had a flame coming up out of that crack in the dirt. It seemed like it went on forever and I didn't spill that much.:yikes:

Wayne in Oregon

[Hoagie]

Coleman fuel, or camping fuel or white gas, has some distinct advantages over propane.

• It burns hotter, providing more heat output that propane on similar sized stoves with similar sized burners. You can get a propane stove with a 30K BTU burner (I have one) but it is much larger than your standard 2-burner "suitcase" Colman camp stove.
• It maintains that ability to burn hot at higher elevations and lower temperatures. The efficiency of propane is affected by cold and elevation.
• You don't have those empty steel propane cylinder to think about. Sure, the Coleman fuel comes in a 1-gallon steel can, but you can put that out for recycling in most areas. The propane cylinders are not recyclable in some areas. (Not where we live.)
• You can use refillable aluminum fuel cylinders, taking only the fuel you need.
• Although rare now, there used to be areas that prohibited the use of the propane cylinders. Mostly you will only run into this issue outside the U.S. So not much of a concern unless you plan on taking your PUP to Europe. :p

All that said, Coleman fuel does require you to refill the tank on the stove/lantern which can lead to spills. You have to clean the filters on occasion.
So it's really a choice dependent upon how you plan on using the equipment.

[CajunCamper]

I actually use both. When pop up camping I always use my coleman propane stove and  I use my 40 year old coleman single mantle lantern that runs on white gas . I have owned many lanterns and this vintage coleman lantern beats anything else I've ever owned.

While kayak camping or backpacking, I use my small single burner coleman dual fuel campstove that runs on white gas or unleaded gasoline. (I always use white gas) and my Brunton single mantle propane lantern that uses the small 70/30 butane/propane mix canisters. I use both of these mainly for their lightweight and the fact they don't take up much room.

[sacrawf]

I prefer propane, as it can't be spilled.  I have carried one-burner propane stoves while bicycle touring or backpacking despite the extra weight, as I seem to be able to spill or cause leaks of anything I carry.  I don't want a pannier or backpack to be drenched with leaked or spilled fuel.

While both make noise, it seems to me that a propane lantern makes less noise than a hissing pressurized coleman fuel lantern, making it less intrusive when trying to listen to the sounds of the night.  Standard kerosene lanterns and candle lanterns make no noise, but put out a lot less light.

The liquid fuel stoves are preferable for extreme cold conditions.  The butane or propane stoves will not function well or at perhaps at all when much below freezing.  I always made sure I was winter camping with a friend who carried a white-gas SVEA stove that was always dependable in the cold.

There was a time that I believed that the true outdoors person only relied on small fires built from whatever fuels could be scrounged up.  But after hours of scrubbing pans, having the carbon black all over everything, and food tasting the same irregardless of what it was soon cured me of my purist bent.

[jpcjtrtj]

Reminds me of after the Loma Prieta Earthquake in the bay area during the 89 World Series.  We lost power, so I filled up the lantern I owned (which I still own and works great) with white gas and managed to spill gas all over the place.  Without thinking I lit the extra gas on fire (did I mention we were on a wooden deck, . . . . duh:-():eyecrazy:).  Well, we were able to put the fire out before it caused too much damage, but that damn gas can burn.

When we camp; we use the propane for the fridge and stoves (inside low pressure; outside high pressure), but we use white gas for the lanterns.  I love them both.  So, I'm not gonna choose one over the other. . . .

jps

[Ira_P]

I am old fashion, and still prefer the white gas. I have a old 1948 two burner stove that has had the generator replaced once. It still runs great. I have the three burner stove and it puts out more heat than a large Camp Chef propane stove. My old dual fuel lamp is extremely bright and lasts longer on a tank of fuel than my friends propane lantern running on a 1lb tank.

And if I get really desperate, I can always run them on unleaded gas from the truck. Not that I plan on any survival scenarios, but as a kid, I remember a bad snow storm in which we lost power on the farm for 2 weeks. We cooked on that old two burner stove on the porch and used the lantern in the barn, running on unleaded gasoline.

To this day, I still keep a couple of oil lanterns in my house for power failures and since have gotten a small generator. But those old Coleman dual fuel stoves and lanterns are hard to beat when you really need them.

['tiredTeacher]

Try lighting a fire on a rainy day with propane canister.

[hoppy]

Try lighting a fire on a rainy day with propane canister.

 I wouldn't recommend using Coleman gas either to start or restart a campfire. LOL.
 True story....

 I remember one time tent camping with a large group of friends in the Catskill Mountains back in 1975 and a afternoon rain storm came through. Before the rain came through, we had a big ol' cranking fire going in the fire pit that the rain nearly put out. I headed back to our tent to get some charcoal lighter fluid to restart the fire.
 While I was heading back to our tent for the lighter fluid, my buddy took a cup-full of some Coleman gas to throw on the smoldering fire. The next sound I heard was a big WOOOSH, and look up to see my buddy was air-born over the top of the picnic table that was along side the fire pit.
 Aside from his eyebrows and hair being singed, he broke his big pinky-toe.
 Mind you, this guy was well over 275 lbs at the time.  

 Since then, only charcoal lighter fluid for me.

[AustinBoston]

I wouldn't recommend using Coleman gas either to start or restart a campfire. LOL.

I used to see all kinds of stupid things done with Coleman fuel when I was in Boy Scouts.  They didn't teach it, but I learned from observing, that Coleman fuel is only useful for Coleman fuel-powered devices and causing burns.

I also learned when not to use lighter fluid to light a fire.

Austin

[flyfisherman]

Well, I can tell you that Coleman fuel works great for wiping the road tar spatters off the front of the Starcraft ... THEN you use those old paper towels used for the cleaning process to lite the campfire!

I like using gas ... as already posted it burns BRIGHTER in the lanterns and it will burn HOTTER in one of those old timey pump-up Coleman stoves. But do have a couple of those propane appliances that will take those blasted, landfill contaminating disposable canisters. Howsomever, both of those appliances are now rigged to burn off a 20 lb refillable tank that uses 100% propane ... besides, those 16 oz disposables are something like 70 to 80% butane ... and you can really tell the difference! AND, I must confess I still keep a couple of those plastic wrapped Wal-Mart twin-pack 16 oz canisters stowed away in the camper for "just in cases".

I use to do some canoe camping once upon a time. And part of what I would tote (besides the fishing tackle!), is a 9 X 9 dome tent,, sleeping bags, rubber lady (air matt), chuck box, cooler, Coleman single burner gas Peak stove, gas lantern and my favorite fishing hat. Keep that Coleman Peak stove in the camper and use it when frying bacon or fish ... since that single burner stove sits under the frying pan there's no grease splattered stove to clean-up afterward. The gas lanterns I've had for some time and both work without flaw.

Do have a two burner Coleman L/P that was bought new some time ago. The old pump-up gas stove finally gave up the ghost, it had become downright dangerous to use. Since we were on a camping trip the only replacement happened to be propane. That particular model had a unique feature ... it could use the 16 oz disposable or it could be connected via a specific hose to a refillable propane tank. And it has now become the outdoor stove used with the popup, leaving the "indoor/outdoor" stove that came with it inside.
The big difference between the old gas stove and the newer L/P version is that I use to melt lead on that old pump-up gas stove for making lead shot for my old muzzle loader ... the propane stove just will not get that hot!

And since I'm on a long winded tangent, let me say something about Coleman fuel and white gas. The Coleman fuel is really a petroleum naptha product with an octane rating of something like 50 to 55. The white gas of yesteryear was a different animal ... it was also called "raw gas", really benzine, just gasoline with absolutely zero additives. That was the leaded gas days and I can remember getting five gallons of gas for a dollar! Well, there were applications where leaded gas would cause problems with continued use, such as outboard motors. The lead would build up on the cylinder heads. And on my grandpa's farm his two John Deere "putt-putt" tractors had nothing but white gas run through them. The Coleman appliances of that day would also handle the white gas, too. Regular gasoline of that era ran .19 cents a gallon, the white (raw) gas went for .15 cents and the Coleman fuel .25 cents ... of course, like today, it came in it's own unique tin gallon can!
Now, the "white gas" that AMACO came out with later is really a refined 93 octane unleaded gasoline with lots of additives, except coloring! Years ago they use to add coloring to gasoline (an orange color) for safety purposes,
so you would know it was gas!

O.K. ... I run too long, I know!




Fly

[suprz]

i have used propane lanterns and propane stoves.   there was just something i did not like about them.  My uncle introduced me to camping and he always had a white gas Coleman lantern and stove.  I recently got into collecting the old white gas Coleman lanterns and stoves, and
I have to truly admit that they do outperform ANY propane appliance i have ever used or seen. They are also alot more economical to run than the propane ones.  I can usually go all weekend cooking on one full tank of fuel and a full tank in the lantern.
 The only downfall to using one now is the unbelievable price of Coleman fuel at $8.88 a gallon at the local Walmart.  but when you breakdown the amount of propane versus the amount of Coleman fuel used for the same amount of time and usage,  the Coleman fuel appliances are still more  economical.
 I say use what you feel comfortable using, the most important thing is to go camping and make some memories:)