Hmm, puzzling. I wonder if we're talking about the same stuff? I was suggesting the ubiquitous fibreglass pink insulation batts that's in the walls of just about every home and has been since the 1970's.

The MSDS's I'm pulling up do not consider this material carcinogenic, only an irritant. An example for anyone who is interested:

http://www.owenscorning.eu/docs/products/Thermal_MSDS.pdf

dougwalkabout, I'm sure you are 100% correct that it's just an irritant, but a really nasty one if it gets on the skin or in the clothes. I recall from late 70s playing at a construction site that it was hard to get rid of it completely by usual means, so it was itching badly for a very long time I don't recall the natural remedies for that, but it was something rather simple.

Yeah, I hear you. I've worked with the fibreglass pink stuff and it can certainly be a nuisance if you don't cover up. Any projects I do now are with Rockwool, which is better insulation in many ways and much nicer to work with.

I'm seriously thinking of switching to a gel fuel. Its properties are a good hybrid of alcohol and hexamine. It ignites with a spark, like alcohol, but has less spill danger than alcohol. To burn it you need a shallow container to hold it in place, which is almost as simple and compact as hexamine (which just needs a platform). The same burner could be used for both solid and gel.

Hexamine fuel is easier to carry. Gel is similar to alcohol: you can keep a small amount in the burner (which has a tight lid), and any more needs to be in a bottle.

I've seen reviews which say it is slow to boil, but in my first test it was faster than alcohol. Maybe it depends on the stove. I was testing Trangia versus Trangia and the gel seemed to burn over all its surface where the alcohol only burned in a ring. Both burners were with Trangia's stove.

There's no simmer. It's OK for boiling water for drinks, and heating up pre-cooked food, but probably not for much actual cooking.

I'd be interested in other people's opinions. I've seen mixed reviews. Some people hate it, others get on fine. My intended use is single-night camping (although my camping kit is now small and light enough to live in my car boot as a get home bag). I would not expect to cook for three during a power cut with this; that seems a lot more ambitious to me.

Good idea, Brangdon. I'm going to try the gel too. That may alleviate some of my worry about spilling. It dawned on me last night that my old simple cat can stove will work better if I use my GI canteen stove as a windscreen and pot holder. It lowers the risk of the alcohol stove tipping over, and also removes any risk there may be from the burning of fiberglass.

When you say "gels", I think "Sterno" which has a reputation for slow heating. This stuff looks like it is different. Any details?

The gel I've been using has the Vanga brand, but I don't have any reason to think it is better than Sterno. I just repeated my kitchen table test, this time measuring the weight of fuel. The gel was 10% faster, but only because it used 50% more fuel, so it is not more efficient. Also, this burner lasted about 15 minutes from full. I'm not sure that would be enough for two hot drinks and porridge that I would want over a single night/morning.

On the positive side, the gel didn't make the pan sooty. It did leave some residue in the burner, but not so as to be a problem for me.

Question here about Sterno stuff

If weight & bulk are not a factor, does using two cans of sterno help speed up heating and cooking ??
I mean using BOTH sterno cans under the pot simultaneously. Think of a long-ish pot like the canteen cup with 2 sterno cans underneath.

Yes, doubling the firepower speeds up heating and cooking

Increasing diameter of fire burns fuel faster.

A 2 hour burn time can of sterno (~7oz can) has about 5,500 BTU
So about 45 BTU per minute

If it takes 15-25 minutes using existing sterno opening to boil some water (half liter or two cups ) , that is some 675BTU - 1125BTU

By doubling the hole size, increasing the burn rate to 90 BTU per minute, it should take half the time, or 7-13 minutes

See these links and the links they link
sterno can boil in ~12 minutes
Chaffing Fuel
maximum stove performance , super easy super cheap turn any pot into a super pot

I'm jumping into this way late but here we go with my .02

I've found a compromise solution that encompasses both – a duel fuel Esbit. Take a standard Esbit folding stove and make some windscreen sides for it. I don’t have pics of mine but if you Google it you’ll find where others have done the same thing. This greatly assists the efficiency of the standard Esbit stove. Added to that, I’ve taken an Altoids “mini” tin and filled it with carbon felt to serve as a pretty decent alcohol burner (unhinging the lid made for a better fit inside the Esbit during use). I also switched to a rectangular Trangia mess tin which takes better advantage of the rectangular footprint of the Esbit stove.