Alcohal stoves get iffy below freezing, and are useless below zero. I love my trangia for about 7 months out of the year.

I have an open jet stove. Some guy on backpackinglight.com makes them for about $5. I've had it for about a year now. I have never tried it below freezing. I also have an MSR isobutane stove (pocketrocket, I think it is), and am gonna try that out this winter. The alcohol stove, you just cannot beat for weight or fuel availability though. Or for simplicity, for that matter.

Military survival handbooks are primarily written for soldiers. The equippment they have is usually what was issued. Some equippment may not be the very best for the purpose as some compromise has to be made.
The esbit stove has some advantages. It has the size of a deck of cards even with fuel. It is easy to use. The fuel can´t be spilled and it can be used as tinder. When you decide that you can live with its disadvantages it´s not that bad.
Considering the bulk and weight the stove can be used as backup.

True. I've used mine down to +10 F (about as cold as it gets Mid-Atlantic coastal!) Here's what I do.
Fuel stove
Stick one-quarter (just a smidge) vaseline-cotton ball under prime pan
Spark it - when pan is hot/warm - snuff by pushing onto ground (need a flat place - one drawback of little stove)
Add alcohol prime
Put stove on prime pan and light

Though I couldn't swear to it I assume as long as you can warm the alcohol it will work in pretty low temps

hey max you'r comment is spot on ....also the esbit stove was developed prior to ww2 in germany to heat/warm a soldiers food ration rather than to COOK a meal....the little stove does it's job well....i've used the stove since the early 1980's as a INFANTRYMAN in germany.....i still use it today and also give them as gifts to my buddys. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />..vince g. 11b inf...

One word: CLIFFstove .

.....CLIFF

The trick becomes keeping it warm- alcohol chills much more quickly than water does, but if you aren't using it for long and can keep it off the ground, it helps in the 0-to-32 degree range. Part of the problem is that below freezing, the water it's absorbed out the of the air wants to be a solid, so you want your stove to be at least 40 degrees (also has better vaporization of the fuel that way).

One of the things I like to use is a small "stove" made from a coffee can that has been opened at both eneds. Two sets of ventilation holes just above/below the start of the ribs, and four small holes in the middle groove. Two pieces of bent coat hanger wire that can be slid though the middle holes or either set of air holes pretty much completes the system. With the trangia, I put the wires in the middle possition, and place the stove on top of them, with a pot/cup at the end- it has a nice chimney action, and once the coffee can is warm, it will warm the air so you can get the trangia roaring.

Add the top off a small can if you want to use ebsit or triox in the stove, and balance it on the cross wires at the top set of vent holes. Or burn small wood in it- nice small fire, easy to clean up after, but still pretty hot. I often use this is if I want to conserve fuel, but don't want a big fire over night in the summer, becuase you end up with about a 4" diameter fire scar and maybe a cup of ashes to cover up.

I actually pack two sets of cross wires, becuase an olicamp cup for a nalgene bottle fits into a standard sized coffee can very snuggly, so if you put the trangia on the bottom set of vent holes and the bottom of the cup at the top set, you will have boiling tea water pretty quick, particularly if you hung onto the bottom of the coffee can, as it makes a pretty good lid for the cup.

For those interested in Esbit stoves, note there are some lighter weight rigs. I carry one one of these lightweight "stoves" in my EDC kit:

Esbit Folding Wing Stove (1.3oz)
FireLite Titanium Esbit Wing Stove (.45oz)

Vargo makes an interesting alcohol stove from titanium that an also double as a Esbit stove:

Vargo Triad Titanium Alcohol/Fuel Tab Stove (1.06oz)

-john


Edit: Oh, and I carry some tin foil for a wind shield.

What can we say? Some people just like to make things. That way if it ever is messed up, you don't have to shop. You might already have another made. More fun and cheaper too.

...what he (OldScout) said!
Esbit tablets will boil a pint of water if you have the larger size tablets (they come in two sizes), cover your pot, and have a very tight windscreen. I keep my esbit tablets for tinder and emergencies. The folding stove itself I use as a simplified cat can stove. Cut down a small tin can to fit inside the esbit stove, or use an altoids tin that will fit. Pack the tin with steel wool, fiberglass insulation. You need this fiber to rapidly vaporize the alcohol. To use: Open folding stove, fill tin with alcohol, and light. It will work in any temperature or wind.