Lighting an Esbit stove

I've recently been helping a friend assemble a BOB for his vehicle. One item under discussion was the Esbit stove & it's attendant fuel tabs. We've both had one for years, but never used it. The discussion prompted me to break mine out & practice.

First, I attempted to light it with sparks from a Swedish fire steel, using different techniques to ensure good "coverage" from the sparks. While there were scorch marks, the tab would not light from the sparks.

I then resorted to a butane lighter, which successfully ignited the tab after several seconds of holding the flame on it.

I boiled a couple of cups of water & had a nice, large cup of tea as a result of my labors, and learned in the process (which is why I did it in the first place).


This was my first time using an Esbit fuel tab. What are your recommended ways to ignite one? Are there tips & tricks of which I'm unaware?

Thanks.

David

Bic lighters work every time for me. I don't think there are any tips or tricks to this. I've never been able to light esbit from anything other than a lighter or match.

Adam

you can not light esbit with sparks, i normally use some cottonwol with some vaseline to get it started.

Esbit fuel is a stable variation on the excellent, but rapidly degrading Trioxane. The increased effort in lighting is the price for increased longevity. An esbit tab is also an excellent PSK item for the critical second stage in fire building between tinder and fuel. Now your second step is to acquire an empty aluminum can. Drink the contents and eat ( do not polish can with ) some chocolate. Now take said can and experiment with fabricating windscreens to improve the Esbit's efficiencey. I found two flat side screens with a small folded base both fit inside nicely and block heat loss placed on the two open sides. You can readilly cut the can with scissors ( not your mother, wife or G/Fs prized pair for sewing if you wish to survive) or, barring that find out how handy that Becker, Swamp Rat, Atax, Cold Steel Masai lion spear etc. really are <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Under field conditions the only sensible way to light Esbit is a flame. A slightly sooty flame always worked best for me. So don´t bother practicing with sparks. Just pack a few matches or a mini bic in your stove. That way they are available when you need them.

Sparks don't work. I've never tried matches but I doubt they would work either, if it is at all windy. I used to use a lighter, and hold both lighter and tab in my hand to get best positioning of the flame, and transfer it to the stove when it has caught. However, I've found that method to be not too effective in wind either. Nowadays I use some tinder, light that with a lighter then put the fuel tab on top of it. I mostly use a TinderCard for tinder because I bought way more of it than I need, and it's not waterproof so not really good for much else.

I have found there is a lot of variation in different brands of fuel. Some places here sell round pill-like tabs. I dislike this because it takes up more space than it needs, and it leaves a solid residue. I prefer the army surplus stuff. I cut the blocks in half and keep them in zip-lock bags. I see no reason not to add more fuel to the stove if I need to, or to blow it out when I've finished cooking and put what's left back into the bag - but some other people seem to think this can't be done.

Chris is right about the importance of a wind shield. Also, make sure your pot has a lid to keep the heat in. It will get hot a lot quicker and you may find you can't get a proper boil without one, unless you use extra fuel.

I think the main rival to the Esbit is the Trangia meths/alcohol stove. One advantage is that the meths vapours will light with a spark. A big advantage of the Esbit stove is that you can't spill the fuel. The Trangia stove is smaller, and will fit in a mug, but the Esbit is a more convenient shape and you can store fuel, lighter, tinder and fork inside it so its space isn't wasted. Currently I prefer the Esbit.

dave : i know i'm a little late getting in on this thread....but yes you can light the esbit tab with flint and steel.....to do this you MUST 1st smash the tab with a rock or the butt of a knife,until you get small bits and powder....then the tab WILL accept the spark of a flint and steel.....i have done this many times before...and by the way the british M.O.D. issues a fire starting kit in military survival kits with a flint and steel ,cotton wool and esbit tablets.....vince g. 11b inf...... <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

If you have some gelled alcohol hand sanitizer, squirt a little on the top of the fuel tab, and light that with the sparks from the ferro rod. The alcohol will burn and ingnite the esbit in no time.

Chris (and others)—I rapidly discovered the value of a windscreen. Since I was doing
this while grilling some hamburgers on the gas grill, I used my spatula for a windscreen
on one side, which noticeably improved the flame-to-cup contact. I like the idea of small
screens stored in the stove. That’s something I’ll be working on in the near future. I
have some left-over flashing from the roof replacement a couple of years back…that
might work.

Vince—I wondered about shredding or smashing the tablet. I did score the top with the
Combo tool from the GAK (that’s German Army Knife) I was carrying & using to strike
the ferrocerium rod, but not enough to catch & ignite from a spark. I wondered about
the efficacy of shaving magnesium onto it, too, but didn’t have a mag rod with me, only
the Swedish firesteel.

Brangdon—Yes, while cooking, I was puzzling about what I could use for a lid. I
currently don’t have one that will fit the cup (the GSI stainless steel SpaceSaver, that fits
the bottom of the 1 liter Nalgene bottle). I discovered the lid from a small kettle will fit
fairly well—a bit loose, but with good contact all around the rim.

Thanks, all for your comments.

David

And, if you make a sode can stove, the Esbit stove makes a good windscreen/pot stand for it. The fuel versatility might make it a worth while addition.

mod 1

Scroll down on left side to the Stove section click on #14 modified esbit

The second link it what I use .

Adam

Matches will work. If it´s too windy you might wish to improove your wind shield or find a better place. I allways put the in place before I light it with a match and never had problems with it.
The Trangia stove may have some problems in really cold weather. The burner needs to get warm enough to create a sufficient amount of vapor to burn through the outlets along the rim. You can hear the sound of the burner change when that happens.

Have you tried crushing the block first?

Adam, thanks for those links. I had seen them before, but did not know where to find them.

I would really like to try their "Altoid Stove." It is basically a half sized tin used as an alcohal stove inside the Esbit stove. Seems like it would work very well and is an additional source of fuel.

Here is the Altoid Stove Link

Ready

A candle is a fantastic lighter of anything and doesn't waste lighter fuel and has many other uses.

Several layers of aluminum foil shaped into a C-shaped windscreen works very well and has many other uses.

I've found that a cup or pot lid is essential, because in my experience, even trying to use an aluminum foil cover sort of funnels the fumes from the burning Esbit fuel into the food/water you're heating tainting it badly.

Finally, the Esbit cube lights much easier if you light a corner first. In fact, you can chip off a corner, light that, and then use that to light the bigger cube with ease.