Cooking in Your Winter Tent

[Dehydrator]

I have decided to venture into the world of winter camping/backpacking this season and with that in mind I recently purchased a brand new Mountain Hardwear Trango 2 tent. I have done a lot of research on the web about winter camping techniques and one of the strong selling points of this tent is the large vestibule area that can be used as a kitchen area. I envision on a frosty morning to be able to cook my breakfast from the comfort of my sleeping bag by sliding my arm into the vestibule to light the stove. However, I have carefully read the owner's manual and it says very clearly that under no circumstances should I cook in the tent or in the vestibule. It says that although the material is flame retardant, it is plastic and it can melt if in contact with heat. In addition, I might risk asphyxiation from carbon dioxide emitted from my stove.
So what do you all do? Do you play it safe and face the elements to enjoy your morning coffee? Or do you ignore the stern manufacturer warning and enjoy your hot breakfast in bed at the risk of melting your tent and death by suffocation?

 

[jfb]

I had a Sierra Designs Glacier tent for about 25 years and cooked in it all the time. It had a semi-circular zippered cookhole at the pointed end. Never had any problems. Be sure to allow for adequate ventilation.

cooking in tent

 

[Brambor]

Besides making sure you provide for ventilation what is the worst that can happen? You canrn your vestibule or your tent. You go home and reload ;-)

 

[Chip]

the only time i remember cooking in my tent, my tent partner knocked over the just now boiling water and it scalded my thighs. so i didn't do that again. not that you can't. just be careful. what stove will you be using? my primus puts up a higher flame until it warms up.

 

[Dehydrator]

The stove is a good question. Until now I've been using a simple soda can alcohol stove. I'm not sure at what temperature the alcohol will freeze and if I should get a jet boil or wisperlite for greater reliability. I was going to experiment with my alcohol stove in the backyard. But I really just want to know if I'm really putting myself at risk by cooking in the thing. It seems like it is designed to be cooked in but the manual says it isn't...

 

[DougPaul]

One should avoid cooking in one's tent unless it is completely impossible to cook outside (eg high winds). Camping stoves emit copious amounts of carbon monoxide. (People have died...) And, of course, there is the fire hazard* and the risk of spilling hot liquid on oneself and one's sleeping bag. If one must cook in one's tent, then make sure there is a lot of ventilation.

* Down essentially explodes, nylon burns and melts onto one's skin, wool is safer.

Alcohol stoves are warm weather beasts although Trango makes some integrated alcohol stove and pot systems that are useable in milder winter temps. (Primarily used in Europe.)

Butane canister stoves are marginal--they can be used in milder winter temps with careful handling. (They can be used at colder temps at high altitudes not found in the NE.)

Gasoline (Coleman fuel) and kerosene are reliable in winter and will work well at any temp found in the NE.

Doug

 

[RollingRock]

I always cook inside the tent so I can be warm and comfortable...it's much better than having to wear all your gear to keep warm cooking outside in the dark cold night with a flashlight. I shovel snow inside a plastic bag and keep it right outside the door. I actually have the stove working in the vestibule with the flap completely open.

I always light the stove away from the tent since I'm using an MSR stove with gas. Once the stove is lit and has an even flame, I drag it into the vestibule. There is always a concern of spillage but I've been conscious of that and never had one.

The stove provides some heat inside the tent. While the food is cooking I'm in my sleeping bag as comfortable as can be with a small battery operated lantern hung inside. Many books and people will tell you that you cannot cook in a tent but if done in a safe manner, it's make winter camping more enjoyable!

 

[jfb]

Here's a link describing one setup: Chauvin

 

[dug]

I cook in my Bibler tent vestibule all the time. Open the vestibule door up and I can't imagine asphyxiation being a problem. For your initial flare-ups, keep that door wide open until the flame settings. Shouldn't be a problem.

 

[Tom_Murphy]

When the snow cover is deep enough, I shovel a pit down in the snow in the vestibule area for taking my boots off. I think the stove and gas bottle in that pit with the door open might be prudent. But I wouldn't do it unless a real emergency.

I enjoy setting up a winter camp with a kitchen area. But that fits my winter trips, a below tree line base camp a few miles from the trailhead and day hikes from there.

 

[Brambor]

This year I got my first floorless tent (pyramid shelter) - I'm pretty excited to give it a go and to do some cooking inside (by the ventilated door opening) too.

 

[peakbagger]

I have had propane/butane stoves for many years and have never seen a flare up while I have also used white gas stoves and experienced or witnessed more than few events where the stove ended up as a ball of flame and kicked out of the shelter. I realize that its a risk/ reward decision but I expect the balance tips towards cooking inside a tent with propane/butane while it tips strongly away from white gas stoves.

 

[TJsName]

This year I got my first floorless tent (pyramid shelter) - I'm pretty excited to give it a go and to do some cooking inside (by the ventilated door opening) too.

Is this similar to a TrailStar?

 

[Brambor]

Sort of. I had to google MLD Trailstar. It appears that the trailstar walls are less steep to my HMG Ultramid. I think they could be susceptible to snow accumulation and a partial colapse in a snowstorm. It remains to be seen whether the Ultramid fares better in a snowstorm though. I will pitch it outside if we get a storm forecast midweek or test it on my weekends ski outings,

Is this similar to a TrailStar?

 

[vinovampire]

Here's a link describing one setup: Chauvin

I've seen this link before and it's always bothered me just a bit. Specifically this quote: "My mind was changed when I realized that virtually every Everest expedition used compressed gas hanging stove set-ups at the highest camp, the South Col, which is at 7960 meters. Arguably the South Col has temperatures at least as cold as the Presidential Range! There is no question that the cold has an impact on the output of the stove..." The problem with this line of reasoning is that the pressure of the atmosphere at 26,000 feet is much lower than it is at 6,288 feet. This means that the gas in the canister is able to vaporize at much lower temperature on a Mt Everest trip than in the White Mountains. Zen Stoves has much more detail than I can provide on this issue, but the long and short of it is that this isn't a great option on really cold days close to sea level.

 

[jfb]

I've seen this link before and it's always bothered me just a bit. Specifically this quote: "My mind was changed when I realized that virtually every Everest expedition used compressed gas hanging stove set-ups at the highest camp, the South Col, which is at 7960 meters. Arguably the South Col has temperatures at least as cold as the Presidential Range! There is no question that the cold has an impact on the output of the stove..." The problem with this line of reasoning is that the pressure of the atmosphere at 26,000 feet is much lower than it is at 6,288 feet. This means that the gas in the canister is able to vaporize at much lower temperature on a Mt Everest trip than in the White Mountains. Zen Stoves has much more detail than I can provide on this issue, but the long and short of it is that this isn't a great option on really cold days close to sea level.

How about if you had two canisters and while one was running (and cooling), the other was being warmed inside your parka? When the running canister slows down, you shut off the stove and switch canisters?

 

[Lawn Sale]

My winter tent has a chimney in which you can cook, so the CO is allowed to escape. That being said, I only cook in my winter tent since it's easier to just get dressed and go outside to cook in my other tents since they're not designed for cooking.

My uncle used to winter hike the NH4K's back in the 70's & 80's and used his Stephenson single wall tent, in which he used to cook all the time. We hiked Baxter back in the mid 80's and when we came back one day his tent was torn to shreds. It seems a bear smelled the food that had permeated into the tent and wanted to find it, shredding the tent and his down bag. The other campers all just watched and took pictures, but there was nothing anyone could do (or should have done). I never forgot that and don't use my winter tent in anything but winter, and don't cook in my other tents.

 

[dug]

Great points about the smells. Since I'm only boiling water, thats OK...but...there are certainly spillage concerns. I should also note, when I mentioned above about "doing it all the time", that is snow-level dependant. If you have a lot of snow, carving out a deluxe kitchen into the snow is the way to go. Standing, sitting up, moving around...alot easier vs. crunched into a tent.

 

[hikerbrian]

I DON'T regularly cook in my tent. I had a friend who had fashioned his Jetboil into a hanging stove, and I found it to be a real hassle. I found it extremely tedious to turn it off, pour water out, take to tent door to collect snow, relight, boil, repeat many, many times. It seemed like the odds were in favor of one of us eventually lighting the tent on fire or spilling boiling water all over ourselves and our gear. I also was uncomfortable with the ventilation situation - the stove warmed the tent considerably, which made me think there was a possibility of carbon monoxide buildup.

I DO, however, almost always cook in my VESTIBULE. I have a ca. 2002 EMS single wall tent that has a large integrated floorless vestibule with several zipper configurations that make cooking in it trivial and (I feel) very safe. I can vent as much or as little as I want depending on wind conditions - a little breeze is plenty to mitigate carbon monoxide buildup, and if it's really blowing I can zip up a little more. I can be in my sleeping bag, warm and comfortable while my Whisperlite International is busily churning out boiling water. I pour the water into my Nalgenes in the vestibule so that any spilled liquid just drops onto the snow. I do make an effort to keep my tent clean, and since I really only use this tent for the fourth season, I don't worry about bears.

On the coldest nights I've been out (25 below range) and in exposed campsites (e.g. just off the ridge in the Presidentials), I'm not sure I could have done it any other way. And even on the not-that-cold nights (zero range), I find cooking in my vestibule to be a whole lot more comfortable. The key to it all is the right tent design.

 

[dave.m]

The stove is a good question. Until now I've been using a simple soda can alcohol stove. I'm not sure at what temperature the alcohol will freeze and if I should get a jet boil or wisperlite for greater reliability. I was going to experiment with my alcohol stove in the backyard. But I really just want to know if I'm really putting myself at risk by cooking in the thing. It seems like it is designed to be cooked in but the manual says it isn't...

My thoughts on stoves here: http://home.comcast.net/~pinnah/DirtbagPinner/Stoves.txt

I like white gas for winter. Plenty of folks like canister stoves. Trangia makes a winter pre-heater for their integrated pot holder but honestly, performance of alcohol drops off in cold temps. For all stoves, I like to use a wooden stove board. I make mine out of very thin plywood cut to fit into the bottom of my cooking pot. Creates a more stable base for the stove and insulates it for better performance.

You're on the right track experimenting. I recommend making tea daily in the cold weather for 2 to 4 weeks. Once you do, you'll have a better idea of the risks that your stove imposes in terms of flare up and the like.

Ventilate, ventilate, ventilate. I know a guy who got himself pretty sick from CO poisoning. DougPaul is right. Good way to die. Ventilate.

Lastly, here's way to ease into it. Open your vestibule door and cook in the opening of the door.

I have had propane/butane stoves for many years and have never seen a flare up while I have also used white gas stoves and experienced or witnessed more than few events where the stove ended up as a ball of flame and kicked out of the shelter. I realize that its a risk/ reward decision but I expect the balance tips towards cooking inside a tent with propane/butane while it tips strongly away from white gas stoves.

MSRs are the ones I don't trust. Eeek. Oh yes, my Svea will produce a spout of flame if over heated. Pilot error and very unavoidable.