What is the best tent stove for camping

After going through several different products I found the solo stove lite stove to be the most impressive. 

I am an outdoor enthusiast who has spent several days trying to find the best new stoves on the market. 

The solo stove lite should work out the best for you since it is excellent in several categories. It is affordable, fuel effective, very easy to set up, requires little maintenance, it’s ultralight and portable, environmentally friendly, and it’s built to keep your fire hot.  

There are other stoves on this list that may work out better for you. For example, some work better for larger tents, or they burn a stronger flame that will keep you warm during the winter time.

Keep reading to learn which stove works best for you!

types of tent stoves

There are four different types of tent stoves on the market, these include: 

Heavy steel stoves

They are made out of sturdy, reliable steel that can often weigh around 20 to 100 pounds.

These stoves are suited for casual campers who don’t mind transporting the stove via car to a campground.

Although heavy stoves are not the best for backpackers, good luck carrying a heavy stove around during your hike. 

Lightweight tent stoves

These stoves weigh around 10-40 pounds, they are not the best for backpackers but they are better than heavy stoves. 

Lightweight tent stoves work well for hiking and casual camping in a moderate climate. Although a lightweight stove will not work well under harsh winter conditions. 

Collapsible tent stoves

Collapsible stoves can be easily folded into a small space. These stoves also work well for backpacking. A collapsible stove is great for backpacks since they can be folded to reduce space. 

Since they can be folded into any small space they are great for long trips in airplanes.

You can save space and weight with these types of stoves since they typically weigh as much as lightweight stoves. 

Backpacking stoves

A backpacking stove produces less heat for smaller spaces, and for a shorter amount of time since they are small. 

For example your typical backpacking stove will last 2 hours and it will only produce enough heat for a small tent. 

Materials

Here is a list of the common materials used for tent stoves. 

Titanium 

Titanium is more durable, transfers heat better than other materials, but the catch is that it costs more than most materials. Since Titanium is durable it shouldn’t bend or warp under high temperatures. 

Stainless steel

This type of steel can keep your stove in a nice condition despite harsh weather conditions like rain and snow. 

Safety 

Burning fuel creates gasses that can cause bad side effects if your not careful

• nausea
• dizziness
• breathing problems
• death (in high enough concentrations)

Make sure no smoke leaks into the tent to prevent these issues.

                   Solo Stove Lite

 

Notable features

• Ultralight
• Fuel efficient
• Secures strong flame
• Cooking ring windshield

Overall this stove will work out very will for you because it performs very well in several areas outperforming other stoves on this list. 

The solo lite stove can run off of small twigs if need be saving extra work cutting logs for the fire. 

Simply throw in a few sticks and you should be able to quickly boil a quart of water in no time, even in less than ideal conditions.

Although you will need to purchase additional accessories for this stove. Also, note that bits of char can get stuck in places which are difficult to reach in this stove, making it hard to fully clean. 

This stove also won’t work out with larger pots, so make sure the pots are an appropriate size. 

The solo stove is cheaper than other stoves and it can also work well for backpacking since it is ultralight. 

This stove is environmentally friendly since it takes less wood to produce a strong fire. The bottom of it is designed not to damage the earth below, preserving plant roots. 

The stove comes with a cooking ring that supports the pot and acts as a windshield. This dual purpose ring can cook your tea and protect the flame from winds. 

Be careful when using the side grippers which can get hot, instead use a rag to protect your fingers. Also this stove can easily fit onto your bike if you are a bikepacker. 

Best for: Best for backpacking, bikepacking, and  environmentally conscious people.

                                 EcoZoom Versa Camping Stove

 

Notable features

• Insulation chamber
• 2 doors
• Fuel efficient
• Less smoke
• Less of a mess

The EcoZoom Versa stove offers insulation from the interior chamber. The versa stove can also use multiple sources of fuel. 

Insulation means your stove will heat up longer with less fuel, and less work overall. This stove can also consume charcoal very efficiently compared to other stoves. 

Insulation also helps the outside of the stove remain cold which prevents nasty accidental burns. 

There are two doors, one for wood and another to draw air in allowing the fire to grow stronger.  

This stove will smoke 70% less than open fires, and this stove is easier to clean. If you are looking for a clean stove this is an excellent pick. 

Best for: efficient fire, good for cooking.

• Wide form shelf/drying rack
• Adjustable legs for uneven ground
• 5″ diameter chimney pipe (over 10 ft. total height)
• Wire spark arrestor
• Fire grate in bottom to protect the base from overheating
• Price: $$

Notable features

•   Fire grate
•   Foldable/Adjustable legs
•   Cooking room
•   Portable

First entry on this best tent stove list is the Alpine Heavy duty cylinder stove comes with foldable legs which are also adjustable for uneven ground. All of the parts can fit inside the item making it easily transportable. This stove should produce a sufficient amount of heat for medium or small tents.

These stoves have enough room for two pans to be going at the same time cooking multiple meals saving time. There is a problem with the chimney though, it often allows rain and wind to weaken the flame. You may need to find a chimney cap. 

Chimney caps keep outside rain out and inside heat in. 

Best for: Large tents, cooking, multi-purpose, campgrounds

                      Winnerwell Nomad Medium Tent Stove

 

General overview

Price: $$$

Notable Features

• a stainless steel structure.
• Portable item.
• Foldable legs.
• Folding racks.
• Viewing window.
• 2.5 inch pipe.

Next entry on the best tent stove roundup is the Winnerwell stove Comes with a spark arrestor for the top of the flue. The legs can also fold underneath the stove. 

You can easily fold the stove legs with this stove rather than taking them apart. 

Some stoves need additional accessories while this stove comes with the essentials, a spark arrestor, an ash scraper, and a chimney. The stove also comes with a glass viewing window allowing you to view the fire without releasing smoke from opening a door. 

The Winnerwell nomad medium provides good ventilation which helps prevent ash buildup. Good ventilation systems save you time from cleaning your stove by creating less of a mess after your fire. 

Cons: The glass viewing window can break if the log in the stove is too large.   

               DANCHEL OUTDOOR Portable Titanium Stove

#5 best tent stove

Notable Features

• Produces a hot flame
• Comes with accessories 
• Tough material
• Fire resistant door
• Portable

The next tent stove is the Danchel outdoor stove is made of ultralight titanium but it can be a little more expensive because of this. 

Since titanium offers conductivity and a high melting point, it works well for heating tents during the wintertime and harsh rain. 

It’s an all in one package that comes with several accessories, a damper, spark arrestor, and a flue. Also like many other stoves on this accessories can be easily stored inside the stove making it portable as well. A spark arrestor stops sparks from leaving the chimneys. Dampers and flues control airflow from your stove. 

Dampers retain heat, and flues are lining inside the chimney that help deal with fumes. 

The door is fire resistant and made of glass so you can look inside and view the fire. The fire will certainly stay safe in the fire resistant doors.

Since the door and material is durable it will likely not bend unless it reaches very high temperatures which probably won’t happen under a normal fire. 

The edges around this stove can be sharp, so sharp that gloves are included with the stove. The titanium steel style chimney can fall off if you don’t  take special care to properly secure the chimney. 

Best for: campers looking for a great portable wood stove for winter camping.

Final Verdict

The best tent stove on this list for most campers is the solo stove lite. Since the stove lite outperforms the other stoves in several different areas it will work out best for your next trip.

The reason being is that the stove lite exceeds the other stoves in several areas including fuel effectiveness, maintenance, ease of setup, and it’s affordable. 

I could not find any real problems with it other than the fact that it won’t keep you warm during harsh winter conditions. Although if you don’t need to battle the cold winds of winter this stove should work out well for you. 

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