PrimeTech Stove Set 1.3L
Reviewed
By – Duane Lawrence
Tester Information
Name: Duane
Lawrence
Email: duanesgear
(at) yahoo (dot) com
Location:
Sparwood, British Columbia Canada
Gender: Male
Age: 44
years
Height:
5’9” (1.75m)
Weight:
160 lbs (73 kg)
I have been an avid outdoor enthusiast for over 25
years. I enjoy a variety of outdoor activities including mountaineering,
day hikes, multi-day backpacking trips, river and ocean kayaking, back-country
skiing, snowshoeing, mountain biking and rock climbing. I have climbed
throughout British Columbia, the United States and when opportunity presents
itself in Europe and India. I carry a wide variety of gear depending on the
type and length of trip. I am a search and rescue team member in the
Southern Canadian Rockies and am part of the swift water, rope rescue and
avalanche technical teams and ground search team.
Initial Review – March 14, 2017
Product
Details
Manufacturer
|
Primus
|
Model
|
PrimeTech
Stove Set 1.3L
|
Manufactured
In
|
Sweden
|
Web
Site
|
www.primus.us
|
MSRP
|
$119.95
USD
|
Listed Weight
|
727 g
(25.6 oz)
|
Measured
Weight (Total)
|
880 g (31
oz)
|
BTU
|
7000
BTU (2000 W)
|
Listed
Boil Time
|
3:30/1
l (33.8 fl oz)
|
Listed
Run Time
|
119 min
on 230 g (8.1 oz) gas canister
|
Gas Consumption
|
198g/h/2.6
kW or 198 g/h/8600 BTU/h
|
Dimensions
|
180 x
105 mm (7.1 x 4.1 in)
|
Measure
Dimensions
|
180 x
115 mm (7.1 x (4.5 in)
|
Use
|
4-seasons
|
Designed
For
|
1 – 3
People
|
Warranty
|
2-years
|
Component Weight (Measured)
Lid
|
71 g (2.5
oz)
|
Aluminum
Pot
|
148 g
(5.22 oz)
|
PrimeTeck
Pot
|
194 g
(6.84 oz)
|
Pot
Gripper
|
66 g
(2.33 oz)
|
Piezo
Igniter
|
36 g
(1.27 oz)
|
Burner
Base
|
294 g
(10.37 oz)
|
Tote
Bag
|
52 g (1.83
oz)
|
Ground
Barrier
|
20 g
(0.71 oz)
|
Initial Observations
I am always excited about getting new gear to test out and I am
thoroughly pleased with what I am seeing in the Primetech Stove Set.
The designers took great care in this design to ensure the primary
components, two pots and stove, as well as the lid and handle were well thought
out. Although I initially thought this was fairly large for a stove I had
to recall that it’s actually a stove set with two pots.
The stove comes with two pots, a basic 1.3 l (44 fl oz) anodized aluminum
pot and a second ceramic non-stick 1.3 l (44 fl oz) pot that has an integrated
heat exchanger. The stove itself has an integrated wind screen with three
pot levels to choose from. The pot supports for the heat exchanger pot
and the standard pot will allow them both to sit at the same level. There
is also a third level to the supports which will allow me to place a larger pot
or possibly a frying pan on top of the stove. It appears to be a very
simple yet versatile system that looks like it will maintain flame height
proficiency across regardless of the size of pot used or whether using the heat
exchanger pot or the basic one.
The stove has a flexible fuel hose which looks like it will allow me to
use any size (volume) fuel canister I choose to pack. The windscreen
integrated base looks to be well designed but until I actually use it in windy
conditions I am hesitant to say if the integrated wind screen will really do the
job or not. I am optimistic that it will but I will be looking at this
closely during the test period. The other nice feature about the burner
unit is that the base is quite large, 150 mm (5.9 in) in diameter with three
tiny little feet that should give the unit good stability. There is even
a little clip for what I believe is for clipping the gas line to when the unit
is stored.
After remembering that this is a pot and stove set I was quite impressed
with the compactness of the unit. All the pots and stove fit easily inside
one another and, aside from the stove component, it seems that it really
doesn't matter which way they fit together. The set even comes with a nice padded storage
bag to put everything in.
In addition to the pots and stove the set comes with a transparent plastic
lid with integrated pasta strainer and with a heat resistant silicon handle and
a lockable pot gripper. The gripper is very light weight with a locking handle that
can secure the handle to the pot. Someone was really thinking here
as the lid has a notch in it that allows the handle to be attached to the pot
while the lid is on, very nice! The set comes with a ground barrier,
I must admit I never use these things but it is nice to have in case it is
needed. Lastly, the set comes with a small igniter that creates a spark when the button is pressed.
The stove temperature is managed through a wire regulator that is attached to
the end of the gas line at the fuel canister. The web page indicates that it has good fine
tuning making cooking more precise. Although I have not be able to try it out
yet, no fuel, it appears to be easy to grip and simple to use. It will be
interesting to see how it performs overall with boiling water and simmering.
The manufacturer also notes that the regulator is designed to improve
performance by managing the fuel consumption through the optimization of the gas
canister effectively reducing the fuel consumption by half. Generally speaking I focus on three items in a
stove, how fast it will boil water, how long a fuel canister will last and if
it is able to simmer. In my next report I will make sure to bring back
some detailed information on all of these aspects of the stoves performance.
The set comes with a manual with some very useful information on its operation
with one interesting miss. In the maintenance section it states that
regular cleaning and an overhaul of the stove will extend the life of the stove
but it completely fails to say how to overhaul the unit in order to
achieve the extended life. The rest of the instructions talk about how to use
the stove safely, using the stove in well ventilated areas, not to light it
when the user smells or hears leaking gas. I am assuming that they don't
want anyone to blow themselves up or singe their eyebrows off.
Overall it looks to be a nice camp stove that I am looking forward to trying
out in the field. Check back in a couple of months for a detailed field
report.
Field Report
Test Conditions
During the first couple of months of testing I have used the PrimeTech stove to
cook a variety of meals on 18 occasions. Depending on how I look at it
the cooking conditions have been very accommodating with next to no wind except
on one occasion and no rain at all. Nice to hike and cook in but doesn’t
give me much variability in the test so far with respect to how it performs in
mixed conditions. Hopefully over the next couple of months I'll hit some
more interesting weather conditions to cook in. All of my cooking so far has
been at an elevation of about 3000 to 6500 ft (914 to 1981 m).
Observations
The very first time I used the PrimeTech stove I noticed two things. The
stove is incredibly quiet and very good on fuel. It feels odd to note
this but the stove is so quiet I have a hard time figuring out if it is
actually on or not. On a number of occasions I found that I
needed to look closely at the stove flame to see if it was on or not and also
to determine how high the flame was. The stove being so quiet is a very
nice feature especially since I am used to really noisy stoves but it is a
little annoying not knowing if the stove is actually on or not and how hot the
flame is. I would normally determine output partially on how noisy the
stove is but with this stove it is just not possible. The only way to
determine how high the flame is to actually look and with the integrated
windshield the only way I was able to do this is to lift the pot off the stove.
This is hardly a complaint just an observation and something to get used
to.
For fuel consumption I found the
PrimeTech stove to do an excellent job. I had a 450 g (16 oz) fuel canister that
I thought was virtually empty and expected it to get me through maybe a meal or
two at the most and it made it through 4 meals plus boiling water twice for
coffee as well as cooking a batch of pancakes. I picked up a small 100 g (3.5 g) canister
of fuel and after a weekend trip cooking meals and coffee for two people, two
dinners and breakfasts plus five pots of coffee and tea, I used up 79 g (2.8 g) of
fuel. Dinner is generally boiling water and adding it to a rehydration
meal whereas breakfast was cooking the non-instant oatmeal. Based on the
current fuel consumption rates it looks like I would be able to make three
breakfasts and boil one or two more pots of water off of a 100 g (3.5 oz) fuel canister.
If my calculations are accurate for every liter of water the stove is
using about 7 g (.25 oz) of fuel.
Although I keep forgetting to actually time how long it takes to boil water I
have noticed that it is quite fast especially when using the pot with the heat
exchanger. Each time I was surprised that my water had already boiled. I
will have to make a point of timing how long it takes to boil 1 liter of water
in each of the pots but my general observations are that the stove does a great
job with both pots. I would suggest that this is due primarily to the
integration of the heat shield and wind screen into the base of the stove.
With this design there is no choice but to use both the heat shield and
windscreen all the time which focuses the heat directly onto the bottom of the
pot. Also, the pots are made to fit the base perfectly with only a little
bit of room between the heat shield and wind screen with the outer edge of the
pot which maximizes the focus of as much of the heat generated from the stove
as possible to the base of the pot. In addition to the aforementioned
both pots sit at the specified level regardless that one has a heat exchanger built
into the pot due to the multi-level pot supports. All of these features
look to increase the stove's efficiency and reduce fuel consumption while
decreasing the time it takes to boil water or cook food. This integration
of the windscreen and heatshield with the stove also creates a very stable
platform to work off of.
Aside from how quickly the stove boils water the other aspect that really
determines a stove's performance and versatility for me is how well it
simmers. Normally I would determine this by how well it cooks oatmeal,
not the instant stuff but the slow cook simmering oats. Each time I have
cook my breakfast I have found that the PrimeTech stove has done a great job
with absolutely no scorching of the bottom. Because I had so much success
with oatmeal I decided to try out pancakes. I used a small frying pan
which didn't quite fit directly on the stove surface but the pot supports have
a third level which is slightly higher than the top edge of the heat shield and
allowed me to set the frying pan comfortably on the stove. The versatility
of the heat adjustment worked out very well allowing me to cook a perfect set
of pancakes. A definite first for me at camp. One thing that I did
notice is that while it was simmering the flame can turn yellow which will
generate carbon residue on the bottom of the pot. It does make a little
bit of a mess on the pot but it is a very small price to pay for awesome simmering
capabilities.
Although I have really been focusing on how well the stove performs I would be
remiss in not mentioning the pots, lid, lifter and igniter that this stove
comes with. The two 1 liter pots have a wonderful
non-stick coating that is working very well. Aside from the fact that I
am not burning anything on the bottom of the pots due to its versatile flame height
I don't think it would matter as the pots are very easy to clean
with nothing sticking to them so far. I was a little concerned about
scratching the coating especially when nesting them over and over again but so
far I have not seen any scratches marring the non-stick surface. The
lifter is very nice to use with these pots with the most notable feature being
its ability to be locked onto the pot. This is a really nice feature as
once the lifter is locked onto the pot I no longer have to squeeze it
to keep from dropping the pot. When draining pasta it is hard
not to notice this feature.
The integrated strainer in the lid, although a nice thought needs some work.
The main issue here is that the holes to drain the water are too far from the
edge of the lid and pot as well as being to small to quickly allow water to
drain. If there were more holes closer to the edge I think this feature
would work but as it is, it is not very effective. The little silicone
tab on the top of the lid is nice to use, never getting too hot to touch, but is
a little small when used to hold the pot lid on, again, while draining pasta.
I do like the fact that the manufacturer made a cut out specifically for
the lifter which allowed me to keep the lid on and the handle at the same
time. It is important to note which way the wind is blowing though as the
handle needs to be upwind otherwise it will get very hot if not removed.
The one item that I had a problem with is the igniter. It worked the
first couple of times and then died. Not sure what happened to it
but it's not working. This is not a major deal for me as it can only be
used for lighting the stove and is relatively heavy at 36 g (1.2 oz). I would prefer
to carry a lighter which incidentally weighs less and I can use it to light a fire
as well as the stove. I would also like to comment on the stove set as a
whole. When I first got the stove and weighed it I thought it was a
little heavy but I took the opportunity to compare it with a few of my other
stoves and what I quickly realized was that this set was no heavier than any of
my other stoves once I added a couple of pots. The full set takes up just
as much room in my pack as any other 1 liter pot with a stove with all of the
other components.
The one aspect that of this pot set that I don't particularly like, and this is
just me, is that fact that it uses isobutane canisters. I do not like the
fact that I have to throw away these canisters after I use them as there is no
way to refill them. They are also fairly expensive compared to white gas
canisters that can be refilled over and over again. The isobutane
canister is nice because it is easy to use but annoying as well as it is
difficult to customize how much fuel to bring on a given trip.
Summary
Although
there are a couple of minor flaws in the lid design specifically around its ability
to strain water and the igniter that doesn't work I really like this pot set.
The non-stick coatings for the pots are wonderful and thus far very
durable. The built in heat exchanger allows for the very effective
boiling of water and subtle changes in heat allow for great simmering
abilities. The integrated heat shield and windshield work very well
adding to the stoves efficiency as well as lending to the overall stability of
the stove. Any of my minor complaints are easily outweighed by how
enjoyable it is to use this stove set. The designers really paid
attention to small details such as integrating a third pot resting position
which allows the use of oversized pots and pans all of which lend to a versatile
stove set. I am really enjoying using this stove and look forward to using it
during throughout the rest of the summer and test period. Long Term Report
The last
couple of months only provided me with another three opportunities to use the
PrimeTech stove although there were some important observations. Weather
conditions were virtually the same throughout the summer, warm, dry and not
much wind. Performance wise the stove continued to be a nice piece of
equipment to use and was very consistent with my expectations from the previous
test period. There were a couple of things that occurred though.
First, I finally figured out how to store the valve and fuel line.
There is a little clip on the bottom of the stove that the fuel line
clips into but I was confounded as to where the valve was to go, it just did
not seem to pack well. Eventually I finally realized that I could stuff
it through the bottom of the stove where the fuel line attaches to the burner
and magically it packs so much better. The discovery would likely have
saved me from scratching one of the pots as I was originally wrapping the fuel
line over the edge of the stove base then nesting the pots together.
The next observation, and this one should not be very earth shattering for
readers, is that there is a notable depreciation of BTU output when a canister
nears empty. It is actually quit hard to tell as the stove is so quiet
but it is noticeable. This, again, is not really surprising as it I
anticipated that the canister pressure would decline as the fuel was used up which
would lead to the reduction in output. Sadly, my last observation was a
significant one, that being that the valve broke. I was happily cooking
on the first night of a three-day backpacking trip in Banff, as I was putting
the stove away I attempted to remove the fuel canister from the fuel valve.
I am still scratching my head as to what happened but there is a brass
ring that the fuel canister screws into and that piece was stuck. I had
only hand tightened the canister to the fuel valve but I was unable to unscrew
it. After about 10 minutes of fighting with it to remove the canister it
finally undid in a most unfortunate way, the valve came away but left the brass
ring attached to the canister. It actually took a pair of vice clamps in
my shop at home to remove the ring from the canister. I did inspect it
once I got it removed and found no evidence of sand or debris in the rings.
I also attempted to reattach the brass ring into the fuel valve but the
seal was pooched.
I have put in a warranty request, including photos of the problem, and am
still waiting on a response. It has only been a week but I am a little
surprised that I have not received even an acknowledgement email as of yet.
I am hopeful that the year warranty will cover this but will just have
to wait and see. The warranty process seems fairly simple so far and the
web site indicates that this should be a warrantable problem. I will just have
to wait and see what happens. I had a look at their parts page and was
not able to find the valve on the page so am a little concerned that I might
not be able to have a new valve sent if it is not covered under warranty.
I'll do a follow-up on this once I work through the process.
Summary
Even
though there was a major failure with the stove I still really like it.
The stove is very light, quiet and the nesting non-stick pots were great
to use. Even if I cannot repair the stove I will be using these pots for
a long time. The overall design with the built in wind screen is
effective and did not seem to add too much additional weight to the stove set.
The multi-level pot supports are versatile and very effective.
There are a couple of things I didn't like about it but they are very
minor. I don't like isobutene canisters because I have to throw them away
after each use, but this is just me. It's hard to tell what level the
flame is at because it so quiet and at low burn it does leave black residue on
the bottom of the pot, all very minor and nothing that has any influence
on the usability or effectiveness of the stove. Really it is a nice stove
that I really hope that I can get repaired so that I can continue using it.
Likes
- Quiet
- Boils water very quickly
- Great on fuel consumption
- Non-stick surface
- Locking pot lifter
- Integrated heat/wind shield
Dislikes
- Uses isobutane canisters
- Leaves residue on bottom of
pot when burning on low flame
- Hard to tell if it is on or
off
- Igniter doesn’t work
- Strainer isn't effective
Thanks to BackpackGearTest.org and Primus for the opportunity to test
the 1.3 L (44 fl oz) PrimeTech Stove Set.
Read more reviews of Primus gear
Read more gear reviews by Duane Lawrence
|