Howdy all, my buddies and I do a lot of quadding/hunting/camping and we came across a stove that uses wood as a fuel and looks pretty man-portable. www.biolitestove.com is the product andis fairly new. We've preordered a few and hopefully we'll get'em soon and try them out. It's a pretty good idea and it eliminates the need to carry fuel for cooking/heating. There is a demo video on YouTube. If it works out I'll seriously consider getting the bigger home version. Just passing the word and I'll get back when I put it through the paces. Cheers!
Hi there! I have something similar called a bushbuddy. Have had it a couple of years out on excursions and hikes and it is very cool. and made here in BC. Only weighs about 6 oz and puts out alot of heat - wood fired.
Cool beans. They're about the same price and I'd rather bought Canadian first lol. Thanks for the info.
The biolite stove looks useful but at 33 ozs, it seems a bit heavy. Still, the ability to charge small devices when solar is unavailable is interesting.
For an alternative to the Bushbuddy or Nomadic Stove, try http://www.solostove.com/ - $69 USD
Same stove as the Bushbuddy or Nomadic Stove but FAR cheaper than the $120 being charged by Bushbuddy.
Alternate fuel stoves. Especially, solid fuel stoves are a great idea for a backup. The biostove both the home version and the pack version, have the advantage of generating electricty via a USB port. That is an interesting feature, recharge batteries at the very least.
Now the other stoves....hmmmm. If you need stainless steel, get one, but I am willing to bet most on here could fashion there own stove by looking at the pictures on the website then go to Revy or Home Depot and buy an empty 946 mL paint can and modify as needed. When the can burns out, make a new stove.
Just my thoughts,
Mountainman.
Wondering out loud just how does it recharge using heat??
would help with this Iphone, which only lasts a day at most on the Battery.
It most likely uses the Peltier effect. Essentially a "diode" that acts as a heat engine which converts a heat difference into electric power. Just like a solar cell converts light into electrical power. Commonly they are manufactured by bonding two plates of dissimilar semiconductors often bismuth and telluride to create a heat pump. One side of the unit will be heated by the Peltier effect, the other side will be cooled usually with a heat sink. The neat thing is that this effect is reversible if you take the opposite approach and apply a voltage between two electrodes one side will get hot and the other cold. Which side is cooled depends on the direction of the current. Most modern water coolers use this technology but it can also be used to heat water. The overpriced fans that magically work when you put them on a wood stove are another example of this technology.
With very few skills you can try this out with any of these configurations for yourself. Water coolers are very common in landfill sites, each one probably contains a Peltier diode in perfect working order. Most diodes are 12 volt. So go ahead experiment and enjoy.
So let me see, do the 12V portable coolers use the same technology? I know that they plug into a 12V adapter in the car to provide cooling. Also, if you use a polarity reversal plug, they provide heat. If I were to heat the cooling element, would it also generate electricity?
MM, I was wondering the same thing. They look surprisingly similar to a 1 qt paint can. Perhaps a smaller one inserted and a few strategically placed holes and you have a similar device. The advertised prices do seem steep. Especially the $120 unit!
Has anyone received their Biostove?? Does it work?? Does it generate electricity?? Will it power an iPod?? Cellphone?? USB battery pack??
Your feedback and evaluation would be of great.
Thanks,
Mountainman.
It most likely uses the Peltier effect. Essentially a "diode" that acts as a heat engine which converts a heat difference into electric power. Just like a solar cell converts light into electrical power. Commonly they are manufactured by bonding two plates of dissimilar semiconductors often bismuth and telluride to create a heat pump. One side of the unit will be heated by the Peltier effect, the other side will be cooled usually with a heat sink. The neat thing is that this effect is reversible if you take the opposite approach and apply a voltage between two electrodes one side will get hot and the other cold. Which side is cooled depends on the direction of the current. Most modern water coolers use this technology but it can also be used to heat water. The overpriced fans that magically work when you put them on a wood stove are another example of this technology.
With very few skills you can try this out with any of these configurations for yourself. Water coolers are very common in landfill sites, each one probably contains a Peltier diode in perfect working order. Most diodes are 12 volt. So go ahead experiment and enjoy.
..If you can make the diodes, I can make the stove, interested??
Yes Dendrite 12 volt coolers use this technology.
Thanks for your interest Wildernessreturn. I can't make the diodes but they can be purchased or better still picked from landfill sites. For more information about the technology follow the link on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermoelectric_cooling . (They even have a USB beverage cooler shown there.)
There are many applications of this technology one commercial site http://www.inbthermoelectric.com/ gives some insight on the applications.
In very hot or very cold climates this technology can be used to produce electricity. The trick is the temperature gradient that is attainable. The BioLite stove probably takes advantage of this. As do the many thermoelectric fans that are available for woodstoves. Go to the Canadian tire website and type in ecofan. You will see that these "toys" are not cheap $100 to $150. Maybe I should not say toys they do work. I am sure the Biolite stove will too.
In remote locations commercial products produce electricity and usually derive their heat source from propane.
Even with a high temperature gradient the output is low therefore you need a few thermoelectric couplers to produce any meaningful amount of current. You can purchase a 12v 90W peltier cooler for about $10 on Amazon. I prefer to scavenge, that why I use the landfill site. You will need to purchase some thermal paste but that's only about $5.
I have been experimenting with a full size woodstove and a number of thermoelectric couplers but I think that burning the same amount of wood in a wood gasifier connected to a relatively standard generator would produce more electricity (my current project). Thermoelectric couplers seem to be better adapted to low voltage low amperage applications such as USB which is 5V and 100Ma. This is sufficient to charge a cell phone.
If you want to collaborate on a project I am more than willing.
Just what I would expect from what I've seen. The guys who market the Bio-lite belong on late night TV.
Do a search to see if there's a Sayal electronics supply near you. They probably have the heat modules.