alternative stove fuel

I would guess there are things in the hand sanitizer that wouldn't be very healthy to burn and then breathe in. I'm not sure I would try this in a vintage oil burner but I've made lamps out of expired olive oil that burned just fine and I've heard you can use different oils but some smoke more than others. If I was going to stock up I'd buy more oil and less hand sanitizer for burning purposes but it's always good to know it works in a pinch.

I use them in conjunction with TP rolls/lint as fire starters but I find it too expensive for a regular fuel source in lamps. I do the same thing Anita does - I buy olive oil and longer-storing palm oil, and stash them for fuel when they go rancid.

I like stuff that multipurposes and most of the hand "sanitizer" really isn't a sanitizer. It's okay for when soap and water aren't available, but it isn't effective against a lot of microbes (handwashing for sufficient times is actually most effective). There are waterless pet shampoos that I prefer for a handwashing option.

There are ways to use rubbing alcohol as a fuel source if you're looking for a multipurpose item, and it has less goo and typically seals better, plus it's another that can get stocked for one purpose and then moved into a new/different role as needed or as it ages.

Just make certain you buy 99% Isopropyl Alcohol and not the 70%.

I made that mistake. Luckily I was able to take back one of the 70% bottles.

NOTE: some pharmacies here are starting to discontinue selling the 99% alcohol, since there have been reports of "people" drinking it.
Obvious result: medical emergency and possible death.

People definitely drink it when they're hard up. Here in London, the yellow Lysterine is preferred though...

back on topic, there's a few camp stoves out there that are designed for twigs and such. The Kelly Kettle looks like a good option for boiling water, then there's the solo stove and ezbit stove for cooking small meals on. There's lots of videos with instructions for building a rocket stove on youtube as well

http://www.modernoutpost.com/shop/60-stoves

This time of year you might think about a "pocket rocket" stove. Primarily a fast heater but you could cook on it if you made the top with that in mind.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pocket-Rocket-Stove-Heater/

Methylhydrate ($2.50 / litre, available in 4L jugs at Canadian Tire stores) is a more affordable alternative to isopropyl alcohol, for use in spirit burners. However, isopropyl alcohol has multiple uses, for which methylhydrate cannot be used. Both can be safely be burned indoors, provided you crack a window to allow fresh air into the room.

I keep a Trangia alcohol burner ($13.00) in my go-bag, along with a Vargo Titanium 'Hexagon' collapsible wood stove ($50.00) that serves as a wind screen / pot stand. If I run out of fuel for the alcohol burner, I will likely be able to find isopropyl alcohol or methylhydrate in any small town. If I can't find either of these liquid fuels, I can burn grasses, twigs and pine cones (outdoors) in the Vargo, to boil water.

For home heating and back-up food-prep / water-boiling purposes, an old-school wood stove with integrated cook-top would be ideal. These babies ain't cheap -- and it'll cost you a little more to insure your home -- but wood is a readily available, relatively inexpensive fuel source in most of the world, and the benefits of having a wood stove in your home most certainly outweigh the cost.

I haven't done any research on large, home-rated alcohol heating units, but I know they exist, and are gaining popularity. Definitely worth a look.

Take good care -- and prepare to prevail! 🙂

Save your nut shells
Chock Full of natural oil
I use them to start kindling in my woodstove

I have been mulling bug out/ backpacking/ camping stoves for over a year now. What I was thinking about/looking for was something portable that could use biomass fuel so as to avoid needing to pack along fuel. One that I discovered courtesy of the newest issue of Anerican Frontiersman, is the biolite stove. Portable and uses any type of biomass fuel you have around. It has a couple of accessories that you could decide to purchase or not. Onevery interesting feature is a fan in the stove that is used to keep the fire burning hot AND at the same time generates electricity to charge your mobile electronic devices. May be a bit pricey for some but for me it fits what I consider multiuse. Here is a link to the biolite web site. It is available from mountain equipment coop as well.
http://www.biolitestove.com

I've used liquid paraphin in the hurricane lamps but depending on the stoves you mean in the 1970/80 you could buy News paper Fireplace log rollers, those thing would burn for hours.