Butane cookers 1 or 2 burner?

[Nay-DMAX]

Hi folks, so I know there are lots of posts about cooking on here but I just have a specific question, at the moment we do about 90% of our cooking on the ozpig and the rest either on the single burner butane or we hook up the 2 burner gas cooker.  It depends on what we are cooking but there have been a few times where we haven't even hooked the gas bottle up.  On cup day I cooked on a friends U bute two burner cooker that has the plate on it, it was easy to cook on and meant that I didn't have to get a fry pan as well and had a lot more room than we get from the single burner one.  My problem is do I go and buy a 2 burner one for the times when we set up late or just need something quickly and are not lighting the ozpig or stick with what we have.  We are wanting to have a swag pack set up as well which at the moment includes the single butane but it does mean that we have to make sure we pack something to cook on or in as well.  Obviously there are limits to what I can cook on the plate.

The other thing was that my mate who owns the U bute one said it gets very hot underneath when cooking has anyone else experienced this I wasn't looking just at this brand perhaps like the gasmate one or something.

Cheers

[muzza01]

We used to have two singles side by side when we camped. We now use LPG. The butane burners are convenient but those little cylinders don't really last long.   If you want to go away for a couple of weeks away from shops you need to carry a lot of those little cans.

[Mik01]

Hi folks, so I know there are lots of posts about cooking on here but I just have a specific question, at the moment we do about 90% of our cooking on the ozpig and the rest either on the single burner butane or we hook up the 2 burner gas cooker.  It depends on what we are cooking but there have been a few times where we haven't even hooked the gas bottle up.  On cup day I cooked on a friends U bute two burner cooker that has the plate on it, it was easy to cook on and meant that I didn't have to get a fry pan as well and had a lot more room than we get from the single burner one.  My problem is do I go and buy a 2 burner one for the times when we set up late or just need something quickly and are not lighting the ozpig or stick with what we have.  We are wanting to have a swag pack set up as well which at the moment includes the single butane but it does mean that we have to make sure we pack something to cook on or in as well.  Obviously there are limits to what I can cook on the plate.

The other thing was that my mate who owns the U bute one said it gets very hot underneath when cooking has anyone else experienced this I wasn't looking just at this brand perhaps like the gasmate one or something.

Cheers

hi  mate - I have a single burner butane gasmate with plate. whilst i don't always use it, I always pack it on trips as it super convenient to cook up burgers/snags for lunch on the go etc. the plate is small and easy to throw in.
i don't know about the u bute, but the single butane burner doesn't get hot underneath.
Muzza - i find the cylinders last quite a long time actually. but if there is a bit of wind, or its a bit cool, it can take a while to cook your meat, and therefore you will use a bit of butane.

when using regularly, and also in my portable butane heater, i only take about 4 canisters with me for a couple of weeks.  if using as a backup for cooking you will hardly go through a single canister or two.

the downside with the single burner and plate is that the heat is concentrated in one spot, and it doesn't evenly spread to the outer areas.   Mike

[Nay-DMAX]

hi  mate - I have a single burner butane gasmate with plate. whilst i don't always use it, I always pack it on trips as it super convenient to cook up burgers/snags for lunch on the go etc. the plate is small and easy to throw in.
i don't know about the u bute, but the single butane burner doesn't get hot underneath.
Muzza - i find the cylinders last quite a long time actually. but if there is a bit of wind, or its a bit cool, it can take a while to cook your meat, and therefore you will use a bit of butane.

when using regularly, and also in my portable butane heater, i only take about 4 canisters with me for a couple of weeks.  if using as a backup for cooking you will hardly go through a single canister or two.

the downside with the single burner and plate is that the heat is concentrated in one spot, and it doesn't evenly spread to the outer areas.   Mike

Yes we do use our single burner quite a bit with a frypan or to put the billy on if the ozpig isn't lit, and I have not found it gets hot underneath really either maybe the base is less open that the ubute one. I usually stand the case on its side around it if it is windy and find this can block most of it out just cannot fit a lot on it at once which was why I wondered if we should go the 2 burner or stick with the set up we have.

[edz]

A lot depends on your style of camping set up, with the family in tow its a gas bottle and cooker set up.
If its just me and out for two weeks alone its two butane cookers with a full can in each and a four pack of spare cans, dont usualy touch the spares ..
one thing else needed is a good wind shield, [ cut from an old corflute for sale sign ] not to bulky folds flat easy to use held in place by each cooker ..MK1 version wind break held with gaffa tape .
Looked at the two burner but thought it a bit big .

[Bird]

if your going to use them in the high country the cans freeze up regularly.. awesome in the morning when you need coffee...
Most people I know with them have a dozen 1/2 used cans at home in the shed..


agree they are handy and quick, just annoying.

[Nay-DMAX]

if your going to use them in the high country the cans freeze up regularly.. awesome in the morning when you need coffee...
Most people I know with them have a dozen 1/2 used cans at home in the shed..


agree they are handy and quick, just annoying.

I did read a tip on that to put a can in a sock at the base of the bed and use that as the morning one, we have had the odd can freeze even camping on the Murray but not really bad I guess in that instance I would be lighting the fire anyway and using that if it is cold enough to freeze the butane I will want the ozpig going. At the moment the single one usually gets used if we want to cook something to go with dinner in a pot or for quick water heating like a cuppa or for the dishes, and most of the time we seem to do fine with the set up we have so I guess it would be more for the swag trips that I am thinking though the first one we did we took the ozpig still and just the single burner.

[scottatsea]

I use my u-bute for everything and find it is great.It doesnt use much butane at all and i use the boab stove table from rays outdoors and the u-bute fits in it perfectly.It has a wind guard with it and you can get alot more add ons for it if you want.I like the hard case it comes in,great for travelling.

               Scott

[muzza01]

Muzza - i find the cylinders last quite a long time actually. but if there is a bit of wind, or its a bit cool, it can take a while to cook your meat, and therefore you will use a bit of butane.
  Mike

We went through about 14 cylinders in 10 days on our last Cape York trip. We took 10 cylinders and had to borrow off the rest off my BIL. We were cooking for the four of us, sometimes cooked breaky or pancakes, sometimes hot lunches, nearly always used for dinner and of course for coffee and hot water for the dishes. We would use about 1.5 cans per day.

[Beachman]

Like Muzza I use to use two singles side by side and it worked fine, but one Xmas sale at Supercheap they had the double of special for $25, so for that price I bought one.

As for the plate I just borrow the plate off our home BBQ and that works a treat.

[GeoffA]

........
The other thing was that my mate who owns the U bute one said it gets very hot underneath when cooking has anyone else experienced this....

Yes, they do get hot underneath...hot enough to damage a plastic table.
We place a folded cotton towel under the cooker after seeing that. No issues at all for us....

I haven't noticed high gas use, but there's just the 2 of us. I always have spare canisters.
Cold weather definitely causes issues.

[Ozsnowman]

Up until a few weeks ago, I would have said a 2 burner, but them the mechanism on one side broke, so I have a 2 burner that is only usable on one side! Stick to singles