Gear

I've seen a few threads regarding the cost of Coleman fuel/alternatives and came across this in the latest Primus catalogue.

Primus PowerFuel 2.5L Naptha based with corrosion protection added.

Does anybody know if this is available in the UK yet and how much? (Hopefully cheaper than Coleman fuel).

Nope but I'd love to find out, especially if its cheaper than coleman fuel

That's what I'm hoping...

why on earth would anyone use coleman fuel?

its ten times, yes ten times more expensive than unleaded.

i'd rather clean a bit of kack off my pan than walk round with 'mug me' tattoed onto my forehead.

it must be a contender for 'the most over-priced irrelevence in the history of the world' competition.

Exactly, hence the question about a clean alternative.

yeah, but unless its ten or maybe just eight times cheaper than coleman fuel its still going to be a collosal a) waste of time, and b) a complete waste of money.

I found 500ml cans of the Primus Powerfuel in Hathersage at the same price as the Coleman version.

For those that have to use the Coleman version, a camping shop near Chester sells it for £3.60 a 500ml can.

First, let me answer Geoff's question about the 2.5lt can of Primus Powerfuel. Believe it or not, but it is not legal for this size to be sold in the UK! It's ok everywhere else in Europe but not here. We're looking into what's involved in getting this stupid state of affairs changed. Meanwhile, your options are: (a) buy 2.5lt cans if you're driving back from the continent; (b) buy the 500ml size at the current price (yes, it's bloody expensive but I'll deal with that later; (c) stick with garage unleaded petrol but BEWARE - this chucks out carcinogenic elements and should only be used when nothing else is readily available. If you must use it then for god's sake take care and cook in a VERY well ventilated manner.

Primus PowerFuel, like Coleman fuel, is actually "Heptane Petroleum" - a very clean and highly refined fuel with an excellent heat output. It has limited application other than for use with stoves and petrol cigarette lighters, and so economies of scale mean that it is costly to produce and can in such relatively small quantities. Add to that the cost of the special can that has to meet stringent packaging safety requirements and the high cost of shipping hazardous liquids from A to B and you're well on the way to understanding why it costs so much in the shops. Honestly, no one in the supply chain is "ripping" you off. Shops make a much smaller margin on heptane than they do with self-sealing gas cartridges.

As a long term strategy, we (that's Primus in the UK by the way) have been looking at developing a "green" fuel, derived from vegetable matter. Technically it should be feasible to do, but getting the blend right is proving damn difficult. The best we got so far performed slightly better than diesel but gave off a smell like old chip frying oil! If we get it right it would be sooooo much cheaper: minimal govt duty and taxes, and it could legally be sold in 2.5lt containers. Would you lot mind putting up with that "chip shop" smell?

Thanks for the info Ralph, always good to hear what the manufacturer's are up to. I briefly looked into green fuels a couple of years ago to see if any could be used in camping stoves but didn't get very far so gave up. What was available were based on coleseed and rapeseed oil.

I have a couple of stoves that need to run on Coleman type fuel if I use unleaded they clog up quickly and it's nigh on impossible to clean the generators so they have to be replaced but seeing as they are older stoves it's getting more and more difficult or costly to obtain replacements. Throw in the health issue's of unleaded (as I teach camping/outdoor pursuits to children)I would rather avoid it.

What we are looking for is a clean (as in no nasties), cheap alternative, if it has a 'chip shop' smell I don't mind, besides aren't there some cars running around on similar stuff!

From an environmental perspective, I would welcome an alternative to VOC based fuels such as heptane, because the production of fuels like heptane is damaging to the environment.

I would put up with a chip shop smell if it meant a green & clean fuel that wasn't as expensive to produce and distribute as Heptane or similar fuels, and was kinder to the environment.

Thanks for your comments, guys. It's an important objective for us to try and develop a green fuel, for environmental reasons as much as wishing to make a cheaper fuel available to you all. The Primus boffins in Sweden are working on this as well, but we don't have a finish date yet. Will keep OM posted with updates. It would be great to get feedback from more outdoor enthusiasts; any help TGO can offer here, Chris and Cameron?

I can review it when it comes out! If you sent in a letter to TGO asking for reader feedback Cameron would probably run it.