Starting out?

How safe is in tent cooking?

I'd rather cook in the vestibule area of my tent to avoid spills being such a disaster but it seems a bit on the small side to me, where / how does everyone else manage when the weathers crappy.

The politically correct answer is that you should really cook outside. However, that is often impractical and I and most of my friends cook in the vestibule. My trangia would burn a hole in the groundsheet inside the tent, and my other stoves are not stable enough to risk standing on the groundsheet, which is subject to movement as I shift around. In any case I would be concerned about the fire hazard. It's worth thinking about what you'd do if there was a fire; for example, some people keep a knife handy to slash their way out of the tent.
Some people use hanging stoves inside the tent, but personally I am uncomfortable about those. I think they'd boil over or I'd smack my head on it or something.

not very why don't you eat out

I'd consider putting it just outside the door. You may be able to use a walking pole to prop open the outer fly so it keeps the rain off!
Dont forget about ventilation otherwise with condensation it'll seem like it's raining inside!!

And a flaming stove can be quickly booted out of the bell (I speak from experience)but if it flares up in yer tent... well I hate to think what'd happen as all that synthetic stuff you're living in / wearing starts to melt.

The idea of eating out is nice but not always available. It sounds like the most practical option is some kind of jerry rigging of the flysheet to provide a higher open canopy, I'll have a go at working out some manageable way of sorting it next time were out, in fair weather hopefully. Thanks, for the replies.

I've never cooked inside the main tent, but often cook in the porch. I guess it depends on the size of the porch, both my tents have massive porches so I don't believe it's a problem.

Tony, I cook in the porch quite regularly if the weathers poor - or if I cant be bothered to get out of my pit.

Main thing is to be VERY carefull not to knock the stove over (or get one with an anti flare system). I cook as near to the opening as is practical and check the fly isn't getting too warm. Oh, and venting is important to help get rid of the massive condensation you'll porbably get.

All possiby a bit obvious - but hope its of some use.

I've done a little experiment today to test the effects of heat on groundsheets.

Using my Trangia after a warm-up period, placed it on a plastic groundsheet and left it. The plastic did not melt or burn, only got slightly softer. I repeated this on a piece of cellophane and again no effect. I couldn't find a piece of PU or nylon to test but can see no reason why it should be damaged.

To help protect under a stove, Draper do a heat mat for soldering that is 10"x10" and weighs next to nothing. I'm going to start using one as it should stop the under-stove ring appearing in grass.

I consider it the height of luxuary to be able to light the trangia and get the tea on and maybe even a fried egg sarnie without getting out of my sleeping bag.

I do have a nice big awning on my tent with no risk of heta getting near the sides. the safe answer is cook outside but its not allways practical.