T3 Magazine Highly Rate The New Vango Atom Stove

Our pick of the best camping stoves, whether you're camping with friends or family or enjoying a solo trek.

T3 Magazine Votes Vango's New Atom Stove 2nd in the Best Camping Stoves 2020

Our pick of the best camping stoves, whether you're camping with friends or family or enjoying a solo trek

Picking up one of the best camping stoves can be a very worthwhile investment. A hot brew on a cold day; sizzling breakfast outside the tent as the sun rises; a nourishing meal after a long hike – these are moments of joy available to us all, with the right stove for the job, of course.

Figuring out the best camping stove requires a bit of a trade-off between size, weight and fuel type, with all sorts of interesting compromises in between. The smallest gas stoves are simple, lightweight and relatively cheap, while the largest camp cookers offer food-prep facilities to feed an army.

Aside from the bewildering array of camping stoves out there, an important question to consider is just how vital your stove is. Although the same gas burner might work as well melting snow on an overnight bivvy in the Alps, as it does making tea after a long walk in Kent, the consequences of failure are somewhat different. It’s worth bearing in mind that if you invest in one of the best camping stoves it should last for decades, so spending a few pounds more will pay off in the longer run.

What are the Main Types of Camping Stove

There are three main types of fuel when it comes to camping stoves:

• Solid fuel camping stoves
• Liquid fuel stoves
• Canister gas stoves

Solid fuel stoves are intended for very light duties such as boiling water, and are relatively simple to use, except in high winds when they become almost useless.

Liquid stoves can burn a myriad of liquid fuels from paraffin through to solvents and petrol. These have low running costs and are excellent for longer expeditions and in remote places where fuel may be scarce. Liquid stoves are also the only choice for higher altitude (2000m+), as the lower pressure doesn’t affect them, and are also brilliant in full winter conditions where gas canisters can freeze up and lose pressure.

On the downside, they require maintenance and are more fiddly to operate, although modern stoves don’t require the same lengthy priming operations as many older models.

Most commonly, canister gas stoves are the popular choice, being simple to light and offering good flame control. Options range from heavy catering appliances through to incredibly lightweight burners, so there is quite literally a gas stove for every situation.

Alongside the style of stove, you also need to consider its stability. Anyone who’s had the misfortune of knocking a full dinner onto the floor when out in the wild knows it can be devastating. If you've got little ones running around your camp, you may want to avoid lighter travel camping stoves and opt for

Choosing the Best Camping Stove for You

The best camping stove for you is a broad question indeed, with a huge variation in performance and fuel types on the market. However, panic not – it’s just a matter of establishing what you'll be using the stove for, and where.

Factors such as the size of your group, what you’ll be cooking, the time of year you’ll be camping and at what altitude all come into play, as well as cost and/or availability of fuel.

Broadly, the first big decision is fuel type (gas, liquid or solid), which influences the type of heat you’ll be dealing with and thus what you can cook on it. Let's take a closer look at these now

Vango Atom Stove

A small but perfectly formed gas stove

The Vango Atom encapsulates all the reasons gas stoves are so popular, as well as their shortcomings. Very packable (6x4cm folded), lightweight (66g), and with no igniter to fail, this is as simple as stoves get, while still knocking out a potent 3000W that’ll boil a litre of water in 3.5minutes. When weight is a concern (backpacking, trekking, mountaineering) this is an ideal candidate.

The drawbacks are the potential for instability when fully-laden with a big pan of dinner, and the fact that gas isn’t ideal in low temperatures or at altitude. However, for everything else this is well worth a look, especially at such a reasonable price.

SPECIFICATIONS

Best for: Lightness

Design: Gas Stove

Matchless: No

Weight: 66g

REASONS TO BUY

Simple Design

Very Lightweight

Compact

View the Vango Atom Stove HERE

View the Full Range HERE