Of course, the Stash’s suggested 2.5 minute boil time is going to be affected by a number of elements. For example, if you’re melting down snow it’s going to take significantly longer to reach boiling point than room temperature water. Another factor is the wind, the FluxRing system on the Stash pot offers a degree of shielding, but strong gusts are certain to slow down the boil time too. Under various circumstances, I tested the Stash for boiling water for dehydrated meals and hot drinks using the FluxRing pot, as well as some simple meals with both the FluxRing and other pots that I already owned.
The Stash was first put through its paces on the aforementioned overnight escape into the local Lakeland fells. My partner and I tested the Stash’s ability to cater for two using only the components it came with (plus gas) with a dehydrated meal each followed by a cup of tea, and coffee and instant oats in the morning. With a nearby water source we didn’t have to be frugal, and did six boils in total. This trip was in warm, mid-July conditions with very little wind and the boil time was impressively just shy of 2.5 minutes.
The Stash accompanied me on a five day van trip to the French bouldering mecca of Fontainebleau in early September, where I tested its compatibility with my trusty mocha pot (well, you’ve got have something wash down all that Pâtisserie), as well as cooking simple pasta and sauce meals for myself and a friend. It was warm and lightly breezy for most of the trip. I took the remains of the previous 100g canister plus a backup 230g and only just broke into the larger canister. This is testament to the fuel efficiency of the stove in good conditions.
Finally the Stash embarked on the UK Fjällraven Classic with me, catering for myself and my hill companion on a three day loop of the Lairig Ghru in the Cairngorms. For this particular trip we took two 230g canisters as we anticipated consuming two or three ration packs a day, as well as large quantities of tea and coffee to sustain us as we walked through every kind of weather Scotland can throw at you! The conditions were unsurprisingly damp and blustery, and we had one particularly chilly evening when sleet was threatening which stretched the boil time out to just under three minutes. We used 1.5-ish of our two canisters in total.