Finding Alcohol (for stoves, people!) in Latin America

[Erin and Alan]

Howdy all,

We have a Trangia Stove and have found it a bit tricky at times to
find fuel. We´re in Nicaragua now.

I´m looking for advice from people on how easy it is to find Alcohol
in South America. We have a chance to get ahold of a gasoline
attachment for our Trangia in Ecuador, but hope to keep using Alcohol
(doesn´t stink, not as polluting if spilled, don´t have to spend the
extra $ for the attachment).

Any advice would be appreciated.


our experience:
-Canada and US. All hardware stores have it. It´s called Methyl-
Alcohol most of the time in Canada, and denatured in the US.

-Mexico. Variable. Fairly easy in the Baja as many hardware stores
have it (we found it in Mulege, La Paz). It´s called "alcohol
industrial." ON the Mainland, hardware stores look at you like you´re
crazy when you ask for it. We found it in a COMEX in Guanajuato.
Farmacies have rubbing alcohol, but that has only worked about 50% of
the time. there is DEFINITELY fraud in labeling in this instance - 3
times we bought alcohol of 90% (look for the red lables, not the blue
ones) that says "inflamable" that did not burn at all. other times,
there have been additives that leave aweful soot (even when diluted
with water). Avoid the liquid that´s really blue.
-Central America: better than mexico, but only in farmacies. Still
variable, and often not labled. We ran into big bottles of "alcohol
para quemar" in Honduras, so that sounds promising.

Thanks much!
Erin and Alan
www.2totango.net

[Seth Berling]

Erin and Alan, 

My brother and I didn't use a Trangia but we traveled with a guy that had one and he confirmed that he was able to find alcohol everywhere from Prudhoe Bay to Ushuaia. I guess the key is going to the pharmacies. He told us that every pharmacy that he went into had it on the shelf. I hope this helps. 

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[Seth Berling]

He didn't report as many problems with the flammability. Maybe once you get into South American things will improve. We were with him in Ecuador, Peru and Chile / Argentina and he was buying it from the Pharmacies in all those locations. 

[hanna.j...@telia.com]

Hello,

Me and my Trangia stove has traveled from Canada and are now in Peru. I agree
that it is tricky to find fuel sometimes, especially in Mexico where I only
found "el alcohol metílico" in gel in big supermarkets, it works but doesnt
really reach the same high temperature as liquid alcohol.

South of Mexico it has been fairly easy to find "alcohol desnaturalizado" in
pharmacies and it has worked out well except for the occasional soot. Some
musicians on bikes here in Peru told me that they buy some kind of alcohol
called "ron" that they use for fuel.

I ll keep you updated if I run into any alcohol-news further south.

Happy cycling and cooking

/Hanna

http://www.hannamijakobson.com/english/home/
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[NormaandBetty]

Hey,

We are fellow Trangia-users heading through Central America now so
thanks for the info!

for all those Trangia-users still to head through Mexico.. just
thought we would let you know our experience (we were travelling with
another couple that also had a Trangia so we were always on the look-
out for fuel)

We always found it in hardware stores (tho' sometimes we would have to
ask at a few before we found it). Often they had big bottles they
would just pour it into one of ours. Pretty cheap too!
Just have patience and ask in lots of hardware shops (for alcol
industrial) - we found it in some of the unlikeliest... a tiny one in
a really small town once!
We also found it in some Comex shops but it was always more expensive.

hope this helps.
Cheers,
Megs and Jules
cyclingwithserendipity.blogspot.com

[devin western]

I have seen alcohol stoves and was impressed with their simplicity and
efficiency, but it looks like lots of times it's tough to find fuel.
I picked up an international MSR stove that can burn gasoline.
Obviously there are more parts to break, but REI backs up their stuff,
can always swap for a new one.

[Ned Lewis]

Hey,

We also have a Trangia that we love and wouldn't swap for anything
else. Admittedly it has been hard at times to find the good alcohol in
Mexico from the ferreterias - not the stuff from the pharmacies that
in our experience leaves a horrible soot that gets everywhere (see our
blog on the subject!
www.cropcycle.org/2011/01/17/the-trials-and-tribulations-of-owning-a-trangia-in-mexico-some-advice-for-others-in-the-same-position/)

Anyway, we landed on a good way to conserve fuel that thought some of
you might find useful:

We've been bringing rice or pasta to the boil, or close to, then
taking it off and wrapping the pan (with lid firmly on) in some
clothing (I've found a wool jumper and a fleece works pretty well).
You can then just leave the insulated pan and contents to cook without
heat. It takes a little longer but uses less fuel, or frees up the
burner to cook a souce or something else for your well deseved end-of-
day meal!

Happy cycling

Ned and Charlotte
www.cropcycle.org

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