My $15 stove melted my breakfast on the first morning of a trip to Big Bear Lake

I woke up at 6 AM to a gorgeous sunrise, fired up that cheap butane burner I bought off a clearance rack, and within 10 minutes my scrambled eggs were welded to the pan because the regulator was stuck wide open, so now I'm wondering if anyone else has had a stove run hotter than expected and what you did about it besides toss it in the dumpster?

2 comments

2 Comments

willowc601mo agoMost Upvoted

People keep buying the absolute cheapest gear and act surprised when it fails at the worst time. That clearance stove was probably returned by someone else for the same exact reason. This happens all the time with discount tools and camp equipment. You saved twenty bucks but wasted a morning and a good breakfast. The real win is that it didn't catch your cabin on fire or blow up in your face. Next time just spend the extra money on a known brand or test it at home before you drive three hours into the mountains.

wesleyburns1mo ago

That "test it at home" part is the real kicker though, right? Like how many people actually do a full burn-in of a new stove in their driveway before a trip? I've definitely been guilty of just tossing a new cheap camp stove in the trunk and hoping for the best. Did you ever have a close call like that with something you bought on a whim, or did you learn the lesson the hard way after one bad trip?