Steve Simons : You are right to be concerned, while a well made Alcohol burning stove normally only produces Carbon
Dioxide and H2O as
water vapor, there are a few things that can go wrong and create incomplete combustion and Carbon
Monoxide.
Being on the U.S. side of the St. Lawrence River V,alley from You we have shared at least 3 major Ice storms with freezing rains in the last 15-20 years.
When this happens, it certainly is possible for the outside of even huge structures to be encased with a " Hard candy shell '' of frozen ice
-sealing you inside, Carbon Monoxide deaths have occurred during ice storms !
Also any really cold mass surrounding your heat source will steal enough heat energy away from your alcohol stove to reduce its combustion
temperatures an hence its efficiencies !
Strangely, our bodies Red Blood Cells have an affinity for Carbon Monoxide, and actively select and bind to Carbon Monoxide rather than Oxygen-
The treatment for Carbon Monoxide is rapid transport to the nearest hyperbaric chamber - rare on the ground here in the North East
Having said all that,if you did not have to worry about frozen pipes, and you had 2-3 of these Alcohol Stoves you probably could consider this
as an option!
The number of BTUs by volume or weight in Alcohol fuels is much lower than in an equivalent Volume of Propane, and measure for measure
Propane will be cheaper !
there is a specific brand of propane heater* that Shuts off auto magically in low oxygen conditions, and it is commonly used indoors/unvented
in the construction trades !
The same safety rules apply to its use as the Alcohol stove heater, additionally I have multiple CO detectors in my house - Vital if the
propane heater will be moved from one location to the other.
I have Added a link to a reliable source it trust where you can get more information on safety and btus and performance . see link below !
http://zenstoves.net
* the Buddy Heater can be found easily by going to that site and searching for locations where it can be sold ! The buddy heater can be hooked
-up to the 20# B.B.Q. propane tanks, Also the larger 30# and 40 # tanks can easily be carried a mile, and backpacked further !
** The Buddy Heater also give you the additional option of
Incandescent propane lighting, handy when you want heat and light -but uses lots of gas.
*** Non of the Iso-Butane or Butane stove heaters
should be considered for use as far north as we are ! For the Good of The Crafts ! Big AL