Using Propane Camp Stoves And Camp Ovens Indoors???
 

I heard that you can not use a propane campstove indoors, but what about the camp ovens they sell now? If it is true that you can not use them indoors, why is that so? Could you use them indoors if you kept the propane tank outdoors? Do these stoves and ovens make toxic fumes, is that the reason?

Carbon monoxide poisoning , however I've known several people that have done so and are still around. Go figure.

I have used my campstove indoors with the tank outside. Still here to talk about it. Why would a campstove be any different than your regular propane cookstove?

Propane is used inside millions of homes.

I think the general warning is for possible carbon monoxide poisoning. That said, I've used them, as well as butane and sterno fueled stoves indoors in emergencies - ice storms and hurricanes w/power outages.
My house is not perfectly airtight and the stoves were only used for short periods of minimal cooking - heating up a can of food or boiling a small pot of water, so the risk was minimal.
Probably less than smoking a cigarette indoors, lol.

One other reason may be on how they are built. They are built to be portable and easily moved and/or broken down to be stored.
If knocked off a picnic table - oh well maybe some burnt grass, but if in the home it gets knocked off the kitchen table or counter - instant house burning.
And without those warnings of "not for inside use" who do you think would end up in court because of a house burning down - - - that same maker of that portable and easily moved and/or broken down to be stored stove...........

I thought I would highlight the risk of the propane hose connections, and possible leakage. Always turn the tank OFF if you do this.

I would if I had to. We have found that we can do all the cooking we want to do on a box stove in cold weather, and outside otherwise.

I've used outdoor propane stuff indoors on occasion, just check connections for leaks carefully (like you would any gas fitting indoors) and buy a carbon monoxide detector. The amount one would normally use a stove top shouldn't cause a dangerous level of monoxide but you could always crack a window as an extra measure. In todays world of lawsuits and lack of personal accountability it's easiest for manufacturers to just say don't do something then to expect people capable of using judgement. Look at all the warnings on a simple ladder at the store.

I use mine inside -- it's the kind with the small canister attached. Just be careful not to jostle it. I agree with the fact manufacturers have to state they are not for inside usage to protect themselves.

I agree.

I cannot think of any reason why a propane campstove or propane camp oven would emit any more fumes or carbon monoxide into a home than the standard unvented propane stove/oven that are used in millions of homes.

If it's used for cooking, the CO level would never build up to dangerous levels. Where folks get into trouble is using them for heating. I grew up using the propane cookstove for heating while camping but we always kept a nearby window open for fresh air

don't do it

Why not?

I used a 2-burner camping propane cook stove in my cabin for over a year before I bought a full-sized gas range. I don't understand how a camping propane cook stove would be any more dangerous than the propane range we replaced it with.

That is what I was thinking. I don't get it. Like a lot of people have said, millions of people use propane stoves to cook with and nothing bad has happend.

I was thinking if I left the tank outside and then snaked a hose through the wall, it would be safe. I would also get a carbonmonoxide detector.

I would imagine a wood buring stove kicks out co2 into the house, but people seem ok from that.

Maybe the warning not to use these stoves indoors is just for the company that makes them to cover their butt from law suites

The ranges are calibrated to burn more efficiently _because_ they're used in homes. Camp stoves are made for outdoor use, so not as strictly overseen. You are required to have a licensed gas person install anything in your home (here anyway), so the connections are checked thoroughly. And last, but not least, my campstove cost $25, how much did you pay for the range?

You get what you pay for. That said, I have and will continue to use mine indoors when I'm without power. I do take more care because I know it's not made for that purpose and probably more dangerous. JMO

CO or oxygen depletion is a non issue unless you are cooking in a well sealed closet......same as it's a non issue for a standard propane stove/oven.

The reason for the manufacturer's caution is, I'm sure, their lawyers, and with fair reason. The connections on a camp stove, plus having a gas supply bottle located right next to the stove means somebody somewhere is gonna screw up eventually, and the camp stove manufacturer HAS to be able to go back and point to their warning to reduce their liability.

That said, I've used ours everytime the power was out, and we used a 2 burner Coleman in our 'auxiliary' kitchen for months while I remodeled the main kitchen......hooked to a 20lb bottle under the table the stove sat on, and I'd do it again without worry. Simply make sure your gas connections are tight, and turn off the main tank after each use.

We use a butane camp stove when the power is out and I highly recommend that instead of propane. Ours is a canister stove that has a hot heat, its clean, and has a Pizo (sp) ignition so all you have to do is turn the knob and it lights. We used it on our fishing boat in Alaska for years and I really like it.

back in the "yesteryears", coleman came out with a white gas catyletic heater that when used indoors in a confined area like a camper kilt a few folks and that is the worry of all camp related stoves and heaters, but the worry over propane devices continues to this day..... in a modern house, where the house is sealed way to good, use the stove near a window and "vent" it while in use.....

as for checking the connections, if they are loose you are gonna have a problem whether yer indoors or outdoors if you have propane leaking and collecting where it can catch a spark..... but only for a "WHOOSH" of a second...... maybe a "WHOOOOMP".

I worry about my tent heater which is propane, cause i just aint sure how much oxygen is displaced by the unit just yet.... and a carbon monoxide meter is fine for measuring that, but wont work for a propane leak which will hold to the ground and seeks a hole to hide in.... so i am told.

William
Idaho

couldn't the same concerns be there for a range running on natural gas? When I connected my stove I have to check the connections with soapy water to check for leaks. Wouldn't natural gas displace oxygen and polute indoor are also?

It could but only when leaking, not from burning

I have a non-electric propane range in my house, just so I would be able to cook when the power is out. There is still several companies making ranges that don't require electricity to operate. They have mercury thermostats and mechanical gas valves.

I knew a young couple living on a shoestring who used an old Coleman stove inside. It did not affect him at all but she got symptoms they put down to CO poisoning. Her symptoms stopped when they set up an outdoor kitchen.

CO is a concern beleive it or not.
From here http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5650a1.htm

But camp stoves do get used inside alot for obvious reasons. The biggest issue is its more of a fire hazzard. Emergencies are more of a fire hazzard as people use unfamiliar candles and oil lamps, and try to stay warm with rarely used wood stoves etc. Thing is if you start a fire with an oil lamp that's bad, but if there's a propane cylinder in the house at the time, that's worse.

A person would have to be nuts to start a fire with an oil lamp

I have to open my front door and a few windows and least three times through out the winter just to clean and make fresh the air. Just the build up of my own exhalations is enough to make me light headed . It takes about a month for the air to go stale in my place during winter.

It seems like most of the warnings I have seen, is for propane heaters, not propane cook stoves.

Heaters run much longer and will put out more CO, than a stove.

We use a propane gas range.

To be clear I meant by accident, like, dropping it while lit or knocking it off a table, putting something too close to the chimney that's flamable or refilling a hot lamp.

I use the "Big Buddy" propane heater in my hunting camp cabin. The hose goes outside to a portable propane tank. Electric start, thermostat, very sensitive to tipping or jarring, and 18 thousand btu. I keep a window cracked at the top 1/4 inch just for the sake of letting in some fresh air. Don't use it at night, shut it off by turning the knob on the tank and letting the heater burn out. The hose has a filter to keep the impurities in the propane from ruining the heater. Works great. Not that expensive.

Carbon monoxide, CO, is a real deadly poison. You do need good ventilation, not just a a window cracked open 2" but windows on opposite sides of the house for full air flow.

When using our gas range or when using a gas camp stove?

The nice thing about stoves (all types) is they have a fairly low output compared to construction heaters and ventless heaters, and limited use that is almost always well attended. I always advocate care with fuel burning appliances and CO. People get sick and people die, but really the concern with portable stoves is the fire hazard. Regular gas stoves here require a vent hood and a combustion air inlet to prevent house depressurization. The code will be different in some parts for sure.