So because that was better than full blast on the Jetboil stove, I did another control run of that pot on the original stove, this time low power flame to see if the lighter stove can also be the most efficient with the Flux pot
Stove 1: Jetboil Helios 50% output
Stove 1: Jetboil Helios 50% flame
Pot 1 - Jetboil Helios 2L aluminum
Boil time: 7:05 mins
Fuel used: 8.6 grams
summary:
Jetboil pot and stove most efficient.
Since the above was all about large pots, here for comparison how efficient my Jetboil Sol (aluminum pot version) tested last weekend. The difference was that I had to boil 0.5 liters at a time, as the pot can only hold 0.7 liters, so I am doubling the numbers of that stove to comapare with the bigger (and much heavier) Helios above:
Stove Jetboil Sol 50-75% flame (most efficient)
Aluminum with cozy just as sold
Boil time 4:24 mins (2x 2:12 min)
Fuel used 8.6 grams (2x4.3 grams)
Exactly the same as the Helios, just much faster and a much lighter stove. For solo trips definitely my go-to stove.
I did the test since somebody in another forum claimed the Sol was most efficent at full blast 100% flame, but in my test it was about 30% more efficient with a slightly lower flame. The setting is pretty easy to find - once you feel significant heat come past the sides of the pot around the cozy, you have turned it too high.
The good news, at least for me, is that I can pick stoves based on needs (number of hikers and snow melt or not), while efficiency will be the same either way. On a long winter solo trip, the Helios may pay off, but for a shorter trip, the weight advantage of the Sol is tempting. If it's really cold, though, I'd always bring the (upside down canister) Helios.
