By Jenn K.
The Atle 2 Burner Propane Camp Stove was provided by the manufacturer for the purpose of this review.
Photo obtained from the manufacturer.
At first glance this stove looks durable and well constructed. The body of the stove and the drip tray are made of stainless steel. The outside/inside of the lid and the inner drip tray (burner tray) are an unfinished stainless steel. The outside/bottom of the drip tray (burner tray) is red painted stainless steel. The Atle comes equipped with a latch to protect the lid from opening and an integrated handle for transport. The Atle case measures 21.5 x 11.8 x 3.8 inches.
The Atle is designed to be used for 1-8 people. The information provided on the packaging of the Atle states that water boils in three minutes with this stove. There is also information that the burn time for 1 lb. of propane gas is 1 hour and 30 minutes. There is no indication if this is on the high or low burner setting.
The Atle 2 Burner Propane Camp Stove is packed with many features. First off this stove has a large cooking area with two individually adjustable burner flames (12,000 BTU). The burners light with a Piezo igniter (push button) that is located on the front of the burner tray. The burner flames are controlled individually by the regulation knobs on the front of the burner tray.
The inside of the stove casing is clean looking with the stainless steel. There is a stainless steel windscreen on each side that is stored folded down over the cooking grate. These can be folded to the sides completely flat or secured into the lid in a vertical position to block wind.
The hose attachment for use with the 1 lb. propane canisters is stored under the cooking grate under the lid. This grate is chrome and is removable. It has four insertion points in the burner tray to keep it secure.
The regulator connects for use on the right side of the burner tray. It is pushed into the opening and then the nut on the regulator assembly is tightened. After the regulator is attached to the stove the propane cylinder can be screwed on to the regulator.
To ignite the stove a burner needs to be turned on and then just press the ignition button. No matches are needed and the flame is easily adjusted by the controls. Pretty easy!
Update: 3/28/11
During the past month the Atle Camp Stove was used on three occasions. The inaugural use was at the Wire Pass Trailhead in Utah at the Paria Canyon Wilderness. The elevation at the trailhead was just less than 5,000 ft. The stove was used here to make hot beverages at the car after our hike to The Wave. The other two times the stove was used to make hot beverages and hot meals at a picnic area in Irvine Park and at Limestone Canyon in Southern California (600 ft. of elevation).
I found the stove to be easily transportable from my car to the cooking area. This is because of the integrated handle in the bottom of the stove. A nice thing is that the latched lid stays closed during transport and while I am carrying the stove. The hose attachment conveniently stores under the cooking grate when the lid is closed; this makes misplacing the attachment in transport less likely.
To set up the stove for cooking is easy! The lid opens easily and the windscreen snaps right into place. Threading the hose attachment to the stove is also a breeze. When I started the stove for the first time the left burner lit with one push of the Piezo igniter. Now the right side was a little bit more challenging; it took about eight pushes of the igniter. When I used the stove a second time the right side only took three presses of the igniter to produce a flame. The burner flames were easily adjusted with the regulation controls for a high (boiling) flame and a low (simmering) flame. The controls enabled the flame to be controlled precisely for the food I was cooking; no burning food here.
Some food splashed on the stainless steel burner (drip) tray. This was easily wiped clean when I got home with some soapy water. I noticed that the chrome grid had some discoloration after using it the first time. This was cleaned away when I got home by using a stainless steel cleaner and a scrubbing sponge.
At an elevation of just below 5,000 ft cool water came to a full boil in 3 minutes and 40 seconds. When I was closer to sea level at 600 ft it took about 3 minutes and 15 seconds to have the water come to a complete boil.
Final Update: 5/4/11
Another month has gone by and I got to use the Atle Camp Stove on another three occasions. One was in the O’Neill Wilderness Area in Southern California during a late night BBQ and picnic with some friends while car camping in the park. The other two times the Atle Stove was used at Huntington Beach, California during a beach picnic.
At the O’Neill Wilderness Area there were a total of 6 of us and the Atle handled cooking two large camping pots of food twice. There was little wind during this usage, but I still had the wind screen snapped into place.
The winds were blowing at the beach on both occasions, so the wind screen came in handy. The wind screen stayed in place and prevented the wind from extinguishing the flame. I was able to cook my food with a simmering flame with no excuses for having uncooked food due to the wind.
I am still having issues with the right burner igniting quickly. The right burner is taking more presses of the Piezo igniter to produce a flame than the left burner. The left burner can take one or two presses of the igniter and the right can take 3 or more presses to get a flame. At this point I am puzzled as to why the right burner takes more attempts to light than the left.
Once I get a flame going it is easily controlled to produce a boil or a simmer. The flame regulators control the flame precise enough that I have yet to burn my food. Boiling point of water is still occurring between 3 and 4 minutes at sea level and at a few hundred feet above.
Food spills on the drip tray are still easily cleaned by using some soap and water. I have no idea how I get food splashed on the drip tray every time I use the stove. I guess I am a messy cook!
I am still using my first propane canister with this stove. It feels like it is on the verge of being empty soon. Not bad though for 6 uses and cooking for 6 people on the one outing!
So far I like this stove! It has a nice/sturdy integrated windscreen, convenient carrying handle, latched lid, boils water pretty quickly, burner flames are precisely controlled, and is easy to use.
If you are interested in more information on the Primus Atle Stove visit www.primuscamping.com. The Atle Stove retails for $89.00.
