What fuels are commonly used for vacpots?
The most common “fuel” used today is electricity. It can be found in your kitchen stove, or in the electrical stove unit that older vac pots shipped with. The current Starbucks Utopia model is electric, as were the older Sunbeam Automatics and the Cory Automatics. For flat bottomed vac pots without a built in heat source, a gas stove will also suffice. For self-contained, non electrical units, the most common fuel is methyl hydrate, or methanol. Often referred to as “alcohol” stoves, that is what they are, but they burn cleaner than other forms of fuel alcohol. Methyl Hydrate can be obtained from most hardware stores. Other fuels used include butane, gellied camp stoves, camp stove fuel (if you use a micro camping stove), fondue fuel (usually blue liquid) and the like. The important thing here is you want a clean burning fuel source – one that emits no smoke. Of course, you can use a “dirty” fuel source if you like, but your glass or metal vac pot will show the stains from it. Opinion:
