What cook top will fill the hole in the galley of my 27 FC

[Jon Fuller]

Hello, my 27 FC did not have a cook top in the galley when purchased. I am not sure what is the proper replacement to put in the existing hole? Any suggestions? I would like the replacement to have the cutting board top too. Thank you, Jon

[dkirsop]

Finding a drop-in replacement for an older boat is often difficult as stove styles and types change over the year. The good news is that it is usually possible to fabricate an insert or modify an existing opening to accommodate a new cook top. The other decision is what fuel to use. If your boat is plumbed for propane than the choice is clear and stick with the existing system.

I am in the midst of installing a Wallas diesel cook top in my Albin 25 because it is near to the existing diesel tank and I did not want to be burdened with propane tanks, plumbing, leak detectors, etc. Previously my boat had an alcohol stove for which parts are no longer available.

Choose a system that works for you and good luck with a spring time project.

[coolchange]

if I was in this situation I would not be looking for an alcohol stove...too slow and other reasons...I use a 1 burner butane stove and put it away when not needed...and often cook out on the back with it. That said there was a full 2 burner alcohol with cover at a consignment shop (Portland Oregon) Sextons Chandelery...and likely you could find on Craigslist...look in cities close to you. If money were no object the Wallas would be on top of the list...Heats and cooks with same fuel that is available..(and wont blow up)

[DesertAlbin736]

dkirsop writes: "I am in the midst of installing a Wallas diesel cook top in my Albin 25 because it is near to the existing diesel tank and I did not want to be burdened with propane tanks, plumbing, leak detectors, etc. Previously my boat had an alcohol stove for which parts are no longer available."

That's interesting. We were out on the lake the weekend of February 16, rafting up overnight with five other boats from our club. One of our members used to have a Wallas diesel cooktop in his C-Dory 25 and I was surprised to learn that he had recently removed it. I asked why & he said he had a lot of reliability issues with it & didn't like the diesel smell. Those are very expensive units, and he switched to a simple butane cartridge stove.

if I was in this situation I would not be looking for an alcohol stove...too slow and other reasons...

You get lots of different opinions on propane vs butane vs alcohol, all legitimate matters of personal taste & preference. I wouldn't mind propane if it was installed to ABYC code with vented locker & all the other stuff that goes with it. Just a reminder, for ABYC LPG system recommendations, this Don Casey article from BoatUS gives a good outline of what's required. Needless to say, having an inadequate not-to-code installation leaves one open to legal liability in case of accidental gas leak explosions, not to mention serious or even fatal injuries.

http://www.boatus.com/boattech/casey/pr ... ystems.asp

When we first bought our boat it came with a 'redneck' propane setup installed by the DPO (Dreaded Previous Owner) which consisted of a simple Coleman camp stove (decidedly not "marine grade") in the galley with a hose run down under and across the bilge and over to a regulator sitting next to the helm station with a small steel propane tank just sitting there in that space next up against the starboard side next to the driver seat. Arrrghhhhh! You can imagine the expense of converting to a proper LPG installation. Let's see, marine grade s/s LPG cooktop, $300 to $600. Propane tank, $60 to $400 depending on size & material (steel, aluminum, f/g). Propane lockers, $520 to $640, although I suppose one could build one for a lot less. Solenoid valves & control panel kits, $120 to $140. Fume detectors, $70 to $100. Propane fittings (hose end and gas tight through wall fittings, +/-$20 each. So right there you're up to close to $600 IF you used the cheapest propane tank & could build your own propane locker from scratch, and $1,100 if you bought a ready made locker (all prices estimated from Defender online supplier).

We had been happy with the Origo non-pressurized two burner alcohol stove on our previous Catalina 25 sailboat (gimbled & with pot holders in that case), but made the mistake of letting it go with the boat when we sold it. Luckily a friend had a used unit he sold to us for $165 after we got the Albin. It never seemed too slow for us. It can get a small pot of coffee perking in about 5 minutes, and for cooking usually have to turn it down to a low to middle setting to keep from burning food. There are various models, single and double burner, free standing ones as well as built ins with cutting board covers, and even ones that are combination alcohol & 110V electric for using with shore power. Yes the fuel is expensive, but safer than propane if the stove is kept in good order and be sure to wipe up any spills on top of the canisters when filling.

One trick we use to avoid spillage when filling the alcohol canisters is to use a 1 qt MSR backpacker fuel bottle, usually add just enough fuel at a time to the canisters to cook that meal so we don't lose fuel to evaporation. It's notoriously difficult to pour from gallon cans of alcohol fuel without spilling, so I use a funnel to fill the MSR bottle which has a safety cap that you only have to unscrew part way to pour from.

MSR fuel bottle.jpg

For those not familiar with the Origo stoves, this is what the fuel canisters look like. The only moving parts in the stove are the sliding dampers.

origo canister.jpg

Our Origo stove installation. If you use this type of stove you have to allow enough room behind it for the top to tilt up to get at the fuel canisters.

DSCN3636.JPG

This is the Coleman stove that came with the boat. Note how they just adapted the small propane bottle fitting to a hose. The DPO was so cheap he used 3" stick on mailbox letters for the boat name.

DSCN1213.JPG

[DesertAlbin736]

That said there was a full 2 burner alcohol with cover at a consignment shop (Portland Oregon) Sextons Chandelery.

That's right, one on CL in Bend, OR for $175. Very good deal for a year old stove, & these things last forever.

https://bend.craigslist.org/for/d/bend- ... 35946.html

That's at least a $100 cheaper than any online vendor deal for a new one and about half the MSRP retail price.

Here's a YouTube user demo (not the same owner as the one on CL), propane vs alcohol. As can be seen in the the comment section of the video there's widely varying opinions, none being totally invalid. Yes, spilled alcohol can burn, but can be put out with water since alcohol is water soluble.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf12KDIr8As

Here's West Marine's pro & con analysis of various types of marine cook stoves.

https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/ ... ion-Advice

Note to WillieC, the flame diffuser parts over the burners that are missing on your stove are available online.

[WillieC]

Diesel Wallas stove...holy moly. Where? We have the Origo and the original Eberspachergemeinshcaftenenuberuntervorundswischen furnace with ducting. Last time I fired it up it seemed to work, if you didn't mind the black smoke wafting back into the cockpit. Heat would be nice for extended off season cruising. What I don't like about the Eberspacher is its power consumption. I have been pondering the simple diesel carburetted/drip units. Keep us posted, Mr. Kirsop.

[DesertAlbin736]

Eberspachergemeinshcaftenenuberuntervorundswischen!!

Achtulieben! I love it! Dedicated cabin heater is something our boat lacks.


We do have an Origo Heal Pal alcohol heater like this, same fuel canisters and mechanism as the cook stove. It works pretty well, but does add a lot of water vapor to the inside atmosphere. This item we picked up used from a sailing friend.

Origo Heat Pal.JPG

We can also use our Mr. Heater propane heater, but there's the same storage issues with propane bottles, although I suppose I could easy sew together a tote bag like this to hang the small propane bottles from the stern rail.

propane storage bag.jpg

[Gunny]

I used a Dickinson in my 27. Direct drop in propane. Not cheap but easily installed and reliable.

[dkirsop]

I have posted my Wallas installation on the A25 site as a new topic.