The WEIRDEST Heater You Have EVER Seen - FireMaple Sunflower Stove and Heater
Wait, this is a stove and a heater?
This is the Sunflower Stove and Heater from the company known as FireMaple and this is Luke's first look at a very unique product.
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Sunflower Stove Details :
Dimensions :
Unfolded : 7.1 x 6.6 x 4.9”
Folded : 6.5 x 4.5 x 3.2”
Weight with case : 2lbs
Weight without case : 1.7lbs
Power : 6,141BTU’s
Fuel Type : Isobutane Gas Mixture - I asked about pure propane and they said no.
Materials: Stainless Steel : Aluminium Alloy; Copper; FPM; Ceramics
Cost : Retail is $108. Currently on sale at the time of filming for $90 as part of a sale.
Claims :
- Engineered for enthusiasts, it's your two-in-one solution for efficient heating and versatile cooking
Caution: This product is not advised for use within tents.
Boil Time : Boiling 0.5 liter of water in just 3min30s, consumption 2.6g
Thanks to Sunflower heater's cutting-edge infrared technology, you get powerful, consistent heat that's also naturally wind-resistant. Perfect for those icy fishing expeditions, unforgettable camping trips, or any winter adventure where you refuse to compromise on comfort!
¼ screw thread Expansion connector on the bottom of the stove so it can be attached to a tripod - that’s what the company states - this is interesting and would get the stove up to a higher point which would make it easier to use. Every tripod that I have ever used is taller than the length of the fuel hose - does this really make sense?
Needs to be kept 3.2ft away to prevent burning
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I really appreciate your videos and in depth reviews of many products. You have saved me money by your recommendations. Thank You.
Another way of looking at this stove is it's going to spread heat more consistantly across the fry pan unlike most stoves that burn your food to the centre of pan. As a heater maybe they intended it to heat your hands. Looking at it this way I like it.
I've used a Trangia spirit burner inside a Polish Lavvu to cook my breakfast and it heated my tent to almost 20 degrees Celsius within 5 minutes, so if a Trangia spirit burner can do this, well, this FireMaple stove/heater would likely heat a small tent pretty rapidly. My concern, though, is people's lack of understanding of carbon monoxide poisoning. This thing should ONLY be used in a well ventilated environment, whereas a Trangia spirit burner isn't putting out enough flame to suck up the oxygen and gas out a small tent compared to what 230g of isobutane can do to an environment if fully used up.
Looks questionable to me. Wouldn’t touch it
Agreed 🙌
Definitely not when it's hot 😂
According to Fire-Maple you can use propane with an adapter, which they sell.
So this stove/heater can use propane canisters you use for cooking stove? I was under the impression that it could only use iso-propane tanks which seems pricey. I was thinking of buying an adapter for propane but Luke mentioned it would only use iso-propane. (5:45) Otherwise it does look ideal in size and packs away in a small case. but Kovea makes a nice portable butane heater (Kovea Cupid KH-1203 Portable Butane Gas Heater) which Luke did a review on early last year or so. It is larger and would really apply for car camping than hiking with it - but would one hike with a 2lb stove/heater in their backpack minusiso-butane fuel cans)? Not in all likelihood. This stove/heater would be ideal if it could use other fuel.
@@carologiwan501over the years I've noticed Luke often overlooks things in some of the reviews, his thoughts should be taken with a grain of salt.
I think the cubid you showed us that uses butane seems to be the best most compact option for heating besides a buddy heater which are larger and only use propane.
Butane is useless in high altitude and lower temperature
@@volhv1973I love my little one burner butane stove. Canisters are the size of can of hair spray...... 🤣🤣(remember those......🤔). The SECRET is when colder weather 2 canisters (at least). One installed, one in yer armpit.... Keep swapping out...... Propane definitely better in cold weather. 👃✌️🥰🇨🇦
Place it in a vestibule or ground blind and it will heat your space in minutes. As far as cooking, it probably works fine. You can use it in a tent/vehicle as long as you have ventilation. Its obviously not for everyone but still useful for many. Id buy it if I needed one.
I bought the Fire Maple Saturn stove based on your review and actually used it for the first time today. Took forever to arrive but I love it so far. Heated water with it today for a first use and it did great. Nice and sturdy for accommodating larger pots. The Sunflower looks like a not so good compromise for either stove or heater. Thanks Luke.
Appreciate your review on the sunflower I was actually thinking about purchasing. I wasn’t sure radiant heat was good for my uses which you proved it would not be, thanks keep up the good work.
NOPE! I personally would be afraid to use that heater/stove, just by looking at it.
A heater for a backpack tent? Hogwash.. nah!
Yes I saw that stove also. Looks too scary for me!
🤣🤣🤣
Ive had my FireMaple torch for years! Love it
I was just desperately thinking of what to watch then the algorithm come to my rescue with another awesome episode from outdoor gear review and I haven't even watched this channel for like a good 6 months so I have a lot of good content to watch thank you Luke!
Thanks for this review! I am always looking for ways to stay warm and was wondering about this stove. You saved me money!
This channel is my favorite review channel of all time. Thanks Luke - Mrs. Huse of California
I like the idea. My biggest gripe about cooking is that too many stoves create pinpoint hot spots, which make cooking difficult. Nor do most stoves allow for the lesser heating you need to simmer noodles or rice. Does this stove use a catalytic bed, like a Coleman heater?
Lol!! Luke, You couldn't resist.. 😆🤣🤣 Cheers buddy, Pete
They grill coming off is driving me crazy watching you handle it. Lol
It’s a little pricy, but as a stove, I don’t have a problem with it. If you don’t use a windscreen with most stoves, you’re going to lose some time off of boil times. I don’t lose to much sleep with boil times. ✌️🇺🇸
Looking good Luke 👍 I wish you could review for me and my family a good backpacking “pack” & maybe a video about different PU Water P ratings. nylon vs polyester and so on…
I'm imagining using this ice fishing and it seems interesting. On a tripod, with the fuel on a table or some kind of sill, where you wouldn't expect it to heat the entire shelter. I think it would work there. Similarly in some kind of open shed or lean-to. But that's really it.
I don't think it's a bad product, but it's way overpriced for what it does. Also, the grill/grate problem is such an easy fix for the manufacturer....just a notch in each leg for them to lock into the holes....such a shame. Great review and looking forward to your next review/use of this one.
A Dremel with a grinding tip is ones friend in the situation. Like bend the ends with a small 90 degree angle and oval out the two holes on one side close to the heating element so you can insert the two legs into the normal holes on the other side and then take your thumbs and apply a little pressure on the other legs insert them into the oval holes and they will bend back by themselves into a locking position. I live to trouble shoot..
Yeah the grill plate coming off did get annoying. Glad you mentioned it because I forgot to
A interesting product. But what good is a heater that can't be used in your tent and the cheapest Walmart stove boils faster And don't like not being able to use propane, and all types of butane. Wilderness doesn't always have places to buy certain types
After seeing the review about the 3 burner stove i followed the amazon link but it was 35 euro i think, i didn't buy it but i got one very similar with one strong burner in the middle, better than the other one I'm thinking as it won't be up the sides of the pot unless turned up very high. Got it for 20 euro in same orange box wit adapter, im very pleased with it.
Thanks for this nice review! The fuel source (price and temp range) is the biggest disadvantage IMO.
2nd time ?? From 2 weeks ago.
Pairing this space heater with a desk tripod and running it in your tent for a brief amount of time on those cold winter nights could be a neat idea. I wouldn't trust it to run all night though like I do a Buddy. Still, I think it could be useful in some limited situations. It could also function as a temporary space heater for your car in an emergency.
you will be amazed at how quickly the carbon monoxide builds up in the tent
@@graemefenwick6925 I bring a small carbon monoxide detector with me while winter camping and I typically leave all the vents and a little of the mesh door unzipped for just this reason. I haven't ever had an issue. You're right though. Carbon monoxide can build up quickly in a tent and so anyone using heating products in a tent should be careful.
I used to backpack in the San Juan Mts of Colorado when I was younger. One thing I found out quickly was the altitude makes a huge difference in boil times. Maybe a quick mention of your testing altitude would help us folks out in Rocky Mountain country. Thanks for all you do.
For elevation in our area your better off for the reliability using liquid gas stoves imo, expecially if you go when it can get cold. Best for cooking msr dragonfly best for bombproof that you can cook on msr xgk ex harder to cook on. These are way cheaper to use long term less than 1/8 the cost in fuel using white gas and even cheaper with other fuels. I would get the silencer for them as it makes them super quiet. I take mine camping/ice fishing at 13-14k without worrying if it will get to cold,windy, etc to work. I keep that and a firebox stove best combo for hiking or to have on hand in emergencies,power outages, etc. only takes maybe 30 seconds to get them going vs propane being instant on but a much higher cost of fuel and if it get to cold propane wont vaporize
We sell a propane Buddy that is 2 piece heater and cooker...more for storage ease than multi purpose. I trust and use Buddy or Martin products.. this, not so much.
I'm going into my third winter with my Big Buddy heating my RV. Buddy is made by "Mr Heater" btw. They make smaller units and are famous for tents. The homeless use them extensively... And you can re-fill the small propane canisters from a larger one although they tell you not to. Wonder why? Those small canister are $7 and it's only like 1/5 gallon. Propane is $3.50 gallon here.
The Sunflower stove is on Amazon for $ 89.00. Thank you for your review a lot of time it's a eye opening .
It may be that the 1lb Coleman propane bottles are only common in the U.S, while iso-butane is available all over the world. In other words, this makes a lot more sense when you live somewhere where you can't buy a Buddy heater and feed it propane at half the price (or even less if you buy the adapter for the 25 lb cylinders).
It's an interesting concept and I think it has merit if a few design changes can be made. The main thing that turned me off was that they said it's not recommended for 'indoor use' such as vehicles and tents. Mr Buddy heaters can be very safe indoors and put out more heat. I have one of the Big Buddy heaters and used it to heat my apartment when the furnace went and it took several days to get it fixed. It was totally safe and I only went through two 20lbs propane tanks costing me around 60 bucks. I hope they continue to R&D this product and make improvements.
Most likely, this is also safe. What makes a heater safe or unsafe for use indoors, is whether or not it has complete combustion. This is almost certainly going to do that. But the Mr Buddy weighs 9 pounds. It's also massively mass produced. Mr Buddy also includes a carbon monoxide detector in case it stops having complete combustion. And they do. So if you're asleep when it messes up, you better hope the detector hasn't stopped working due to not being used. And it's a mathematical fact that sooner or later, it will break
The Mr. Heater Portable Buddy does not have a CO detector, just an ODS: kzhead.info/sun/fNGgn7WKb6WphH0/bejne.html
I don’t see a scenario where i would use this item. If its cold enough for a heater i would rather build a fire and if there are fire restrictions i would rather buy a heater that is more efficient with fuel. Isobutane is pricey .In addition you cannot use it in a tent to heat which is where it may heat the best because of the small enclosed space. This makes no sense. Im glad you do these reviews to stop people from wasting their money!
I bet these would be great for truck campers with ventilation. Well we shall see in March! Good for back up but a shame it is not propane. More for hiking where less is more!
0:53 me personally i just like the looks of the bag 😅😅😅 sleek and modern
Didn’t you already use this on a recent camping trip? I remember you not liking it then and ended up using your other small cupid heater, correct me if I’m wrong. Love all your videos, thanks 🙂
Thanks for the review.
I usually tent to agree with your findings, but not on this one. A Mr. Buddy heater is at least $70. This is much smaller, lighter and doubles as a stove. Amazon currently has the FireMaple for sale at $89. Lastly, I assume the intent of the tripod use was for a much smaller compact one. Like all fueled heaters, CO is a concern. I would assume the same safety measures for a propane heater in a tent would suffice. I think this will be on my Christmas list. Thanks for all your reviews! I've made and avoided several purchases over the years after watching your reviews. Happy Thanksgiving.
Fire maple seems to be for camp cooking where naturehike were for tents a few years back. Throwing ideas against a wall hoping things stick. 60% ok 10% surprisingly good and 20% dangerous.
Fire Maple makes very good products; well made. The problem with low BTU / long-time-to-boil is high fuel consumption rates. If you run out of fuel, you are screwed. And, if you can’t use stainless steel, you are forced to purchase high priced titanium or use aluminum. I put this in the same category with Jetboil stove; a nice product with limited versatility. I can do everything these products do with unlimited versatility with my Firebox stove. What would compel me to purchase a high-priced product with built in limitations? At least with Jetboil you get very quick boil times.
I'll definitely have to see more testing.
What do you think of the Mr. Heater Little Buddy as an alternative heater?
A camping heater that you're not supposed to use in a tent or car? What are you supposed to be heating, the woods? I'll just carry hand warmers. For cooking it might actually be interesting as it has a pretty large heating area. But for that price (and frequently less), there are a lot of options.
Thanks brother i need something for my snugpak cave tent ⛺️ come out and camp and sasquatch with me one day.
looking forward for your adventure with this stove and this reminds me of the zippo heater, have you tried that product before?
Thanks for reviewing this. Looked good at first, but thanks to your video, I'm not getting it. Thank you again.
Bad question. Is isobutane so different than the normal mix butane/propane?
Those are infrared heaters. They only heat up an object mostly 90 degrees from the plack. Since infrared is light think of it like a work light the brightest part is what it's shining on. In this case the warmest object is what it is shining on. Luke was moving his hands all around trying to feel the secondary heat. Just sit back and let it shine on you. Soon your clothes will get warm and that warmth will transfer to your body. Also if it does not have the ability to shut off in low oxygen situations because it does not have a safety pilot light then by law they have to tell you to not use it in an enclosed space. Seriously without a safety pilot light do not use it in an enclosed space. By its nature since it heats things not air you can have the tent door open.
Your opinion, could you use a propane adaptor to connect to propane bottles or cans? An idea that might work.
It says not recommended not impossible. It’s adjustable so it should work with different fuels.
Just buy a propane heater.
Yea it’s adjustable if use propane just need an adaptor
And a seperate stove@@farstrider79
@@nobodycares9201 Yes. He pretty much spent the whole video talking about how it didn't work that well. So why spend $100, then buy another adapter to switch the fuel. Buy a Mr buddy heater and a cheap propane stove. Also, stoves are heaters..........
Nice review. Thanks
Im interested in their liquid multifuel stove. Its priced to be competitive with all the competition.
With the adapter can you use fuel like gas one???
Thanks Luke, your word is good enough for me. If you have reservations about this stove, l wouldn't touch it.
I wonder how the heater function would work well if placed under a poncho in a seated position as an emergency personal shelter heater. SI bet it would keep you really warm....
Put it on a tri-pod ? We all know that heat rises so surely near the ground is better...Keep up the good work.
No thank you!!!! Thanks for the info Luke 😊
...cool video keep up the great content.. Thank you…
Maybe they time the boil from putting the pot on a hot stove? You started the stove with the pot already on, then started timing...before the stove had fully heated up.
I'm in Bulgaria, i own as a backup a Turkish made ceramic heater that just screw on top of the bottle its about 15 dollars, but don't have any protection. But its a heater.
love those reviews. but as somebody from the rest of the world (tm), i'd be most greatful for metric unit conversions on screen. i can deal with inches .. but ounce fractions and degrees fahrenheit are painfull to impossible to convert in your head, without having to pause and pull up a converter.
I'll just take the case. 😅
I wouldn't use mine as a heater without a lean to. I like to sit on a two seater swing with a camo tarp over the swing turning the frame into a frame for my lean to. With this in front of me facing my lower body it is perfect on a chilly day.
A ventless heater requires an ODS ( oxygen depletion sensor) pilot system. The Buddy Heater has that so you can use inside a structure. Infra-heat burners are lousy cookers but rely on transmitting heat by absorption of heated atoms into the surrounding materials. I’ve worked on many of them in greenhouses and shops.
Why didn’t they just make it a catalytic heater? That’s what I have been using for last five years. That eliminates carbon monoxide danger.
we used too use the old coleman heater as bothe a heater and stove back in the 80s dangerous yes but no deaths.
Ha ha, love your phone background!
The lack of piezo igniter is more of a minor inconvenience than a real weakness as you should never go outdoors at least in cold weather without a way of making a fire anyway and there should be more than one too. I usually carry a butane "blowtorch/storm" style lighter for regular use and waterproof matches and a ferro rod (and tinder of course) for redundancy, none of my backpacking stoves have a built-in lighter. But yes, this is too heavy and too expensive for what it is, especially as you are not allowed to use it inside a tent, though I guess with care and adequate ventilation you still can, the manufacturer just wants to avoid any liability.
now, i'm no expert about these things, but when camping i will *always* bring a lighter/matches/etc. even if all of my kit has built in igniters. Why? What if one fails on say... the only way i have to cook things? Having a ignition source on hand shouldn't really be a problem. I can see it being a thing if you're trying to go with the absolute bare minimum amount of weight, but most people can find room for a bic or a matchbook in their kit. I also have a feeling this works better as a stove if your pots/pans/kettle/etc. are not shiny on the bottom. if it does work based on IR radiation instead of plain old heating with the burning gasses, a clean and shiny surface will reflect a lot of that.
My tent heater is the instafire by vesta and it works really well and i can sleep comfortably knowing im not going up in flames but that thing looks like a waste of time and money and maybe a chance of cooking yourself.
👍👍👍 Thanks. Alan 🇨🇱
That looks like a stove you posted about a week or so ago from a new tent you tested.
Just checked the sunflower store. They have a propane adapter
When I watched you attach it to your tripod, the first thing I thought of was melting tripod parts. That should put off some heat from the back side does it not?
Fire maple is a big company and surprised you hadn’t heard of them. I see lots of people using their products on other youtube channels.
Love your content Luke . Would you please bring a carbon monoxide detector . Or a sniffer /calibrated monitor to show carbon monoxide levels . Could be interesting. Thank you Luke for all that you do for us .
As long as your tent is ventilated, it'll be fine. I do it with my Lixada Portable Heater.
Yes we would really like to know the actual readings. You could save lives.
Filing notches into the grill legs would help. Run propane from a 20 lb tank. It works with propane so far. Not for overnight heat or outside heat. I don't think any small heater works outside. I use mine on a small table inside my tent when car camping. That way I don't worry about it tipping over and making contact with the tent. But only when awake to keep the chill away. Works pretty good so far. There are better options out there though.
A typical ceramic element heater which I love because of the radiant heat they throw out. Don't have a Buddy but others. I think they are being overly cautious with the safety warnings because there is no tip over or low oxygen shut off. I use ceramic heaters in tents and campers without worry as they emit very little CO, but you'll need to heed the usual precautions for heaters like this and not leave them unattended. As far as a stove, my concern would be having a pot of something boil over. Would the shock of liquid on the element crack it? At the very least if the little holes in the ceramic get fouled with gunk it lessens the heat output and it's very difficult to clean them (I know).
What is the name or brand of the ceramic element heater that you use?
Do not run this in the house. Do not run it near a mouse. Do not run it with a pan, unless you paint the pan cyan. Do not run it in a tent. Do not run without a vent. Do not try it in the cold, cause isobutane will freeze, I’m told. Do not hold it by the handle, or parts will fall in shambles. Do not use it near a breeze, including a sudden sneeze.
A good camper/survivalist should always carry some kind of ignition anyways! Never leave home without fire!!!
Do you know if buddy heaters are safe to use in a tent overnight? My gut tells me their is still a CO concern.
Good afternoon from Syracuse NY Luke and everyone else this is the second time I have seen this stove and I am looking forward to seeing your equipment testing
They use the same style of ceramic dispersal plates in commercial infrared broilers with the help of forced air for increased oxygen supply. They run 1.2-1.5k degrees farenheit. I would be curious what putting a small battery fan on low speed underneath/behind it would do to increase btu output.
You could put one of those $20 metal fans that self propel from heat, without a battery.
If thermal reflection from stainless pot causes the stove to overheat. I don't want to modify it to be hotter
@@missingremote4388 After thinking about this a little more it wouldn’t work anyway; the air needs to mix with the gas before entering the burner; that burner would be sealed for gas distribution so a fan would have no effect.
thanks you saved me time
In other words it's not meant for prince/princess excursions. Also a little high temp cheap putty on the grill grate legs works great holding it in place. Just need to unscrew the burner top and secure.
I believe you use the FireMaple 1 pound bottle adapter.
Nice concept, not quite ready for prime time? Thanks for the review
From your reviews, it sounds like Firemaple needs to hire a few design engineers that have a better hand on the camping market needs and put a lot more thought into them.
The heating element looks like the one on my MSR Windburner which is amazingly wind resistant. I’ve used it without a windscreen in steady 25mph wind with almost no reduction in performance. The heating element on the Windburner is shielded by the pot though. Anyway I would not purchase this heater/stove myself.
it looks to me that when you don't like a product you tend to destroy it, but I like your videos anyway.
Obviously there's some design flaws, BUT regarding boil times... It really isn't that long when you consider this is a quiet, wind proof stove. As it's not a direct flame it's very wind proof. I think people have just got too used to these rocket like jetboil type stoves. On the heater side...of course they have to cover themselves and say not to use inside, but that's surely the point in it.
This was highly useful.
I was interested in using this in my Van due to its small size and for use in cold weather. The warning not to use in enclosed areas is not so much a turn off as the iso-butane fuels that make it a no buy for me. I understand that using any flammable device inside a enclosed area requires ventilation and there are carbon monoxide dangers. I would prefer to use propane since its easier to light in the cold. I think the enclosed area warning is pretty standard to avoid lawsuits. I think it would work find in my Van if it were Propane I have a bed that runs along the drivers side and a bench that runs along the passenger side. the heater would be on the bench. I dont think it would have a problem heating the inside of a Van as long as ventilation was used.
I'd be coming up with an adapter for propane. It might not be ultra quick for boiling water, but Im not in a huge hurry.
I've used a Trangia spirit burner inside a Polish Lavvu to cook my breakfast and it heated my tent to almost 20 degrees Celsius within 5 minutes when the outdoor temp was only 6 degrees Celsius, so if a Trangia spirit burner can do this, well, this FireMaple stove/heater would likely heat a small tent pretty rapidly. My concern, though, is people's lack of understanding of carbon monoxide poisoning. This thing should ONLY be used in a well ventilated environment, whereas a Trangia spirit burner isn't putting out enough flame to suck up the oxygen and gas out a small tent compared to what 230g of isobutane can do to an environment if fully used up.
I just bought a buddy heater for $74 better deal
Looks like it's best attribute might be for cooking I see less of a hot spot. Maybe get decent pancakes for a change
We are crossing territory now where campers will use these inside their tents, regardless if they’re told not too. This growing trend means a recipe for disaster. I won’t be part taking. A down coat or sleeping bag is still my elite and safety conscious choice. I want to come back from the mountain in my boots to my family, not a box.
Agreed. Most people use nylon tents with warnings to not use any burning device, and this without a ODC warns you to not use it inside. So what use is this if used as advised. In open air it is little more than a hand warmer. It only is useful in a small tent. I find a good loft bag and a Nalgene of boiled water is all the heat I need to get to sleep. I have used a catalytic heater in a fire retardant large canvas tent...but i won't even light a candle in a zipped up nylon dome
Most items designed to be dual purpose end up not doing either one well.
Curious. How does a stainless steel pot with a mirror finish hurt the stove?
This is actually an infrared stove and that's why the heat is so noticeably directional, I don't know if you've ever walked into Costco or Walmart during the winter and they have a whole bunch of them turned on by the front door, same type of heat with this stove... They can be made to be very directional ...But basically the shiny mirror-like finish reflects the infrared heat right back to the burner, causing it to overheat. Believe it or not that doesn't happen with a flame... but that's the limit of my thermodynamics knowledge😂😂 I could definitely see myself using this in the winter and carefully putting it in an open vestibule and pointing inside the tent😊😊 and then get creative with a shiny Mylar blanket, It would get toasty warm in a hurry.
Another *"TOO good to be true!"* backpacking, car camping product. In my experience, multi-functional tools are a serious compromise from their single function counterparts. A perfect example is a Leatherman style multi-tool. If that's all one has on their person so that various emergency contingencies can be met, then NO PROBLEM. However, I would MUCH RATHER have a dedicated screwdriver, pair of pliers, wood saw, hacksaw, etc. if confronted by more than just a minor emergency fix. Firebox makes some of the most interesting folding stoves that allow one to utilize alcohol, propane, butane, isobutane, solid fuel tablets, wood pellets, manufactured charcoal briquettes, wood charcoal, and solid wood as differing fuel sources.
Looks like the top plate rack needs to be soldering on the 4 pegs the same ceramic plates can be put over any stove giving you heat
Any time you try to make something multi purpose it almost invariably doesn't do either well. IMHO