Camping is a surreal experience, both for people who have been camping for quite some time now and for beginners. However, camping is quite different from your stay at a regular hotel.
It requires you to be proactive at all times, especially when deciding ways to cook and find fresh water to drink or boiling water.
One way to acquire good quality drinking water is by boiling it. But then, when you are literally in the middle of nowhere, with limited resources, where do you get boiled water? In fact, how do you boil water?
Easy and Quick Ways to Boil Water When You Are Camping
Here are 5 easy ways to help you boil water when you are camping:
- Use A Solar Oven
- Camping Stove
- Using An Electric Kettle
- Campfire
- Car Kettle For Boiling Water
Use A Solar Oven
A solar oven is a good investment if you are looking to boil water while camping. It can be used in various types of weather conditions, sunny or rainy days, in the morning or in the evening even during night time because it has no external energy source.
You can use it anytime and anywhere as long as you have sunlight at your disposal. All you need to do is follow and replicate these steps:
Place a metal baking pan inside the oven and make sure to leave enough space on the sides so that hot air will circulate around. Also, put some water into the pan when boiling water faster; this way, more heat would be transferred throughout the metal baking pan.
Camping Stove
If you are more on the practical side, then camping stoves are something that you might want to consider. A camp stove can be used if you are camping with some friends or family members. A small pot will help get the water to a boiling point quicker than a larger one. Water boils quickest with a jetboil cook system than other camp stoves.
A camping stove requires some type of combustible material like wood or propane, petroleum jelly, and some tissues just to make sure it will light up quickly.
To heat water using a camp stove, fill up the pot with water enough for your needs (normally around 3-4 liters).
Turn on the fire under the pot and wait until the water starts boiling; make sure not to forget about it as it may burn or evaporate completely.
Remove from camping stove once it boils.
Using An Electric Kettle
If you are not patient enough to wait around for boiling water and would like to save time, then this option is for you.
This type of kettle can be charged using a USB port or with an electricity connection; it has a built-in element that helps it heat up faster than your average camping stove.
Put the appropriate amount of water (3-4 liters) inside the pot and leave it plugged in until it boils completely.
Again, make sure not to let your attention waver as there might be scalding water splashing due to over boiling water, which can burn your skin instantly.
Campfire
Yes! You read that right, campfires work too when you want to boil water quickly, similar to a stainless steel guard kettle. Of course, there are some limitations due to the relocation of your camping site.
There are two possible options if you want to use it for boiling water, but try to choose the one that suits the weather conditions.
Option 1: For windy environments or areas where there is a high probability of fire hazard, choose an open campfire for boiling water.
Put water into your pot and place it on top of the fire; make sure to leave enough space between the flames and the pot itself as not to burn it or evaporate all of your boiling water.
Option 2: If the area you are in is rainy and rainy conditions persist for several days, then use a controlled campfire instead.
This means that you can either dig a mini pit wherein you put small rocks inside before placing the actual fireplace on top or make use of stones to surround most of your fire except for some spots where wood sticks out (these will be used as “legs” for your cooking utensils).
You can also consider using a Weber-type grill for this method.
Place your pot on top of the controlled campfire and cover it with some sort of lid. Leave it alone until it starts boiling; make sure that you come back every now and then to check if the water has already evaporated or not, depending on how big your pot is and what the weather conditions are like.
Car Kettle For Boiling Water
Are you planning to take your truck or car to the site of your camping? In that case, a car kettle might be a great option to boil water.
It is more advantageous as it uses your car battery and electricity from your car so you don’t need to bring any bulky equipment with you.
Make sure that you have enough water inside your pot once brought in front of the car. You might need to fill it up completely as the hot air from your car will evaporate the water continuously.
Choose those spots where you can position your pot exactly in front of the engine’s radiator. Try to stay as close as possible without obstructing other parts like the tire, wheels, and door area.
Leave it alone and wait for the water to boil. Make sure that you don’t touch the pot or let anything near it as there might be splashing out of hot water, which can scald your skin instantly.
Take note that when using this method, the gas tank’s level should be below in order to avoid an explosion while car camping.
Solar Water Heating Bags
If you prefer a convenient and eco-friendly way of boiling water, then a solar water heating bag is a great option is for you.
All you need to do is leave your pot with water inside the solar water heating bags under the sun and let it boil just like that.
Be sure to position the solar water bag outside where it can receive direct sunlight as much as possible during the daytime or early afternoon.
Bucket Heater
This one is for those who prefer the old-style water heating methods. Just like with a solar kettle, this type of setup will use your container’s capacity to heat up water using direct sunlight.
The only thing that you need to do is fill up your pot with water and place it on top of the bucket heater.
The bucket heater has a special opening underneath which you need to place directly under your sun.
There are two options for bucket heaters, but make sure to use the one that best suits the weather conditions where you will be camping.
Option 1: For windy environments or areas where there is a high probability of fire hazard, choose an open campfire.
You can place your bucket heater on top of the controlled campfire and cover it with some sort of lid. Leave it alone until water inside has already evaporated or boiled.
Option 2: If the area you are in is rainy and rainy conditions persist for several days, then use a controlled campfire instead for heating water and bring it to a rolling boil.
This means that you can either dig a mini pit wherein you put small rocks inside before placing the actual fireplace on top or make use of stones to surround most of your fire except for some spots where wood sticks out (these will be used as “legs” for your cooking utensils).
Conclusion
So, there you have it!
If you are planning to go for a camping trip in an area where there is no campfire or the weather doesn’t permit one, then this article will surely help you boil water while camping. Just make sure that you practice safety when boiling water in any of these methods because it’s your only supply for drinking clean water while on the road!
