MSR POCKET ROCKET CANISTER STOVES IN WINTER??

Upright canister stoves are not good for winter backpacking. When it’s -2f in the morning, and all you want is a hot drink, the MSR whisperlite universal won’t leave you in the cold.

Because of their light weight upright canister stoves ( MSR pocket rocket) are great for three season backpacking. However 80/20 MSR fuel canisters have two ingredients, isobutane and propane. With a boiling temperature of 10.94°F, and being 80% of a canister mixture, isobutane will not evaporate at all in temperatures lower than 11°F. Propane, with a boil point of -44°F, will completely evaporate before any isobutane will burn. Upright canister stoves usually stop working well at around 30°F. Fuel efficiency, and boil times, will diminish almost completely, as temperatures drop to isobutanes boiling point of 10.94°F.
Inverted canister stoves, like the The msr whisperlite, allow both mixtures to burn evenly, down to 0°F. With propane providing the pressure to force both liquids through the stove. There is nothing worse than being 10 miles into the mountains and realizing your stove doesn’t work. Been there done that!