One of my go to for cooking in the summertime
I've used this multi-times since it's arrival. Fires up fast, if you don't smother it with to many sticks. Heats right on the pot, so water boils really fast. I had a Amish family visit me, before she left she asked to see this rocket stove. She mentioned that it gets hot in the kitchen and the stove was very interesting to her. Sets on a work bench, on the covered over walkway, and, is still in one piece even tho' some juvenile raccoons kept knocking it off of the work table. Well made, sturdy and I am as happy as one person could be with this model. I've burned up almost all of the year old cut brush and lumber scraps. A win, win. .

This is a great product and just imagine ... it's a fuel saver. Use a few sticks and a charcoal briquet and you're set. Made in the USA is music to my ears, and they have done a fabulous job. It's strong, sturdy, and gets the job done.

I was looking for a cooking alternative for our house because our electrical system and therefore our hot plates are not reliable so we needed a back up. In that search we were looking for something that was durable, safe and that could help us endure a potentially long electrical cut. The rocket stove system can be homebuilt but this stove takes it further because it is easily transportable and optimized.

It proved so easy to use that we'll be cooking with it an extensive part of summer I think.

DESCRIPTION

The Versa is like a metal bucket (no bigger really) filled with ceramic with a funnel in the middle and a cooking crate. One larger door is meant to start and feed the fire (despite the fact that it is small, there is a stand allowing you to put long branches that you push forward progressively). The smaller door is called a damper door and allows you to control the air flow to turn the flame up or down. Close both doors and the fire is quickly out. There is a cast iron top that concentrates the heat directly where you need it and allows you to use flat pans or round-bottomed ones.

VERSAtility

We used twigs and branches because that's how we plan to use it but you can also use coal bricks (4/8 to cook a whole meal) or compact biomass fuel.

SAFETY

My son started every fire we've done on the Versa. It is quite stable due to the weight of the ceramic insulation and this also prevents any burns because though the sides may get hot, it is never scalding hot.
In fact, it seemed to me that once the fire is put down and you're out camping you can actually put the Versa under your tent to warm it for quite some time like a small heating system because it stays warm then but produces no smoke).
You would have to push it real hard to make it tumble and even then most of the embers would remain inside the funnel.
Once you're done you close the doors and leave it until it's cold, no need to keep an eye on it.

Compared to an open fire, there is just no risk of an uncontrolled fire starting from your own.

ADVANTAGES

-it is quite effective : boiling one liter of water takes just a few minutes since the Versa concentrates the heat right in the middle.

-it uses a lot less fuel than an open fire : no need to scavenge for plenty of branches . A few twigs to start and 3/4 branches is just enough for us to cook one meal entirely, now try that with an open fire.

For both these reasons I find the Versa to be a perfect tool for emergency preparedness. You can keep the hot meals + disinfect water for days with pretty little wood or sparing your charcoal.

-it produces a LOT less smoke which is both confortable and discreet.

-I love the fact that it is fairly safe and child friendly since we chose this for family time too. My son is planning marshmallows in a nearby future with his friends. I feel this is secure enough to let them do this with little supervision.

-it requires really minimal cleaning : open the doors, let the ashes out (they are quite white showing an almost complete combustion) and reuse them in the garden to both feed the soil and prevent pests from eating your plants.

DISADVANTAGES

None so far, since we plan to use it mostly around our house, the weight is not an issue. We wouldn't put it in our backpacks but we will carry it to the sea for a summer dinner soon.

CONCLUSION

I thought from the start it looked nice for our needs but I was really enthusiastic after trying this around. And it's the kind of thing you know you'll use for years and years because it is durable. My husband had doubts but was truly positively surprised. As for my son he looked for sunny opportunities to use it more.

Stove arrived broken. I cannot speak for how well the stove performs bc I never got to use it. Like others, it arrived completely broken. The base combustion chamber is built out of clay, which increases weight and obviously became a major structural weak spot in the design. It broke at the base during shipping and had several fragmented pieces. This product became unavailable on Amazon for several weeks and I bought one of the last ones before supply ran out.

I contacted the company directly from their website via email (only contact possible, no phone number) and I asked them if I could exchange directly with them. They NEVER replied. After a week i just returned it to Amazon and I did more research and found a better Rocket Stove than EcoZoom Versa and Stovetech Deluxe. I bought the SilverFire Survivor which has a secondary gasification stage and is by far built the best out of all of them. It is light weight like the EcoZoom bc of the insulation inside, not the heavy brick like the Stovetech. The inside is made of refactory grade stainless steel and is built very well plus the second stage gasification vents on the inside mean you get more or of your wood.

So I don't know how well it works but the differences in build quality is so obvious. After the first try (StoveTech), and second try (EcoZoom), the third try is the charm - SilverFire Survivor. I wasn't thrilled with the extra $50 price tag ($30 of which was shipping) but you get what you pay for.

Hope this helps.

On a side note, all of these Rocket Stoves are missing the "Rocket" part of the stove, the heat riser. After firing mine up I decided to put about a 4-5 foot 4 inch stove pipe on top and bc of the "stack effect" that the pipe added the air velocity shot up noticeably and I finally got that infamous "Rocket" sound. I want to do a test with an insulated stove pipe that feeds into the bottom of a 5 liter pot of water to see if it boils faster.

This thing is AWESOME! I work at a farmers' market each Sunday. For the past three Sundays, I've cooked a stew all morning/afternoon in a Dutch-oven over this stove. I start around 9:30am and eat around 12:00pm. During that time, I use about four pieces of wood (approx. 2"x2"x2'). The stove brings the stew to a boil in about a 30 minutes, then boils at a steady pace from there on out. By the end of the market (2:00pm), the stove it totally cool and ok to pack back up in the truck.

I love this stove and recommend it to anyone who asks about it (which is anyone who sees it).