Hello all. Faffing with going lighter and some more bivvy trips this year. I have a nice titanium mug and Esbit wing stove. I have an old windbreak I plan to cut down as well. I was wondering if anyone has made their own pot cosy for a mug like this, that I can leave on when cooking (like a jetboil)...?

Cheers

My cosy is just silver bubble wrap (reflectix the Americans call it) and gaffer tape. Admittedly it can't go on the stove but works a treat and cheap. A big roll of the stuff also makes great windscreen insulators to stop them icing over

I r dork!

I'm not convinced the neoprene sleeves on JB, etc really help reduce boil times much. What seems to make the biggest difference is the use of a cosy after your water's boiled (as CM says up there ^). While they don't reduce boiling time they reduce the amount of fuel required to prepare/rehydrate a meal ... it's like free fuel

I've noticed reasonable reductions in boil time when I've pre-heated my water a little ... stick the bottle, etc somewhere warm for half an hour before using it, rather than boiling water straight from source.

s8tannorm wrote: I've noticed reasonable reductions in boil time when I've pre-heated my water a little ... stick the bottle, etc somewhere warm for half an hour before using it, rather than boiling water straight from source.

Surely that add's 30 minutes to it

I've no experience of the jetboil but I have a mKettle woodburner that has a neoprene cover and it's there to make it safe to pick up. It must be of limited value at retaining heat because of its thinness.
You can make a pot/mug cosy out of camping mat and duct tape. The silver foil isn't essential. The principle is just the same as a hay box but in miniature.

The silver foil isn't essential.

True enough. It is shiney though

Hmmm, a cosy I am making, I just was observing on a couple of cold (subzero) days recently that the heat loss above the windscreen was morer (e.g. inside the pot you could see the water forming and bubbling up below the line of the windscreen, but not above).
Maybe I need to make a tighter / higher screen a-la Caldera Cone....and an insulated lid.

Maybe I need to make a tighter / higher screen a-la Caldera Cone....and an insulated lid.

That should really make a difference, besides keeping the heat robbing wind away, you're also directing the heat into the pot/mug.