Dutch designer Arnaud Desseyn has graced our pages with a couple of interesting stove designs before, which place an emphasis on cooking with biofuels found around a campsite. The FireTower is his latest creation, featuring a neat rocket stove design that folds up flat and slides into a book-sized bag for easy carry.
The newly introduced FireTower is cut from the same cloth as one of Desseyn's previous designs, taking a similar rocket stove form to the Kombuis we looked at in 2018. The idea is that small twigs and other natural fuels can be placed into an angled chute, which works as a self-feeding side pipe to keep the fire burning.
As opposed to the cylindrical Kombuis, the FireTower comes as a flat-packed solution. Setup involves unfolding the base and locking it in place with a pin along one edge, then dropping the side pipe and a pair of ash plates into place to keep the fire off the ground and boost airflow.
A pot stand is then placed on top, with the ash plate in the base designed to create a natural air flow from beneath the wood, making it burn hotter and with less smoke. This stainless steel cooking solution weighs 750 g (26 oz) and packs down to 22 X 12 x 2 cm (8.5 inch x 5 inch x 0.8 inch). It can then be slid into a book-sized bag for easy carry.
Like his previous stoves, Desseyn has taken to Kickstarter to get the FireTower into production, with pledges starting at €59 (US$68) and shipping slated for April 2022. He has hopes of offering a 300-g (10-0z) titanium version if a stretch goal of €100,000 can be reached, and with €23,000 raised at the time of writing and three weeks remaining on the campaign, is in with a shot.
You can check out the promo video below.
Source: Kickstarter
