# Donate Unused Camp Stove Fuel: Where? How? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 17, 2018, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686 "2018-11-17T16:58:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/1 "2018-11-17T16:58:28Z")
…the little camp stove cans, 4 ounce to 8 ounce, mostly full (propane? butane?), good condition. A friend was cleaning out the garage, found a stack of these (10 or 20) and wanted to just toss them in the regular trash. Well, that didn’t seem very wise, so I took them and said I’d take care of them. So now I get to find the best home for them. They were collected from a time when her daughter and grandkids were into backpacking - buying new supplies for each trip, don’t ya know. Those days are past, and I can’t say that I’ll ever get a good chance to use them myself. But what to do with them? Seeking advice, don’t need answer fast. Southern California area, and no, this probably ain’t the best time to try to deal with this sort of thing. Probably won’t take any actual action just now. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/2 "2018-11-17T17:24:23Z")
Local high school or college outing club, or a scouts group. ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/3 "2018-11-17T17:29:07Z")
Seconding a scout troop. They’re always in need of such things. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/4 "2018-11-17T18:18:38Z")
Just put a notice in Freecycle or the free section of Craigslist, if any of your acquaintances/friends/relatives don’t want them. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/5 "2018-11-18T03:17:15Z")
You can take stoves on planes, but not fuel (I think it is the same for Amtrak). So there is a place for people to get rid of fuel before flying back after hiking. I don’t know where those are though. If you have a nearby park they might have an idea. Scouts is a good idea also. Brian ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/6 "2018-11-18T03:27:08Z")
You could leave it in a hiker box on the Pacific Crest Trail, if you’re anywhere near to it. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/7 "2018-11-18T13:06:29Z")
> [@N9IWP](#): > > You can take stoves on planes, but not fuel (I think it is the same for Amtrak). > So there is a place for people to get rid of fuel before flying back after hiking. I don’t know where those are though. The rules on stoves vary quite a bit from airline to airline, agent to agent. Canister stoves tend to be treated as you say, but not always. Sometimes they will reject used canister stoves, even with no canister attached. In my experience, there is no standardized place to get rid of fuel before flying after backpacking. I’ve given fuel to other hikers, left it at a random trailhead, thrown it out in hotel rooms, etc. Liquid fuel (Coleman or white gas) you can just pour in your car gas tank, so that’s easy to get rid of. But fuel canisters often end up in the trash or left at a random trailhead or campground. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/8 "2018-11-18T15:12:44Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > You could leave it in a hiker box on the Pacific Crest Trail, if you’re anywhere near to it. Also on the AT as well, though I see he is from CA. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donate-unused-camp-stove-fuel-where-how/824686/9 "2018-11-18T15:50:44Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > You could leave it in a hiker box on the Pacific Crest Trail, if you’re anywhere near to it. > [@Telemark](#): > > In my experience, there is no standardized place to get rid of fuel before flying after backpacking. I’ve given fuel to other hikers, left it at a random trailhead, thrown it out in hotel rooms, etc. Liquid fuel (Coleman or white gas) you can just pour in your car gas tank, so that’s easy to get rid of. But fuel canisters often end up in the trash or left at a random trailhead or campground. Yeah, the campground I stayed at at Zion even had a designated “need something take something / leave something” spot. (That time, my party took some charcoal and I left camping pads when I left since I bought them since I flew in to the Southwest.) I don’t know how common this level of formality is, however. I’ve camped at a few dozen places and this is the first I’ve heard of it, but I could have simply been missing it.