A hobo stove is a style of improvised heat-producing and cooking

Cooking

Cooking is the process of preparing food by use of heat. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely across the world, reflecting unique environmental, economic, and cultural traditions. Cooks themselves also vary widely in skill and training...

 device used in survival situations

Survival skills

Survival skills are techniques a person may use in a dangerous situation to save themselves or others...

, by backpackers

Backpacking (wilderness)

Backpacking combines the activities of hiking and camping for an overnight stay in backcountry wilderness...

, hobos, tramps and homeless people. Hobo stoves can be functional to boil water for purification

Water purification

Water purification is the process of removing undesirable chemicals, materials, and biological contaminants from contaminated water. The goal is to produce water fit for a specific purpose...

 purposes during a power outage and in other survival situations, and can be used for outdoor cooking.

Construction and uses

They're typically constructed from a discarded tin can

Tin can

A tin can, tin , steel can, or a can, is a sealed container for the distribution or storage of goods, composed of thin metal. Many cans require opening by cutting the "end" open; others have removable covers. Cans hold diverse contents: foods, beverages, oil, chemicals, etc."Tin" cans are made...

 of any size by removing the top of the can, punching a number of holes near the upper edge, and punching corresponding holes in the opposite base. Fuel is placed in the can and ignited. Convection

Convection

Convection is the movement of molecules within fluids and rheids. It cannot take place in solids, since neither bulk current flows nor significant diffusion can take place in solids....

 draws air in through the bottom orifices and expels smoke from the top holes. Improved heating is encouraged by placing the bottom holes facing the wind. Food preparation is often performed on the top of the stove on a cooking surface that also acts as a lid, however many variations exist where cooking is performed on the inverted base of the can.

The main benefit of the hobo stove is its ease of construction and versatility. The stove itself can be constructed out of a variety of materials; paint cans, food tins, bucket

Bucket

A bucket, also called a pail, is typically a watertight, vertical cylinder or truncated cone, with an open top and a flat bottom, usually attached to a semicircular carrying handle called the bail. A pail can have an open top or can have a lid....

s, and large drums being most often put to that purpose. Further flexibility lies in the fact that anything combustible can be used as a fuel source. The hobo stove is able to use many fuels but most common is either dry twigs or a Buddy Burner

Buddy Burner

A Buddy Burner is a simple stove made from a can and part of a corrugated paper box. It is usually fueled by paraffin wax but other fuels, such as boiled butter, animal fat or diesel fuel, can be used.It is usually used for cooking but can also provide heat....

 which allows burning of liquid fuels such as rubbing alcohol

Isopropyl alcohol

Isopropyl alcohol is a common name for a chemical compound with the molecular formula C3H8O. It is a colorless, flammable chemical compound with a strong odor...

, melted wax or kerosene.