vacuum(thermos)flasks
Submitted: Tuesday, Jan 30, 2007 at 19:27
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Sludgie
Are there any preferences to what brand or size of flask used by the majority?.Choice magazine did a
test a while back(maybe 18months ago) ,however I can't track it down in my old copies to find out their recommendation.
Thanks Terry.
Reply By: Crackles - Tuesday, Jan 30, 2007 at 20:03
Tuesday, Jan 30, 2007 at 20:03
Terry, Aladdin also badged as
Stanley (I think they were bought out) are an excellent thermos being very strong & keep their heat pretty
well. They also have good parts availability for replacement lids & stoppers making them a lifetime investment.
I have both the Quart (for work) & half gallon (for camping)......really up to you depending on how many cups of coffee you drink.
Cheers Craig............
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Follow Up By: GeoffMc - Tuesday, Jan 30, 2007 at 20:27
Tuesday, Jan 30, 2007 at 20:27
Must vote's for Aladdin by
Stanley also. Had
mine (2 qt) for just over 15 years and still going strong. Has a SS liner ... not a glass one.
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Reply By: Robin - Tuesday, Jan 30, 2007 at 20:07
Tuesday, Jan 30, 2007 at 20:07
Sludgie there are significant differences in there performance , pretty sure I've tested many.
Like many things its hard to get standards based independant performance figures, and range and model variation changes constantly.
You probably know that stainless ones , are strongest and loose heat fastest.
Also in any same range of product the biggest holds heat longest as ratio of surface area to volumne drops.
There is an Aladdin in there range with packing stuff between the two stainless walls which prevents it from denting easily and also gives it acceptable performance, somewhere around $60, and it has a relative heat retention time of 24hrs (60c then). Good product.
I however have gone for heat performance and this means glass.
I use a $17 thermos branded chinese made unit of 1.8lt and it has a relative rating of 36hrs.
If your look into cheap shops you will see variations of this model and your can tell because they are labelled 1.8 lt, these are the best heat performing series around
and are often sub $10.
These glass ones break easily , however most of the reason for this is where the base screws on. It usually screws and makes contact at a few points to the glass.
A little bit of sticky velcro or similar here makes them much more resistant to breakage.
Robin Miller
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Follow Up By: Moose - Wednesday, Jan 31, 2007 at 14:47
Wednesday, Jan 31, 2007 at 14:47
G'day Robin
Aren't they all vacuum flasks, or is that just a generic sort of term? If they are vacuum then heat loss should only occur across where the inner and outer meet, and I assume there would be a few such points. But surely the loss across these would be minimal. I have always assumed that the weak point, i.e. point of maximum heat loss, is at the top around/through the stopper.
Cheers from the Moose
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Follow Up By: Max - Sydney - Wednesday, Jan 31, 2007 at 15:59
Wednesday, Jan 31, 2007 at 15:59
Me too Moose. We have got a 1 litre vacuum flask from the local cheapie
shop, stainless steel. Took it back when it didn't hold heat, and the replacement one has worked fine for several years. We fill it with boiling water at the start of each travelling day and can get a couple of cuppas or one cuppa and one instant soup (for lunch) out of it no worries, and we haven't had to worry about breakage, unlike the long line of broken flasks we have had over the years, and I'd swear they kept the heat no better than this one.
By the nature of the vessel there will be a bit of conduction across the join at the top and ss has a slightly higher thermal conductance than glass but from experience it trivial.
The brand? A very imaginative "Unbreakable"!
Max
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Follow Up By: Robin - Wednesday, Jan 31, 2007 at 16:10
Wednesday, Jan 31, 2007 at 16:10
Hi Moose
Yes supposed to be Vacuum , only opened the glass ones , and usually then by dropping them !
The Aladdin/
Stanley ones with internal foam or charcoal stuff (between the two layers), you'd think would be hard to make with a vaccum.
Stopper is major loss factor in really good ones and glass versions usually have two plastic cups on top which helps, and stopper is hollow as
well.
The other factor is that stainless steel losses heat lot more than glass mainly because of finness of surface finish. Its easy to go cheap here and cheap ones are really bad, one I have cannot keep coffee to hot to drink for just 8 hrs whereas the glass ones I refferred to can do it for a day in cold conditions.
Its tricky in that the most expensive hasn't heat retention of ones 1/3rd the cost.
Robin Miller
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