Butane
Butane is a fuel gas, and it's the usual gas in small camping cartridges for stoves. Cold weather affects how some gas mixes perform, so check the cartridge and stove maker's guidance before you rely on it in the cold.
Where you'll see it
Butane is named on cartridge packs, stove boxes and camping gas pages, sometimes as part of a mix. The stove's instructions say which gas and fitting it takes, so read them before you buy or pack a cartridge. Some campsites set their own rules on gas, so check the campsite's page as well.
What to check
- Whether your stove is made for butane or a butane mix, using the stove's instructions.
- The fitting the cartridge uses, since cartridges of different types don't interchange.
- Whether the maker recommends a particular mix for cold mornings.
- Cook outside in the open air, away from the tent. Never use a stove, BBQ or gas heater inside or at the doorway of a tent, porch or awning.
- Take empty cartridges home or to a recycling point that accepts them. Never refill them.
Related terms
- Propane: the other common camping gas, usually sold in larger cylinders.
- Gas cartridge: the small canister that butane is usually sold in.
- Screw-thread cartridge: a cartridge type that screws onto the stove.
Read more: Camping gas guide: types, sizes and how much (UK) and the camping gas calculator.