BioLite EcoZoom Versa is the Ultimate Rocket Stove
Morgan Rogue 05.22.23
I’ve been reviewing a lot of BioLite lately because they keep impressing me with everything they’re coming out with. From their Fire Pit+, to their headlamps, to their power banks and external battery banks, they’re coming in hot with the high-quality gear that everyone needs!
Up next in the BioLite line-up, we have the BioLite EcoZoom Versa which, in my opinion, is the ultimate rocket stove!
Making meals, melting snow or boiling water has never been easier with this compact, durable and efficient rocket stove.
I decided to try it out with just a few pieces of wood to get it going. We placed some tinder inside, lit it up then once it was going, we placed three pieces of wood about the same size inside of it. It has a convenient stick support so nobody is having to hold the sticks while it’s being burned. Of course, you still need to periodically push the sticks in to make sure it’s all getting burned, it’s not self-feeding or anything, but at least with that support, it’s easy to have them sit down and push in when needed.
In the essence of this rocket stove, it has a combustion chamber that boosts efficiency, so you use less fuel. It has an insulated body so the heat stays in the stove, allowing for more efficient cooking or heating.
It weighs about 14lbs with heat-resistant handles which makes it extremely easy to transport. This can be thrown into the back of your vehicle when heading out to an adventure or you can use it at home for a fun outdoor cook-out.
The top is made of cast iron and it’s almost like it was made specifically to hold a dutch oven. It has a little lip on it which prevents the cast iron (or anything, really), from slipping around. It’s an ingenious design.
It took about 45 minutes to completely melt a dutch oven full of snow. It only used about 4 small sticks of wood the entire 45 minutes. Very impressive!
In addition to small wood pieces, you can use charcoal, dung, or even corn husks. The several different fuel options give this an even greater edge.
The only flaw with this is the stick support. The stick support itself is well made and I love having it around. However, it doesn’t attach anywhere. I feel like there was a missed opportunity there when it came to how the stick support was assembled, or not, with the rest of the rocket stove. At this point, it’s completely separate from the rocket stove so it kind of just has to be set on or near the rocket stove when transporting or storing. You could always wrap a bungee cord around it to secure it down, but I do feel they could have found a way to attach it to the stove somehow.
Regardless of that one little flaw, this is my new favorite way to melt snow or cook outdoors. It’s an absolute pleasure to use, and uses very little fuel which enables it to burn hot and efficiently, just like a rocket stove should.
At $159, the EcoZoom Versa by BioLite is an absolute must-have for emergency preparedness, road trips, camping, off-grid living and anything else you can think of!
