Walking Equipment and Accessories

Primus Lite Plus Stove System | Review

The popular system has had some nice new updates designed to lower the stove's overall footprint on the environment

Why We Chose It: Tried and tested design with nice new eco-friendly touches

The original version of the Primus Lite Plus camping stove, which was released all the way back in 2015, has been a firm favourite with the Outdoors Magic crew, offering a quick boiling time, fuel efficiency and user-friendliness, all wrapped up in a very smart looking design. Performance-wise, there was little that needed improving. But Primus haven’t rested on their laurels and instead have just re-released the Lite Plus with a couple of neat little changes – most of them with sustainability in mind.

Who and What Is The Primus Lite Plus Stove Best For?

With its 0.5L volume, it’s perfect for one person but it’ll also do the job for a pair traveling together. The Lite Plus’s decent weight of 400g and packable size makes it a great option for backpackers. It’s probably best suited to boiling water, either for a hot drink or for rehydrating a backpacking meal, with a reasonably fast boiling time of 3 minutes.

The burner does have simmer control so cooking things like pasta and rice is possible with this thing. It even has little pins attached to the handle that, once twisted into the screw holes on the top of the burner, will make the stove frying pan-friendly.

Design

This new version of the Primus Lite Plus still features a lid that doubles as a mug or liquid strainer. The Laminar Flow Burner is unchanged, still bringing that low centre of gravity, 1500W flame, control valve, piezo ignition and the ability to mate with the 0.5L hard anodised pot.

“Quick boiling time, fuel efficiency and user-friendliness, all wrapped up in a very smart looking design.”

The pot itself still has its built in heat exchanger and insulated sleeve. Primus have now added a nice little pour spot to this and the sleeve now features G-1000 Eco fabric from their sister brand Fjallraven along and the felt insulating lining has been replaced with a layer of cork.

Then there’s the handle, which as was the case with the original Lite Plus, can be converted into a hanger when there’s no even ground or space to balance the system.

As was the case with the previous model, you can bundle the system up like a Russian doll, with a 100g gas canister fitting nicely inside the pot even with the burner still attached.

Eco-Friendly Updates

Along with swapping the original pot sleeve for eco-friendlier materials, Primus have also switched 95% of the plastics used for the lid and canister stand to a new bioplastic material.

“The much eco-friendlier aspects that they’ve introduced are certainly a great step forward.”

Other updates include: a handy, integrated pocket for storing a long spork or spoon; six vibrant new colours (anyone want a peach-pink camping stove?); and a new gas valve with a large control knob. The latter makes it much easier to control the stove’s heat, even with cold hands or while wearing gloves.

Tester’s Verdict

Will Renwick, editor of Outdoors Magic

“The Primus Lite Plus has been my go-to stove system since about 2018 when I hiked the 300-mile Cambrian Way through Wales with it. You can see it in action on that trip in my Cambrian Way video in fact. I’ve loved the convenient packability of it, the reliable and efficient burner, the sturdiness and the little handy details, like the lid that doubles as a cup and the switchable handle.”

“Its downside is that it’s a little heavier than some similar stove systems out there, including the new Jetboil Stash, but on certain trips, where weight isn’t too much of a consideration, I’ll still favour this over other options due to its hardiness, reliability and that simmer control too.

“This new update, from having used it a number of times now, really isn’t any different in terms of performance or functionality, but the much eco-friendlier aspects that they’ve introduced now are certainly a great step forward.”