Oil lamps

[coastie]

I was thinking as a backup fuel for lighting 3-6 months and maybe even a backup fuel choice if I can find a cheap heater. I have a few 32 oz bottles of the pure lamp oil which work without smell but it's expensive @$10.50/bottle. I've burned the cheap Walmart lamp oil stuff @$4/bottle and its smells to me. I thought earlier in the thread though that people said K1 kerosene worked best in their lamps. I saw Lowes sells the 5 gallon can for $44

5 gals isnt going to get you far as a heat source. If a kero heater is going to be your backup for more than a couple days you are going to need a lot more.

For me I figure my lighting I get 120 hrs of light a gallon of fuel. THis is based on a mix of what I use for light. wick lamps and Colemans. If I just use the wicks consumption drops to about 200 hrs a gallon. All Coleman 50 hrs a gallon. 5 gallons would give me 600 hrs of light. I burn for 4 hrs a day thats 150 days of light.

If the cheap lamp oil at WM smelled than K1 is probably going to be worse. Before you buy a 5 gal can go to the hardware store and in the paint section you can buy a quart of K1. Try it out first.

 

[kman]

5 gals isnt going to get you far as a heat source. If a kero heater is going to be your backup for more than a couple days you are going to need a lot more.

For me I figure my lighting I get 120 hrs of light a gallon of fuel. THis is based on a mix of what I use for light. wick lamps and Colemans. If I just use the wicks consumption drops to about 200 hrs a gallon. All Coleman 50 hrs a gallon. 5 gallons would give me 600 hrs of light. I burn for 4 hrs a day thats 150 days of light.

If the cheap lamp oil at WM smelled than K1 is probably going to be worse. Before you buy a 5 gal can go to the hardware store and in the paint section you can buy a quart of K1. Try it out first.

So far I have bought 2 of these Lamplight lamps http://www.amazon.com/Lamplight-508...MHDM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337186892&sr=8-1
They have inch size wicks and the instructions for them say to only burn their ultra pure oil. I was thinking for small power outages

I have two of these coming on Friday http://www.garrettwade.com/bright-tin-hurricane-oil-lamp/p/51T01.01/
I was hoping to burn the K1 kerosene in these for SHTF

I also have two of the cheapo walmart hurricane ones which claim to burn anything. These would be backups

 

[coastie]

You shouldnt have an issue burning K1 in the Lamplights or lamp oil in the hurricanes. Test out the WM hurricane lamps now as a lot of them leak at the seam. Get a couple spare chimneys/ globes for them along with some wicks and you should be good to go. Dont go overboard on the wicks as they last a long time. You can usually get better quality wicks than the Lamplights at the local hardware store. I bought a gross of #2 wicks years ago and my great grandkids are going to be using them.

 

[bfm]

I have a few old 2.5 gallon metal cans that I fill from plastic bottles of oil. I stock up when I see a sale.

Cans are similar to these, but probably from the 50s.
Justrite 2.5 Gallon Type 2 AccuFlow Oil Can

 

[kman]

You shouldnt have an issue burning K1 in the Lamplights or lamp oil in the hurricanes. Test out the WM hurricane lamps now as a lot of them leak at the seam. Get a couple spare chimneys/ globes for them along with some wicks and you should be good to go. Dont go overboard on the wicks as they last a long time. You can usually get better quality wicks than the Lamplights at the local hardware store. I bought a gross of #2 wicks years ago and my great grandkids are going to be using them.

Great. Thanks for your help Coastie!

 

[kman]

So I got my Garrett Wade lamps today. They are noticeable better than the $7 WM camping section ones. Namely, the quality of the globe and the action on the wick adjuster.

 

[richc]

So I got my Garrett Wade lamps today. They are noticeable better than the $7 WM camping section ones. Namely, the quality of the globe and the action on the wick adjuster.

I ordered several of the Garrett Wade lamps too.

What fuel is recommended? I'd like to stock up. My preference is something with a long shelf life, that does not smell or smoke for indoor usage, and perhaps something that has a pleasant fragrance so my wife doesn't freak out.

Thanks,

Rich

 

[kman]

I ordered several of the Garrett Wade lamps too.

What fuel is recommended? I'd like to stock up. My preference is something with a long shelf life, that does not smell or smoke for indoor usage, and perhaps something that has a pleasant fragrance so my wife doesn't freak out.

Thanks,

Rich

Good question! I bought 2 and neither came with any documentation!

 

[coastie]

K1 or lamp oil. Look on lanternet for a list of good fuel for wick oil lamps and lanterns. For least odor look at lamp oil preferably the ultra pure. Try a couple different types for least odor. For real long term storage you should store it in metal containers.

 

[ARV]

K1 or lamp oil*. Look on lanternet for a list of good fuel for wick oil lamps and lanterns. For least odor look at lamp oil preferably the ultra pure. Try a couple different types for least odor. For real long term storage you should store it in metal containers.

Clear lamp oil

The colored stuff can clog the wick after a while. Same with the red colored Kerosene.

 

[Acme.Armament]

K1 or lamp oil. Look on lanternet for a list of good fuel for wick oil lamps and lanterns. For least odor look at lamp oil preferably the ultra pure. Try a couple different types for least odor. For real long term storage you should store it in metal containers.

Clear lamp oil

The colored stuff can clog the wick after a while. Same with the red colored Kerosene.

Does the lamp oil burn at the same rate as kerosene?

 

[coastie]

I have not noticed a difference but I have never really done a test.

 

[ARV]

Does the lamp oil burn at the same rate as kerosene?

I haven't used K1 because I have a huge bottle of the clear lamp oil I got when I bought them, but from all I've read, it burns brighter, but I dont know if it burns at the same rate.

http://www.lanternnet.com/faqs.htm#FUEL

 

[kman]

I dunno about burn rate but as far as smell, ultra pure has none then comes kerosene which I don't mind. The cheap lamp oil at WM is nasty to me. The best price I have found for ultra pure is Lowes @ $7.99 a 32 oz bottle.

 

[Coyote33]

I dunno about burn rate but as far as smell, ultra pure has none then comes kerosene which I don't mind. The cheap lamp oil at WM is nasty to me. The best price I have found for ultra pure is Lowes @ $7.99 a 32 oz bottle.

Yowza! That's expensive, translating into almost $32/gallon!!!!!!

 

[kman]

Yowza! That's expensive, translating into almost $32/gallon!!!!!!

hehe yeah that's why I went with the 5 gallon K-1 for $44. Comes in that sealed container that some people say lasts 5+ years.

 

[coastie]

The key to kero storage is a sealed metal container. A plastic container will eventually fail. I have used kero that was probably older than me at my friends hunting camp. He thinks it was left over from the 70s when they converted to electricity. I found it in a gallon metal can in the shed there. Used a Coleman filter funnel and it burned in the wick lamp he has there. All my LTS kero is in sealed NATO cans.

Picked up another lantern today. It is a Paulls 230 which looks very similar to the Dietz Little Wizard. Got to look it up but it was $5 with the globe intact so I couldnt say no. Also found a nice glass wick lamp for $5. Got to try them out tonight. Guy had a big box of probably 10 of the Lamplight Farms Chinese cheapies. I might go back and see what he wants for all of them. I would probably never have to worry about globes again.

 

[kman]

The key to kero storage is a sealed metal container. A plastic container will eventually fail. I have used kero that was probably older than me at my friends hunting camp. He thinks it was left over from the 70s when they converted to electricity. I found it in a gallon metal can in the shed there. Used a Coleman filter funnel and it burned in the wick lamp he has there. All my LTS kero is in sealed NATO cans.

Picked up another lantern today. It is a Paulls 230 which looks very similar to the Dietz Little Wizard. Got to look it up but it was $5 with the globe intact so I couldnt say no. Also found a nice glass wick lamp for $5. Got to try them out tonight. Guy had a big box of probably 10 of the Lamplight Farms Chinese cheapies. I might go back and see what he wants for all of them. I would probably never have to worry about globes again.

Nice score!

 

[Coyote33]

Dumb question: Is "K1 Kero" the same as the diesel fuel one can get at Hess? I picked up one of those Flora lamps at Walmart, and wouldn't mind giving it a try.

 

[Billsail]

No, diesel is #2 fuel. It won't burn clean, and will smell and produce soot. You could use it in a pinch, I guess.

 

[ARV]

Dumb question: Is "K1 Kero" the same as the diesel fuel one can get at Hess? I picked up one of those Flora lamps at Walmart, and wouldn't mind giving it a try.

K1 is clear kero

 

[MisterHappy]

In a lot of respects, Kero and diesel are similar. Back in the day, when I was working on fuel oil pumpsets, we'd use Kero to "prime the pump" - literally - as it was ok for the equipment to digest, but we could tell the difference.

If you DO try the diesel fuel, please report back....I'm guessing that the stink quotient begins with the Ultra-Pure Oil Candle stuff, which will burn cleanly without a chimney, and has no scent, through lamp oil and kero.....to diesel.

 

[Coyote33]

5 gals isnt going to get you far as a heat source. ...

5 gals should be plenty to keep you warm! ;-)

 

[coastie]

Here are some of my lanterns

Left to right: Rayo 210, Dietz Little Wizard, Paulls 160 and a Dietz D-Lite.

The Rayo needed a burner which radioman provided. The Paulls was leaking at the seam. I tried the marine varnish method of sealing the seam and it worked. The other 2 only needed fuel. 3 of the 4 are using the wicks that came in them. They burn fine. Check your local flea markets and yard sales for these. They are a lot better quality than the Walmart ones. Most I paid was $5 for the Paulls. The other 3 I got for nothing. 2 at the dump and 1 from my fathers barn.

Lit

 

[mikem317]

I end up using the propane fed lamps. Of course, only during the summer months with the windows open.

 

[MisterHappy]

Picked up a couple on Dietz lanterns ( one little wizard, one larger ). Both vintage pieces, but in good overall shape.

Before I eBay them, I figured I'd give any NESers first crack - PM me if interested.

 

[Another_David]

Thanks for the offer Mr. Happy!

I got a Coleman myself at a yard sale for like $8, I think it was. Cleaned it and put a new mantle on it and it runs great. Need to take a photo...

 

[MisterHappy]

This has been a sleep thread for a while, but I'm running a "torture test" on a vintage Dietz lantern.

In the AM, I'll see if it's still lit...cool!

Here it is, about 9PM

 

[theGringo]

This has been a sleep thread for a while, but I'm running a "torture test" on a vintage Dietz lantern.

In the AM, I'll see if it's still lit...cool!

Here it is, about 9PM

I've got a couple up on the high shelf, ready ... just in case.

 

[boilermaker]

Thanks for posting MisterHappy