Lamp Oil vs Kerosene

[GaryMayo]

Originally Posted by kuriti

L.E.D.s?

I used a kerosene lamp as my sole artificial light source for two years. you could read by it, but it was challenging and the low light just makes you sleepy. My experience was that people without electricity just go to sleep at night. At least on the equator where nights don't vary much. fuel is expensive in poor countries and often not available. I had a cheap kerosene lamp but ended up making my own like the locals by cutting a length of aluminum from a beer can, then rolling it up to hold a pencil-thin wick suspended within a glass jar by wire. used much less kerosene, though i am more sharing stories than advocating this approach on a boat.

Pics of the lamp, please.

[bobconnie]

The first 5 yrs we spent on our home bilt Colvin, all we had was kerosene lamps! We preferd kerosene to Lamp oils. The reason being that lamp oil most always had sences of some sort in them, and seemed to mess up both the wicks and the lens! But they do smell better then kerosene! but when its all ya have you get used to it !! We still like to use our oil lamps once in a while just because it brings back great memorys of our early days of cruiesing!! We have grown to really like the smell ! LOL I guess if ya have good lighting like we do now, it's good to use them just to see how good we have it these days !! ( do hate em when it hot as hades in the anchorage, and no breeze to help out LOL)

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, off.line.

[mrohr]

I attended a lecture at the whaling museum in Nantucket years back where it was claimed that the mania for( sperm?) whale oil was created by its exceptional burning and brightness qualities in the ubiquitous oil lamps of that era.

Fwiw: I once rented a genuine dugout canoe from a local in Saint Lucia to get me to a rather inaccessible part of the island. I was looking forward to a unique experience in this craft with only a couple of inches of freeboard. Almost got more than I bargained for when the captain showed up with a rusty harpoon in case of some whale" opportunities" presented themselves.This was in the mid 1980s and "marine animal" products could still be purchased in the stores for these locals. WOW!

[yubageoff]

I was reading a book in the Azores last year called Time on Ice by Deborah Shapiro and Rolf Bjelke about their journey to Antarctica. They run out of kerosene and someone recommends Jet A. So I went to the airport here and bought five gallons of Jet A to try. Works fine, similar smell to the "new kerosene" but not cheap by any means. I paid $4.46 a gallon. Glad I didn't have to fill a 737. Hope this helps.

[roverhi]

When I was flying for the Navy in the '70s, we were paying $0.18 a gallon for JP5. No wonder defense costs so much money if the Armed Forces anywhere near what you paid for Jet A.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, yubageoff.

Jet fuels are sometimes classified as kerosene or naphtha-type.
Kerosene-type fuels include Jet A, Jet A-1, JP-5 and JP-8.
Naphtha-type jet fuels, sometimes referred to as "wide-cut" jet fuel, include Jet B and JP-4

[SailPenelope]

I have an Aladdin lamp at home. Not for use on boats as it is quite finicky, but I enjoy the challenge. Aladdin lamps have a circular wick - they're a kerosene lamp.......but in addition they have a mantle (quite fragile) - like a propane lamp......and the flame from the wick causes the mantle to glow.

Anyway, websites about Aladdin lamps have a good explanation of the difference between kerosene and lamp oil. Apparently lamp oil contains more wax.....will soot up in an Aladdin lamp - you must use pure kerosene. I use lamp oil in my kerosene lamps on the boat and have not tried pure kerosene. Hmmmmm.

Anyway, here's a link to a site that explains all this:

Aladdin Kerosene Mantle Lamp Operating Tips

[zeehag]

if someone could tell me where to obtain kerosene in zihuatenejo---none of the lamp oils is available here, where no temp is under 65 degrees farenheit--then i would again have a bright anchor lamp that uses no electricity...ever.....

[LEOCAT66]

Have a DH Trawler lamp and Trawler JR, along with five Weems Plath's. have been using Klean Heat in all with mostly success. Only one of them, the large Trawler, has given me fits. It is so touchy, even the slightest mis-tuning causes flare ups or shut downs. Very difficult to raise flame for reading with totally positive results. Must watch it continually. Think it likes lamp oil better. Have replaced the Chimney and the Wick recently with no change. Have e-mailed DH, no reply in a week.

[roverhi]

Originally Posted by LEOCAT66

. Only one of them, the large Trawler, has given me fits. It is so touchy, even the slightest mis-tuning causes flare ups or shut downs. Very difficult to raise flame for reading with totally positive results. Must watch it continually. Think it likes lamp oil better. Have replaced the Chimney and the Wick recently with no change. Have e-mailed DH, no reply in a week.

Had similar issues with trawler lamp burning mineral spirits. Talked with the Den Haan distributor and they said use lamp oil only in the trawler lamps. Lamp oil has a higher vaporization temperature than Kero or Mineral Spirits so doesn't flare up. Lamp Oil has worked a charm since switching to it for the Trawler Lamp.

[Reb Blanchard]

Just picked up a pair of Welsh Miners Lamps and used Klean Heat fuel...$11 / gal. No odor, no smoke (unless you expose too much wick). Nice light yellow flame, should be appropriately bright in a dark cabin at anchor.


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