Whale Oil Fuel Substitute? [Index: Fuels]
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Whale Oil Fuel Substitute? [Index: Fuels]
by Mark Deppe (deppe@ondisplay.com)
Posted: Nov. 10, 1998 @ 13:27.
I've recently become interested in whale oil lamps, and wondered what
sort of fuel it would take to burn one in an authentic manner. Would
standard paraffin lamp oil work OK? Are there any other substitutes,
like vegetable oil, or mineral oil that might be more appropriate?
I'm also curious if wicks can be obtained for these kinds of burners,
and if not, what materials would make workable
wicks.
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On Nov. 10, 1998 @ 13:43, Fred (fred.smith@cwusa.com) wrote:
I have seen whale oil lamps burning mineral oil. I know that mineral
oil smells a lot better. For wicks, I assume the lamps had 'standard'
rope/round wicks. I think Fil can correct me here if I am wrong. Best
of Luck
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On Nov. 10, 1998 @ 20:48, Fil Graff, Guild Secretary (fgraff@comcast.net) wrote:
Mark: Fred has it nailed! "Mama's favorite laxative", plain old
el-cheapo generic Mineral Oil is the easiest. Replaces whale oil,
Colza and any of the refined "heavy oils" that are near impossible to
get. And, it doesn't SMELL DEAD! You'll ned to do some playing around
with wicks. The tubes in a whale oil burner aren't any too big, and
stuffing a wick in the tube will likely result in restricting the
flow of oil. The round wick available today for the Chinese
pseudo-Pixie mini-lamp burners is too thick (too thick even for a
rally good burn with a burning fluid lamp using kerosene!) Mayhaps an
athletic shoe shoelace would work...that's a place to start, anyway.
:: Fil ::
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On Nov. 10, 1998 @ 21:34, Mark Deppe (deppe@ondisplay.com) wrote:
Fil, That's exactly what I was looking for! Thanks! You have saved me
the experience of stinking up my house with dead smell! How well does
standard paraffin lamp oil work in these things, do you know? And
while I'm on the subject, what would you recommend for a burning
fluid lamp - kerosene, paraffin, or mineral oil? I've noticed my
local OSH hardware store sells various sizes of cotton rope and cord,
which I was thinking could be unraveled to get some of the smaller
strands, and might just fit. So I think that's where I'll start with
the search for a workable wick material. Thanks again, Mark
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On Nov. 11, 1998 @ 07:07, Fred (fred.smith@cwusa.com) wrote:
Mark, I would not use Kerosene (Paraffin in UK parlance) as it is too
volatile. You really don't want the flame to travel down the wick
into the font. Fluid Burning lamps, which followed whale oil, had
taller stems on the burner just to keep the flame away from the font
and the more volatile "Burning Fluid". Today, I would use mineral oil
(and maybe mixed with a drop or two of turpintine) in a fuild lamp.
Colza is - if I have my facts straight - oil from the rape seed which
is a common cooking oil in some countries. So it is still available
in some places.
Fred
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On Nov. 12, 1998 @ 11:33, Heinz Baumann (baumann@sc3101.med.buffalo.edu) wrote:
Hello Mark, Fred and Fil, Here are my experiences with using
oil-burning devices: I prefer any type of regular vegetable oil over
mineral oil. There are two reasons: 1) Mineral oil is somewhat an
anachronism (a "modern" substitute for animal or plant products which
had been used before introduction of coal or crude oil distillates)
and 2) burning vegetable (or animal) oil produces a distinct odor
whose flavor can't be reproduced by the "sterile" mineral oil. I call
it lamp enthusiast's perfume that adds to the addiction of some, or
to the dislike of others (then called "stinking smell"). Every
open-flame whale oil burner generates appreciably more odor than
chimney-equipped ones. A simple way to get a "string wick" for a
whale oil burner is by twisting together some strands of non-dyed
cotton yarn (or string). For flat or annular wicks to
whale/lard/lard-oil burners, a regular kerosene wick will do, or
alternatively, straps of loosely woven cotton cloth stitched
together. Regarding terminologies. As mentioned by Fred, "Paraffin"
is the British term for kerosene. However, "Paraffin Oil" is
equivalent to light mineral oil and is available from chemical supply
houses. "Fluid Burning Lamp", or more commonly called "Burning Fluid
Lamp" (or misnamed "Camphene Lamps") use a mixture of alcohol and
turpentine spirit in the ratio 4 to 1. Here again, whoever wishes to
use such lamps will encounter the typical smell of turpentine that is
rather intense with open flame burners. To complete this excursion
into terminologies: The true "Camphene Lamps" (also called "Rosin Oil
Lamps") use straight turpentine spirit. But to achieve complete
combustion of turpentine, a well directed air draft is needed; hence,
those lamps are invariably found with chimneys. Mark, I wish you a
pleasant experience with whale oil lamps. I assure you, one can get
hooked on it. Heinz Baumann
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On Nov. 15, 1998 @ 19:19, Fil Graff (fgraff@comcast.net) wrote:
Heinz: OK, I'll agree with the lack of authentic aroma when modern
sterile substitutes are used! My problem with using vegetable oil
(commonly found as low-cholesteral cooking oils...Canola Oil is very
close to Colza) is that they seem to harden the wicks to the point
where they won't draw at all. There must be something added (to
prevent spoilage?) that remains in the wick as the fuel is vaporized.
I didn't find this with mineral oil. I'm not sure I really missed the
aroma of original fuels when I switched to pharamceutical grade
Mineral Oil!
I want to caution those that wish to follow Heinz's
suggestion and try to recreate burning fluid. This is a dangerous
product at best! If you want to make a burning fluid lamp burn
safely, use kerosene. If you want to experiment with "actual" burning
fluid (and I have found 6 or 7 patents for different formulas, so
Although Heinz's formula may be "correct", it's not the ONLY "Burning
Fluid"!), do it as an experiment under controlled conditions, and
don't burn down your house because you walked away from the lamp to
refresh your pre-prandial libation! :: Fil ::
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On Nov. 16, 1998 @ 17:38, Heinz Baumann (baumann@sc3101.med.buffalo.edu) wrote:
Fil and whoever is experimenting with "burning fluid": The
chimney-equipped burning fluid lamps could be used with kerosene.
However, such lamps are fairly rare, if not very rare. More common
are the open flame types and those you just can't use with kerosene.
The kerosene flame will produce the prototypical incomplete
combustion with soot all over (it would be comparable to the burning
of an outdoor torch with kerosene). Burning fluid got a bad
reputation not because of its properties but because the people has
used it carelessly. I rank burning fluid as not more dangerous than
gasoline, and gasoline is a well respected fuel for a variety of
lamps (in particular pressure lighting). Not to forget, a number of
the interesting vapor lamps of the period from 1850s to 1870s require
burning fluid for optimal performance. In those lamps, kerosene would
behave miserably. There are a number of recipes for burning fluid,
but most of those are formulated for fragrance at best (hiding
turpentine smell). Most paint shops will sell highly purified
turpentine spirit (crystal clear) that mixes well with alcohol (95%
or 190 proof). There is one point to remember, the mixture that
starts out as clear will slowly turn yellow then brown when stored
over weeks. Maybe an antioxidant will help preventing oxidation, but
I tend to used the fluid before it get too dark. Moreover, I prepare
just the amount necessary for few lamps. Regarding hardening of the
wick by vegetable oil. For all those lamps which allow easy
adjustment of the wick, I simple wind down the wick and leave it
submersed in the oil until the next time use. Since we light many
solar lamps, we have a number "under oil", often for weeks. The lit
lamp is simply extinguished by turning the wick down into the oil.
When the lamp is used again, the wick is brought up, the residue left
from the previous burning is trimmed off the wick top, and the wick
is ready for relighting like a fresh one. Needless to say, vegetable
oil stored for long periods in lamps has the chance to turn rancid.
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On Nov. 15, 1998 @ 19:27, Rob and Beverley Isdale (robev@zip.com.au) wrote:
I would like to post my thanks to Mark,Fred, Heinz and Fil for the
excellent comments on alternative fuels, wick sizes and
materials,length of wick support tubes, and terminology equivalents.
That is is great practical knowledge , firmly founded in hands-on
experience. Thank you all.
Regards, Bev and Rob, Brisbane,
Australia.
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On Nov. 20, 1998 @ 17:31, John Ferrarone (jfphoto@tiac.net) wrote:
Mark, (and others), I have used olive oil for several years with
quite a bit of success. I start it by applying a drop of kerosene on
each wick, then lighting. With regards to smell, I do notice some,
but mostly after I blow it out. Personally, I don't find it that
offensive. I have got to try mineral oil. It sounds like it would
work well. John
Ferrarone