Aladdin lamps

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randyt

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A nice light although finicky in my opinion is a Aladdin oil lamp. There has been some talk about the mantles emitting radiation. From my research the early mantles had radium in them but the newer mantles no longer have radium.

I have a few Aladdin lamps. My father preferred a glass font lamp, he liked to be able to see the oil level and that is nice.

here is one of my aladdin lamps on a wall bracket

B1DfJxol.jpg
 
I have a combustion analyzer that I use in HVAC work and have checked that with that. Zilch on the CO, I would be more concerned with a oil fired lamp. With my experience a oil fired furnace generally has more issues with CO. All unvented appliances should be checked periodically.
 
I have a combustion analyzer that I use in HVAC work and have checked that with that. Zilch on the CO, I would be more concerned with a oil fired lamp. With my experience a oil fired furnace generally has more issues with CO. All unvented appliances should be checked periodically.
Someday my prince will come errr.. I should get one of those.

Ben
 
Mantles do emit a low amount of Radiation. We use them as a test to make sure our Rad meters are functioning. But the levels are so low it would take many years with one being carried around to do any harm, if it did then.
Guess who just learned how to test his rad meter.

Ben
 
I have my father’s lamp that was his father’s, I believe the current mantle was put in in the 80s and it is radioactive. I don’t worry about it since I don’t snuggle up to the lamp.
Yes, the gas mantles have radioactive Thorium in them.
Even though they expose the user to "radiation", it is only a fraction of just stepping out in the sunshine :rolleyes:.
Both are harmless.
 
Guess who just learned how to test his rad meter.

Ben
They (the mantles) can only be detected by low-level meters like the CDV-700.
Most other meters only detect higher (dangerous) levels. I have several.
Those can be tested by your new friend: your chiropractor
biggrin.gif
.
I don't want to derail this thread, so back to oil lamps! :woo hoo:
 
Any open flame presents a CO risk, eventually, if there is poor ventilation. If the room is tight the flame burns up the O2. As O2 levels drop you start getting incomplete combustion and the production of CO instead of CO2. Your appliance could test well and still kill you IF you stick it in a room with poor ventilation.
 
The old Aladdin mantles used thorium and gave off light equivalent to a 60-watt incandescent light bulb. Not sure what the new mantles use, but they are supposed to be safer....but at a cost of less light. The new mantles provide only 40-watts of light.

I'll still use an Aladdin lamp over a plain oil lamp because the Aladdin lamp burns cleaner. That Aladdin mantle is like a catalytic converter on a car....it burns all the noxious volatile hydrocarbons that plain oil lamps emit into your home. In other words, your indoor air quality is much poorer when burning a plain oil lamp compared to an Aladdin. Don't believe me? Run an Aladdin next to a plain oil lamp for several hours side by side. The chimney on the oil lamp is all sooted up. The chimney on an Aladdin is clean as a whistle.

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ALADDIN_8312512.jpg
 
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randyt, great looking cabin. Many years ago when we were still living very basic, my wife and I had a bad experience with a propane catalytic heater, so we tend to be touchy on things that are unvented. My wife complains about the smoke that sometimes belches out of our wood stove when I refill it and I've told her maybe we ought to just get a Toyo kerosene stove, they are very high efficiency, but she realizes that we can always get firewood, when heating and lamp oils may become unavailable.
 
Yes randyt, cool cabin. Anybody else living with an old, unvented Servel fridge? I worried about it at first but I couldn't get it to set off the Co2 detector. It's been 13 years now. Maybe that's why I'm so forgetful. :confused2:

Viking, Pine is the best firewood that I have available so I try to clean my chimney every month if roof conditions allow. It helps with the belching smoke problem. I can see how the soot that settles on everything when that happens could irritate someone.
 
No thread derail here.
https://www.homesteadingforum.org/threads/most-unusual-item-that-you-have-in-your-preps.8742/post-225018
One day I may have an oil lamp. Very good to know someone with experience with them.
They worked great for decades before we got 'fancy' improving them. :(

We used them alot in the 50s when storms knocked out lights. That is if they are kerosene lamps yall are talking about. Hubby and I just used 2 oil lamps night before last when lights were knocked out by srorm. Of course they have wicks so can use keroene too.
 
Yes randyt, cool cabin. Anybody else living with an old, unvented Servel fridge? I worried about it at first but I couldn't get it to set off the Co2 detector. It's been 13 years now. Maybe that's why I'm so forgetful. :confused2:

Viking, Pine is the best firewood that I have available so I try to clean my chimney every month if roof conditions allow. It helps with the belching smoke problem. I can see how the soot that settles on everything when that happens could irritate someone.
When we lived in the mountains west of Denver we used lodgepole pine, it burned very good, it was beetle killed and often was standing dry, often dry enough to burn immediately, the pine around here in southern Oregon is like a sponge, it stays damp and doesn't burn very good, if we do use it, it has to be mixed with madrone which is a very hot burning firewood, trouble is that it's getting harder to get a hold of because the paper industry is using a lot of madrone, it makes me sick to see log truck loads going by, my woodstove works the best with this wood.
 
Yes randyt, cool cabin. :confused2:

Viking, Pine is the best firewood that I have available so I try to clean my chimney every month if roof conditions allow. It helps with the belching smoke problem. I can see how the soot that settles on everything when that happens could irritate someone.
You got room, plan hybrid willow or hybrid poplar, in 3 years you will have a endless supply of hard wood to burn.
How to Make Biomass Energy Sustainable Again
https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2020/09/how-to-make-biomass-energy-sustainable-again.htmlThis has worked for a Millennium, without hybrid trees, but the speed of hybrid is your best way.
I am buying from:
https://www.coldstreamfarm.net/product-category/deciduous-trees/
 
I
You got room, plan hybrid willow or hybrid poplar, in 3 years you will have a endless supply of hard wood to burn.
How to Make Biomass Energy Sustainable Again
https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2020/09/how-to-make-biomass-energy-sustainable-again.htmlThis has worked for a Millennium, without hybrid trees, but the speed of hybrid is your best way.
I am buying from:
https://www.coldstreamfarm.net/product-category/deciduous-trees/
I'm not sure what your experience has been, but my experience is willow and poplar make very poor firewood....little heat value and a lot of ash.
 
When we lived in the mountains west of Denver we used lodgepole pine, it burned very good, it was beetle killed and often was standing dry, often dry enough to burn immediately, the pine around here in southern Oregon is like a sponge, it stays damp and doesn't burn very good, if we do use it, it has to be mixed with madrone which is a very hot burning firewood, trouble is that it's getting harder to get a hold of because the paper industry is using a lot of madrone, it makes me sick to see log truck loads going by, my woodstove works the best with this wood.
Have you tried eating the madrone berries? Just curious, we have none here.
 
madrone berries will grow in zone 7 & higher, but are hard to grow from seeds.
They need dry well drained soil & like full sun.
I wonder if they would grow here, it is a lot wetter than Texas.
 
In searching for the Russian alternative for socks, I came across this blog which has some great information. There is this excellent article about the care and feeding of oil lamps.

https://bluecollarprepping.blogspot.com/2014/09/care-and-feeding-of-oil-lamps.html
Care and Feeding of Oil Lamps

Since I live in a semi-rural area, my electrical supply is sometimes unreliable. Wind, ice, and trees tend to knock the power out at least a few times every year, for up to a day at a time (just yesterday I went two hours without power). Kerosene lamps are part of my normal life, but I realize that many people have never used one. This is an example of old-school technology that is still fairly common and can be very useful in an emergency.

Facts about Fuel
Oil lamps evolved from the basic wick-in-a-bowl that provided light for centuries. Instead of using animal fat as fuel, a variety of oils have been used depending on location and availability. Whale and fish oils were common near the coasts, while kerosene and coal oil were more popular inland.
  • Just about any oil -- animal, vegetable, or mineral -- can be used as fuel, so long as it is liquid and your wick material will absorb it.
  • The amount of light put out by the lamp will vary according to the fuel you use, as will the smell.
  • Each fuel has a distinctive odor that may or may not be pleasant.
  • Do not use gasoline, alcohol, paint thinner or any other fuel that evaporates quickly in a wick-based lamp/lantern. I will cover those fuels in a later article.
  • All liquid-fueled light sources involve fire. Extreme care needs to be taken to keep hot surfaces away from flammable materials.
  • Remember that heat rises, so flammable materials above the lamp need to be considered when placing a lamp.
  • Keep children and morons away from lit lamps, unless you enjoy treating burns and putting out fires.

Anatomy of an Oil Lamp
Oil lamps come in a variety of shapes and sizes, from the simple table lamp to the “hurricane” lanterns commonly seen in old movies. They all share the same three main parts:


Fuel Supply
For a table lamp, the base is usually the fuel supply, keeping the weight and center of gravity low to keep the lamp from falling or being knocked over. Glass bases are common on table lamps because it allows you to see how much fuel is left without disturbing the lamp. For a hurricane lantern, or a lamp with a metal base, the easiest way to check the fuel level is to pick it up and shake it gently, listening and feeling for the “slosh” of fuel.



Burner and Wick
The burner holds the wick out of the liquid fuel and usually provides some way to adjust the height of the portion of the wick exposed. The burner will have holes in the bottom to allow air to flow past the wick (covered by a guard on this burner) and supports for the chimney. Wicks come in varying widths and you can use a slightly smaller wick than your lamp is designed for as long as the teeth on the raising/lowering mechanism will still get a good bite on it. Have extra wicks on hand if you're expecting to use a lamp for a long period of time.


Chimney
The chimney is usually made of glass to allow the light from the flame out and protects the flame from breezes. I have seen some more “rugged” lamps that used sheets of mica (a translucent mineral that forms in layers) instead of glass, but being translucent instead of transparent, they don't allow as much light out. Any lamp or lantern that is made to be moved while lit will have some form of protection for the chimney since it is the most fragile part. Extra chimneys are good to have around since the lamp won't work well without one. They are measured at the base and for height (2 inch by 8 inch for example)

Before lighting a lamp/lantern
When it looks like the sun is going down or you're going to be moving around in the dark, you'll want to get your lamp ready. While not as complicated as a pre-flight check on an airplane, preparing your lamp properly will provide better light, more efficient fuel use, and less mess.
  1. Check your fuel supply. Top off the fuel if you have it, since keeping the wick wet is what allows it to draw fuel up to the top where it can be burned. There is a point where the wick will not have enough contact with the fuel to sustain a good burn, but that depends on the type of fuel and the type of wick being used. You can't have too much wick in the fuel, so keep the fuel level full.
  2. Check your wick. The purpose of the wick is not to burn, but to carry fuel up to the top edge where it can burn. Because the wick is so close to the fire it will char and burn slowly, but it is the fuel that is putting out the light. Blackened, charred wick material (like that shown in the picture above) doesn't carry fuel very well, so you'll occasionally need to trim the wick in order to keep fresh material exposed. Adjust the wick so that it protrudes slightly beyond the burner guard and use sharp scissors to trim away the burnt portion. Cut the wick into the shape of the burner guard, normally a gentle curve or at least cut the corners. The shape of the wick will affect the shape of the flame.



    This is what the flame will look like from a wick cut straight across. The flame concentrates on the corners and if you raise the wick much at all, it will smoke and soot up your chimney.


    After cutting the corners of the wick, the flame is more rounded with the peak of the flame more towards the center. This flame can be turned up or down through a wider range of light output without sooting up your chimney.
  3. Check and clean the chimney. Look for chips and cracks. The cheaper lamps use low quality glass that doesn't stand up to the heat of open flame very well. A crack or chip will spread once the lamp heats up and may cause the entire chimney to shatter or fall apart. Clean the chimney with soft cloth or newspaper. Keeping the glass clean lets out more light and looks better. Don't use any solvents to clean the glass and let it dry before before you light the lamp.
  4. Put it back together, making sure you get the base of the chimney inside all of the legs of the burner.

Lighting the lantern
  1. Clear a spot for the lamp to sit. Keep it away from curtains, drapes, cloth, pets, and other things that can catch fire.
  2. Have a match or lighter handy, but don't light it yet.
  3. Adjust the wick up to where it is well clear of the burner.
  4. Tilt the chimney enough to expose the wick.
  5. Strike the match or light the lighter and apply the flame to one corner of the wick.
  6. Snuff out the match and safely discard it.
  7. Place the chimney back on the burner base.
  8. Adjust the wick to give a small, even flame.
  9. After a few minutes, adjust the wick to give the flame that gives the desired amount of light.
 

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