Propane vs liquid fuel lantern.

What is the best option in your mind for camping. I have used both but its been years.

I think it depends on how much you will use it. I use liquid fuel lanterns myself and my favorite is a Kerosene lantern using wick (Dietz Air Pilot) most of the time. It is not as bright as more modern Coleman White Fuel lanterns but honestly I like that better for sitting around a campfire or tent camping.

I do have a couple Coleman mantle lanterns and certainly if you want to sit around playing cards or reading a book this is a much brighter lantern and what you want for these purposes. I do not have any LP Lanterns at this point, not that I wouldn't buy one if I found one cheap at a yard sale. Just not something I have needed or really wanted enough to pay retail for as I really love my Kerosene lanterns. Oh yea, Kerosene seems to scare off the bugs better then other lanterns too

JMHOs

I found a set on CL for $40 stove and lantern the buyer says their kerosene but Coleman says otherwise. Stove is a 2 burner model 425F and the Lantern is a 2 Mantle Model 288A, so this will be interesting. i want to get a older set for something thats better quality and build in the USA.

Yea, those will be for Coleman Fuel ONLY!

Coleman has made a few Kerosene lanterns but that is NOT one of them!

I think I have both the same model stove and lantern. Good stuff and Coleman fuel lasts forever so buy a bunch of spare fuel and you have a way to cook and provide light/heat if you are ever in an emergency situation too. The stove may well work on either Coleman fuel or unleaded gassoline but check your manual and frankly gasoline is too dirty and who wants those toxic additives in your food anyways? It will NOT work with kerosene however.

As for a good lantern, my chose, is a Coleman, single mantel.
Propane.(unless your in really cold weather, propane works fine)
With an adjustable vaule. You will not want that lantern on high all the time.
I found that the single mantel used less gas.
And puts out more then enought light. Especially is you put a sheld on it!
No gas to spill.
They make an adaptor so you can use a full size tank, if you want to.
I also changed over my liquid gas stove to propane.


PITA45

My favorites are the Coleman red 1 mantle models (available on fleabay/200A) that use Coleman fuel. Liquid fuel lanterns take a little thought and knowledge to use or Mr. Murphy or even Mr. Darwin could show for an unwelcome visit. I have always wanted to try a Coleman 1 mantle kerosene lantern, but haven't yet.

Propane does not work well in really cold conditions, is heavy to transport for the amount of fuel provided, and it's expensive. All my lanterns & stoves are liquid fuel. YMMV

Coleman liquid fuel lanterns, and stoves for the win. Heaters, go with propane. I have a small collection of lanterns going back to 1921. All work, and function just as they should, and will last another lifetime if I bother to take care of them.

White gas or Coleman Fuel has a LONG shelf life if unopened. And the old fuel, as long as it has not turned to sludge, and is not foul smelling or weird color will burn. I have found fuel in lanterns dating back to the 70's that burns just fine. It all depends on storage conditions. A gallon tin un opened, stored in a reasonable condition, will be good for 10+ years. I have heard of cases where the fuel tins were 20+ years old and still good to go.

Liquid fuel lasts longer than propane. One gallon of CF will last as long as almost 5 of the small propane cylinders.

Liquid fuel runs at all temps and altitudes that you would be camping in. Propane will freeze at low temps as mentioned before, and may have issues at high altitudes.

Most Coleman Fuel appliances will run off regular pump gas in cases of emergencies. The newer stoves and lanterns have oversized generators that will allow them to be called 'Dual Fuel' models. Only run gasoline as an emergency as they will greatly reduce the life of the generators. Propane adaptors for the stoves are available, making the stoves tri-fuel devices.

Propane heaters are better IMHO due to the lack of carbon monoxide that the old liquid fuel heaters were capable of making.

These are my opinions and observations.

I like the multi fuel liquid stoves and lanterns.

I usually use Coleman fuel in them, but it gives me the option of using unleaded gasoline in an emergency.

But, our Boy Scout troop uses Coleman propane stoves with the bulk tank adapters. The liquid stoves are a bit more difficult for young scouts to use and it's nice to just hook up the hose and turn the propane on.

I have both picked up from garage sales cheap. Only propane cookstove though.

got these today

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1217647_.html

I’ve never owned a liquid fuel appliance. Been using propane stoves, lanterns and heaters for prit near 30 years. As a youngster I watched folks fooling with pumping, priming, spilling fuel and the smell of liquid fuels. Not things I want to deal with. Went propane and I’ve never had a reason to switch to anything else, using bulk propane tanks for heaters & stoves, and the small bottles for single mantle lanterns and small portable BBQ grill. YMWV

We have both types of lanterns.

The propane tends to blow out the mantles a lot.
Darn near every time we light it up.
Tried different ways of lighting no help.

The liquid rarely blows them out.
It will run okay with 1 mantle blown.
It goes good with all our liquid fuel stoves.

[quote]Originally Posted By akcaribouhunter:
We have both types of lanterns.

The propane tends to blow out the mantles a lot.
Darn near every time we light it up.
Tried different ways of lighting no help.


Only have propane lantern. Never blow out a mantle.
My lantern has an adjustable vaule.
Sure you have right mantle?
Have you tried a igniter, so the gas does not have time to build up?
Just a thought.

PITA45

Propane ones are a good bit brighter. Get a double mantle one.

IMHO propane is easier. No pumping and when it's time to refill just screw in a new cylinder

I have an older auto lighting 2 mantle

However I would like to pick up colemens multifuel version seems that could be usefull

Right mantles and it does have the adjustable valve.
Have even tried the longer lighters.
The propane just keeps blowing them out.

I like the liquid fuel. Its cheaper, a gallon lasts a long time, does fine in the cold, and I can burn unleaded gas in an emergency. I have a dislike for disposable propane cylinders after fighting with them during an ice fishing trip in the cold.

I like the liquid fueled lantern, but I have the same fueled camp stove also.

In the past, I have always used propane for both lanterns and cooking. It is cheaper and easier to use, and safer in my mind.

My ex got all the camping gear though, so I would have to start over with new gear if I started camping again. I think this time around I might go with dual fuel stoves and battery lanterns. The new LED lanterns put out as much light and require no messy and potentially dangerous fuel at all. Batteries are cheaper than fuel, and take less space.

OTOH, propane has its advantages. The fuel and the gear is cheaper, and easier to use, and I do not camp in high altitudes or cold, so the limitations of propane are not much of an issue to me.

had a small weekend trip last. At orchard beach state park in MI. this is a must for those in the area. The pumping added maybe 5 min of work to the whole trip. two night trip.

I filled the lantern and stove with fresh gas (Coleman) $9 from local meijer. I don't see how batteries and propane are cheaper in the long run. It has been a while since I have used them but the ones I got always leaked after use. The family of three used at least 5 canisters next to me on one lantern and a stove.

The lantern ran for about 10 hours on med-high the stove for about 1.5 hours. both still have .5 a tank. Both ran great i had no issues with either and were operating great.

this is what I got http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1217647_Craigslist_score.html

Well I stick with liquid coleman fuel aka napthalene. I live in NY and occasionally go winter camping and tried different things in the field when I was in the service.

I carried a gaz bluet stove in the Marines as it was the lightest thing availabe then. Worked great until the temps got low......just when you want it the most. It ran on butane cylinders and you couldn't boil water if your cylinder was in the snow. My replacement stove was a dual fuel coleman peak1 single burner. Always works but much bulkier. Fuel cylinders were harder to find than liquid or propane.

I never owned a coleman propane cylinder single burner stove but I've used them and found them easy to use but they also fail in the cold due to fuel staying in liquid form and failing to gassify. My friends and most of my family swear by them for convenience but I'm a cheap bastard and hated the price of the cylinders. The cylinders always seem to run out when inconvenient or leak if only used lightly wasting the rest of the gas.

Liquid pros
-cheaper
-visible and feelable fuel levels.
-works in extreme cold temps

Lately the napthalene is going up in price. $9-11/gallon

The liquid fuel for stoves and lanterns gives more heat and light per weight of fuel and its container(s) than propane, but presents a far greater hazard from spills, etc. It's difficult to get injured with propane, pretty easy with liquid fuel. In my experience, propane works OK in fairly cold temps, i.e., well below freezing. Propane is vastly more convenient. If you're making an extended wilderness trip such as by boat or canoe, where transporting appliances and fuel are feasible, liquid fuel is probably the best bet, for reasons of lessened volume per unit of energy. For casual camping, go with propane for its convenience and safety.

Another advantage of liquid fueled stoves/lanterns is you don't have to worry about empty propane cylinders. Not a big deal if you're at a campground but if you're in the middle of no where (or ice fishing) the empties gets to be a pain.

Like I said, after that ice fishing trip I had I'll never own another disposable propane cylinder powered device again.

I think if I was inclined to chose a light source for camping it would not be neither. Battery powered lanterns seem to me to have the advantages of both without the disadvantages of either. And being less expensvie to boot, especially if using rechargable batteries.

Check the bottom of the burner assembly, where the gas comes out into the mantle (the mantle attaches
around it). My propane lantern lost the perforated plate that serves as a baffle to reduce & break up the
stream of propane going to the mantle. It simply fell out after several years of use.

I blew out 3 or 4 mantles in rapid succession before I figured out what was wrong. I'd noticed the plate inside
the globe, but didn't know where it belonged. Finally figured it out & crimped it back into place using my Leatherman.
Been running about 10 years that way with no further problems. Not bad for a field repair, IMHO.

If yours is gone, you may be SOL. Not sure Coleman sells the part––just the whole burner assembly.

Regards,

David

I have a two mantle Coleman liquid fuel lantern and a two burner liquid fuel stove - both are over 20 years old and are very reliable. Also, the liquid fuel lasts a long time and doesn't go bad like gasoline.

I like liquid fuel lanterns, myself. No tanks to leave behind.

Not around here turn on a battery lantern here in the woods certain time of year and you will have it covered in all kinds of bugs! In the cold your batteries are worthless because cold kills your battery so I would not choose this unless in a tent sealed in for the night! I use Old hurrican lanterns they are supper cheap to buy bright enough for what I do at night mostly fishing, and burn good long time.You can even burn cintronella oil in these and help to keep bugs away. You can use kerosene or lamp oil. I have even used some fancy colored flame lamp oil really weird having different colored flames. lol cheap and easy can carry a qaurt of oil easy that last a while if not burned with large flame!

Cold does not really affect modern batteries as much as you might think, especially since they tend to warm up some as they are used. I have not done much cold weather camping so it is not much of an issue.

My experience with propane lanterns is they draw a lot of bugs. I have tried citronella oil in oil lamps and found it did not appear to appreciably reduce the insect issue. YMMV.

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