Posted: 7/19/2009 10:48:48 AM EDT
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My wife says she really wants to get a Kerosene Lantern (or two) that will be extremely durable, and last for a looooong time. She's started reading Patriots A novel of survival in the coming collapse, and she realized how incredibly far behind the curve we are with some survival preps... And the book is pointing out some glaringly obvious shortcomings of our preps.
So she spent most of the day yesterday going on a shopping spree to make up a BugOutBag of her own. When we first started dating she thought it was strange that I had such a thing... Now that we've been married for a while, and she's gotten more on board with survival & prep stuff she's REALLY taken some initiative of her own toward prepping. She says although candles are nice, we should get some Kerosene Lanterns... What is the best, most durable lantern you guys know about??? What are some of the pros & cons of Kerosene Lanterns? Anybody know where to get them? We checked our local hardware stores, but they didn't have any such lanterns... So we just bought up the little bit of Kerosene they had on hand. THanks for any advice! |
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I have a couple of these and they work great for home use. Little stinky with kerosene, but gets the job done.
http://www.lehmans.com/store/Lamps___Lights___Oil_Lamps___Table_Lamps___Reflector_Lamp___NEW_Size___1043995?Args= |
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I'm no expert on kerosene laterns but I did pick up a couple from Walmart for less than $5.00 each.
They're standard wick burning laterns, not the better mantel lit Coleman type but for the price, I figured it couldn't hurt to have a couple around. Pros: very cheap; you can buy one for every room without breaking the bank. Cons: I doubt they'll put out a lot of light and you'll have to deal with the kerosene smell and smoke. |
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You can always look around the flea markets and buy used/antique. The ones in our house are antiques. Just stock up on wicks. You can get the liquid paraffin lamp oil so it doesn't stink up the place. China Mart sells it, but I'm sure you can find it in gallon jugs if you look around. |
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Makes a difference if you want a lantern or a lamp. A lamp being somehting nice, glass, old fashioned and sits on the mantel. I think you want Allidin, but I will let others answer that, not something I have experience in.
A Lantern? You want Dietz. They patented them in the 19th century and still make them (off shore since the 1950s). All the cheap ones at walmart or Biglots? Clones of a Dietz.  Get Dietz
Lehmans (link above) or W. T. Kirkman I have not dealt with Kirkman, but there is lots of good technical info there. I believe others in SF have ordered from there. Lehmans is GTG |
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I have a couple of these and they work great for home use. Little stinky with kerosene, but gets the job done. http://www.lehmans.com/store/Lamps___Lights___Oil_Lamps___Table_Lamps___Reflector_Lamp___NEW_Size___1043995?Args= Use the KleanHeat, not much if any smell at all. |
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I have a couple of these and they work great for home use. Little stinky with kerosene, but gets the job done. http://www.lehmans.com/store/Lamps___Lights___Oil_Lamps___Table_Lamps___Reflector_Lamp___NEW_Size___1043995?Args= Use the KleanHeat, not much if any smell at all. +1 Kerosene stinks to high heaven. In the house it's better to just use standard parrafin lamp oil. No smell. For instance: http://housewares.hardwarestore.com/37-183-lamp-oil.aspx |
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Petromax is the lantern, if you just want lamps get "Aladin" lamps from "Lehman's " non-electric catalog. +1 on Petromax as the best. Aladin puts out less light than the pressurized Petromax/Coleman Kerosene but a lot more light than a Dietz. The Aladin is good as a desk lamp but not suitable for carrying around like the others. With the availability of small easy to fold solar panels (Brunton) and LED flashlights with amazing long run time at reduced power (Surefire is best and made in USA) there is an alternative that requires nothing but sunshine on a cloudy day. For best results use a small sealed battery mated to the battery charger (lot smaller and lighter than it sounds). |
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I have a couple of these and they work great for home use. Little stinky with kerosene, but gets the job done. http://www.lehmans.com/store/Lamps___Lights___Oil_Lamps___Table_Lamps___Reflector_Lamp___NEW_Size___1043995?Args= Use the KleanHeat, not much if any smell at all. +1 Kerosene stinks to high heaven. In the house it's better to just use standard parrafin lamp oil. No smell. For instance: http://housewares.hardwarestore.com/37-183-lamp-oil.aspx I bought a Dietz No 8 lantern last fall. Man it still stinks after using clean paraffin oil on my 6th time having it lit (well over an hour each time). It's not the oil, because I use the same batch of oil in some glass wick lamps and they have no smell at all. It smells like toxic metal and the smell is so bad I won't use it in the house, so I keep it for the garage or outdoor use. 
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I have a couple of these and they work great for home use. Little stinky with kerosene, but gets the job done. http://www.lehmans.com/store/Lamps___Lights___Oil_Lamps___Table_Lamps___Reflector_Lamp___NEW_Size___1043995?Args= Use the KleanHeat, not much if any smell at all. +1 Kerosene stinks to high heaven. In the house it's better to just use standard parrafin lamp oil. No smell. For instance: http://housewares.hardwarestore.com/37-183-lamp-oil.aspx I bought a Dietz No 8 lantern last fall. Man it still stinks after using clean paraffin oil on my 6th time having it lit (well over an hour each time). It's not the oil, because I use the same batch of oil in some glass wick lamps and they have no smell at all. It smells like toxic metal and the smell is so bad I won't use it in the house, so I keep it for the garage or outdoor use. http://www.lanternnet.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/tn8BluePT.jpg The No. 8 uses a 7/8s wick like the Jupiter. That's on the ragged edge of liquid paraffin and unless its a mix, normally called lamp oil, then it won't burn properly. I use kerosene in my Jupter and keep it for outdoor use going with the smaller wicks for both indoor and liquid paraffin. Mostly though, I use lamps for indoors. Tj |
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Here is another Review for Petromax, Butterfly and Alladin lamps. I have a Butterfly, it was cheap, but I can't get it to pump up. I've lost my patience with it. I've replace the leather, no joy. if anyone has any insight I would appreciate it. One that pumps up with a bicycle pump sounds interesting.
Edit I called the place I bought it and asked for advice. I needed to boil a one way valve for a couple of minutes to free it up. It worked, lanter works well now. Still a pain to pump. |
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Be careful with the cheap replicas at wally world et al. We bought a couple, used them once during a power failure (with lamp oil), then set them on a wood table. A week later we were going to clean them up and put them away; the finish came off the table with the lamps. The rolled seam had been slowly oozing lamp oil.
We pitched those and got a couple with glass bases that worked fine, but in retrospect they would have been savable with some gas tank sealer. But that would have cost quite a bit more than the two lanterns did. I've since picked up a couple of Aladdin mantle lamps, but haven't had time to actually try them yet. Still collecting some spares (mantles and wicks). They recommend not using the high-paraffin oil because it could clog the wick; I have some kerosene, and will be picking up some of the recommended lamp oil when I can. |
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I've got a couple WT Kirkman #2 Champion lanterns. The tall globes burn very brightly and they will burn for >24 hours on a full tank. I keep several containers of lamp oil on hand with extra wicks. Always good to have when the lights go out. I just ordered 6 of these but havent used them yet. Galvanized so should help with life span |
| i dont use the lantern style but i have several oil lamps that i run off 100% paraffin and they last a LONG time on one fill. i buy the paraffin when its on sale and usually have a couple of gals stashed away. as stated by others, yard sales and flee markets will get you going, also estate auctions, if not check out your local 5 and dime for the parts and make your own. my local 5&10 has everything needed to make your own and its usually pretty cheap. |
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I was going the kerosene route also, then I remembered the smell. I went with a Kirkman #2 Champion using lamp oil (it had the most candle power). I added the warming plate to draw a few additional BTUs into the room. Our biggest problems with power outages come in the winter time.
Kirkman #2 Champion |
| i think i have about 5 cheapo walmart lanterns, and one of their glass base lamps. i also ffound a couple deitz off of ebay, a pair for i think under $20. one was old and made in USA, the other still kinda old, but made in Hing Kong. night and day difference between deitz and walmart junk, but its nice to have a few. i just need to make a box for all of them, wicks and oil. then, if power goes out, go to garage, get box, and be in business with lights. |
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The No. 8 uses a 7/8s wick like the Jupiter. That's on the ragged edge of liquid paraffin and unless its a mix, normally called lamp oil, then it won't burn properly. I use kerosene in my Jupter and keep it for outdoor use going with the smaller wicks for both indoor and liquid paraffin. Mostly though, I use lamps for indoors. Tj So dropping down to a Deitz lantern with a 5/8 wick would make it cleaner for indoor use? |
That's a LOT of GREAT advice guys! I also appreciate the reviews & links to various lanterns, lamps, and fuels online!!! My wife and I found one pretty much identical to the WT Kirkman hurricane style lantern, and it also appears to have gotten good reviews. Now that we're headed down the path to greater preparedness we're anxiously awaiting the lanterns we ordered so we can try them out, and I'll also soon order some more fuel, wicks, and replacement parts! This has been an incredibly informative thread! Thanks for posting your great replies! This is great! |
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The No. 8 uses a 7/8s wick like the Jupiter. That's on the ragged edge of liquid paraffin and unless its a mix, normally called lamp oil, then it won't burn properly. I use kerosene in my Jupter and keep it for outdoor use going with the smaller wicks for both indoor and liquid paraffin. Mostly though, I use lamps for indoors. Tj So dropping down to a Deitz lantern with a 5/8 wick would make it cleaner for indoor use? Yes, a 5/8s burns real nice with no soot and little smell. The specific gravity of pure liquid paraffin is less than kerosene. 7/8ths and wider is considered two wide. They won't get enough fuel, the fire will flicker, which gives off more soot and smell. If I recall, the Lehman's site does a write up on this. The Alladin fuel btw is a lamp oil a mixture of kerosene and liquid paraffin that burns pretty clean, not as clean as pure paraffin) but its specific gravity is higher. I got into using liquid paraffin in boating using yacht lamps. Those lamps are used in very confined spaces so smell and soot are much more critical of an issue. I carried this over to in home use and keep quite a large supply of both kerosene and liquid paraffin. Tj |
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The No. 8 uses a 7/8s wick like the Jupiter. That's on the ragged edge of liquid paraffin and unless its a mix, normally called lamp oil, then it won't burn properly. I use kerosene in my Jupter and keep it for outdoor use going with the smaller wicks for both indoor and liquid paraffin. Mostly though, I use lamps for indoors. Tj So dropping down to a Deitz lantern with a 5/8 wick would make it cleaner for indoor use? Yes, a 5/8s burns real nice with no soot and little smell. The specific gravity of pure liquid paraffin is less than kerosene. 7/8ths and wider is considered two wide. They won't get enough fuel, the fire will flicker, which gives off more soot and smell. If I recall, the Lehman's site does a write up on this. The Alladin fuel btw is a lamp oil a mixture of kerosene and liquid paraffin that burns pretty clean, not as clean as pure paraffin) but its specific gravity is higher. I got into using liquid paraffin in boating using yacht lamps. Those lamps are used in very confined spaces so smell and soot are much more critical of an issue. I carried this over to in home use and keep quite a large supply of both kerosene and liquid paraffin. Tj Thanks 
I'll delegate the #8 lantern to the garage and order a smaller 5/8" for the house. Appreciate the info! |
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The No. 8 uses a 7/8s wick like the Jupiter. That's on the ragged edge of liquid paraffin and unless its a mix, normally called lamp oil, then it won't burn properly. I use kerosene in my Jupter and keep it for outdoor use going with the smaller wicks for both indoor and liquid paraffin. Mostly though, I use lamps for indoors. Tj So dropping down to a Deitz lantern with a 5/8 wick would make it cleaner for indoor use? Yes, a 5/8s burns real nice with no soot and little smell. The specific gravity of pure liquid paraffin is less than kerosene. 7/8ths and wider is considered two wide. They won't get enough fuel, the fire will flicker, which gives off more soot and smell. If I recall, the Lehman's site does a write up on this. The Alladin fuel btw is a lamp oil a mixture of kerosene and liquid paraffin that burns pretty clean, not as clean as pure paraffin) but its specific gravity is higher. I got into using liquid paraffin in boating using yacht lamps. Those lamps are used in very confined spaces so smell and soot are much more critical of an issue. I carried this over to in home use and keep quite a large supply of both kerosene and liquid paraffin. Tj Thanks
I'll delegate the #8 lantern to the garage and order a smaller 5/8" for the house. Appreciate the info! If I may be so bold, take a look at the Dietz Cold Blast Junior. Its black body trimmed in brass, makes for a very decorative home and outdoor lantern. Its the model I give away often as gifts to those not into lanterns or lamps. If practicality is your thing, its hard to pass up on the Millennium 2000. That's the copy of the old original railroad lantern that the top can be changed out so you can warm up soups and stews. It comes with its own little mess kit. These were very popular with old railroaders espcecially in winter, Tj |
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The No. 8 uses a 7/8s wick like the Jupiter. That's on the ragged edge of liquid paraffin and unless its a mix, normally called lamp oil, then it won't burn properly. I use kerosene in my Jupter and keep it for outdoor use going with the smaller wicks for both indoor and liquid paraffin. Mostly though, I use lamps for indoors. Tj So dropping down to a Deitz lantern with a 5/8 wick would make it cleaner for indoor use? Yes, a 5/8s burns real nice with no soot and little smell. The specific gravity of pure liquid paraffin is less than kerosene. 7/8ths and wider is considered two wide. They won't get enough fuel, the fire will flicker, which gives off more soot and smell. If I recall, the Lehman's site does a write up on this. The Alladin fuel btw is a lamp oil a mixture of kerosene and liquid paraffin that burns pretty clean, not as clean as pure paraffin) but its specific gravity is higher. I got into using liquid paraffin in boating using yacht lamps. Those lamps are used in very confined spaces so smell and soot are much more critical of an issue. I carried this over to in home use and keep quite a large supply of both kerosene and liquid paraffin. Tj If you doubt that 7/8 wont work with liquid parafin try it....I did....Will not work. I have nothing but 7/8 so I use regular lamp oil and dont stock the parafin anymore |
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The No. 8 uses a 7/8s wick like the Jupiter. That's on the ragged edge of liquid paraffin and unless its a mix, normally called lamp oil, then it won't burn properly. I use kerosene in my Jupter and keep it for outdoor use going with the smaller wicks for both indoor and liquid paraffin. Mostly though, I use lamps for indoors. Tj So dropping down to a Deitz lantern with a 5/8 wick would make it cleaner for indoor use? Yes, a 5/8s burns real nice with no soot and little smell. The specific gravity of pure liquid paraffin is less than kerosene. 7/8ths and wider is considered two wide. They won't get enough fuel, the fire will flicker, which gives off more soot and smell. If I recall, the Lehman's site does a write up on this. The Alladin fuel btw is a lamp oil a mixture of kerosene and liquid paraffin that burns pretty clean, not as clean as pure paraffin) but its specific gravity is higher. I got into using liquid paraffin in boating using yacht lamps. Those lamps are used in very confined spaces so smell and soot are much more critical of an issue. I carried this over to in home use and keep quite a large supply of both kerosene and liquid paraffin. Tj If you doubt that 7/8 wont work with liquid parafin try it....I did....Will not work. I have nothing but 7/8 so I use regular lamp oil and dont stock the parafin anymore I did put parafin in my Deitz with the 7/8" wick. It lights and runs fine, but stinks. The same oil from the same bottle burns real nice in a couple of glass base lamps with a 5/8" wick. I thought it was maybe just the metal from the lamp that stinks, but sounds like the wick size is the issue. |
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Lots of good info here! I really should add a couple new lanterns as right now we have several lamps but the only lanterns I have are Coleman type.
So, from what I get from this thread 7/8 wick is too big for lamp oil and should be limited to Kerosine For example, if I buy several #8s: http://www.lehmans.com/store/Lamps___Lights___Lanterns___Dietz____8_Air_Pilot___AirPilot?Args= Would this help prevent some of the smell: http://www.lehmans.com/store/Lamps___Lights___Fuel___KleanHeat_Lamp_Fuel___52243?Args= I live in/near the PA Amish country so when I get ready to buy I will simply drive down to the hardwares/stores in Amish country and ask what the Amish use and buy locally if the price is similar. The Amish are likely the real experts when it comes to using these lanterns these days 
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I've learned a lot in this thread too! My wife and I purchased two lanterns, LOTS of extra wicks, and a decent amount of Kerosene & Lamp Oil... We're soon going to be purchasing two more lanterns in the next month or so!  Me too. I did the same about 4 hours ago.
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The BEST I have are the Petromax Petromax Lanterns and the BriteLyt Multi fuel lanterns that run on kerosene, alcohol-based fuels, mineral spirits, citronella oil, gasoline, Biodiesel, diesel fuel ,JP fuels, & almost every flammable fuel available on the market. Both are sold by the same place.
They are both very well made.They are not cheap, but you get what you pay for. Try borrowing the other brands and a Petromax if possible and the best will be obvious after one nights use. Use them for a year or two hard use and you will have no doubts. I have two of each. The BriteLyt multi fuel are probably the most useful for survival type use because of the many fuels you can use with them. I have two PPS3 BriteLyt's I bought new and two old Petromax models they don't sell anymore that I bought at a garage sale for $5ea. I use mine at my cabin and camp site when gold prospecting all summer long for many years. We have beat them around on pickups and ATV's and several times horseback. If they just had one with a bug zapper built in it would be even better. Red |
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Just bought W.T. Kirkman #2 "Champion" Dietz #90 D-Lite might have to do my own head to head with them as I do not think the zombie hoard is full of it but I just want to check it out myself see if the extra money is well placed in the W.T. Kirkman #2 "Champion.
Also that Dietz #2000 Millenium Cooker Lantern is so sweet I might buy one for all my kids I know the oldest is going to be pissed that his sister gets the first one for her birthday but how many 5 year old girls want to go camping in OCT in IL on there birthday? |
I finally decided to finally buy a couple good lanterns to go with the four "cheap" Wal-Mart" lanterns I already have. I spent a lot of time looking and I decided to go with three of the Dietz #8 Air Pilot Cold Blast Lanterns. I got three that were Black/Brass finish and I bought a 33 foot roll of 7/8 wick to go with them.
Specifications •13 1/2" Height, 7 3/4" Base Diameter •Average 14 Candle Power, 7/8" Wick •31 oz. Fount Capacity, 27 Hour Burning Time •Apprx. Thermal Output: 1400 BTU per Hour •Operates on Average at 6 Cents per Hour worth of lamp Oil •Wicked and ready to add oil I also purchased one of these W.T. Kirkman No 2 Warming Plates that work with this lantern: http://www.lanternnet.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=WKL&Product_Code=WTK2WP 
My objective was to find the brightest lantern I could find with the longest run time. From there, the next priority was size. I also tried to stick to lanterns that were cheap enough that I could buy a couple. There were a couple others that had similar output I didn't buy spare globes or burners because when I looked at the prices it was almost cheaper to buy another lantern then to buy the globe, burner and wick. So, I decided to buy three (two is one, three is two right?). I plan to put one into use when I get it and the other two will get hung on each side of the wall over the fireplace as a decoration that would get put into service when needed. Anyways, I spent about $110 with shipping for the three lanterns, 33' or wick, and the warmer with shipping. Hopefully I chose wisely but time will tell I guess. |
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I finally decided to finally buy a couple good lanterns to go with the four "cheap" Wal-Mart" lanterns I already have. I spent a lot of time looking and I decided to go with three of the Dietz #8 Air Pilot Cold Blast Lanterns. I got three that were Black/Brass finish and I bought a 33 foot roll of 7/8 wick to go with them. http://www.bplampsupply.com/images/products/lg/69852.jpg Specifications •13 1/2" Height, 7 3/4" Base Diameter •Average 14 Candle Power, 7/8" Wick •31 oz. Fount Capacity, 27 Hour Burning Time •Apprx. Thermal Output: 1400 BTU per Hour •Operates on Average at 6 Cents per Hour worth of lamp Oil •Wicked and ready to add oil I also purchased one of these W.T. Kirkman No 2 Warming Plates that work with this lantern: http://www.lanternnet.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=WKL&Product_Code=WTK2WP http://www.lanternnet.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/WTK2WP.jpg My objective was to find the brightest lantern I could find with the longest run time. From there, the next priority was size. I also tried to stick to lanterns that were cheap enough that I could buy a couple. There were a couple others that had similar output I didn't buy spare globes or burners because when I looked at the prices it was almost cheaper to buy another lantern then to buy the globe, burner and wick. So, I decided to buy three (two is one, three is two right?). I plan to put one into use when I get it and the other two will get hung on each side of the wall over the fireplace as a decoration that would get put into service when needed. Anyways, I spent about $110 with shipping for the three lanterns, 33' or wick, and the warmer with shipping. Hopefully I chose wisely but time will tell I guess. Check out the W.T. Kirkman #2 "Champion" it is a sweet lantern! It is very bight I thought the tin was going to look  but its really nice looking! I got the warming plate also will be trying it out soon when it starts getting cold. Here is a photo of the W.T 5 feet away
This is the Wal-mart one 5 feet away 
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