Vintage oil lamp question

[Sitting Bull]

I recently picked up a vintage hurricane oil lamp. I have no experience with them. I trimmed the wick added fresh oil and it lights perfectly . The problem is that I can't burn it for more than 5 minutes in the house without it Stinking up the place and burning my eyes. The flame burns clean, no black smoke. I have tried various brands and types of oil and even kerosene and the same thing happens. Any suggestions on what I might be doing wrong? I would like to be able to use the lamp like they did in the old days.
Thanks for the help.

[last minute]

I would like to be able to use the lamp like they did in the old days.

maybe it stunk up the house back than also.could be as life progressed it was no longer needed

but then again i am not that old GOOD LUCK IN YOU QUEST

[Grizzly Adams]

I would like to be able to use the lamp like they did in the old days.

You are . Now you just need an old coal stove to go with it.


Grizz

[bat119]

What kind of lamp? some use a mantle like on the camping type lanterns Aladdin ( not the genie type) and Rayo and few others use mantles if you light them without one they burn hot and give off fumes

[Sitting Bull]

It has about a 3/4" flat cotton wick. I trimmed it and it has a nice flame.

[omega50]

You just reminded me exactly why I have not lit the old family lamp for 7 years. Wife gets asthma attack within an half hour

[6.5 shooter]

Might?? be the wick?some are cheap and may burn stinky...My lamps have the wick with the red line in them still smell but not to the extant your saying.

[Oldan Grumpi]

They just stink. Welcome to the ‘good ‘ol days’. I once milked cows by the light of one of those things. Yeah, I’m old.

If you really want to experience the history of illumination, try stuffing a strip of rag into a jam can full of lard. It was called a ‘bitch light’ for a reason.

God bless electricity!

[Red Bullets]

A product called 'clear kerosene' burns with less fumes and odors in lamps. Home Depot or other places have it. We used coal oil lamps and I do remember there would be some odor. If you are getting smoke from your wick turn the wick height down.

[Bushrat]

Originally Posted by Sitting Bull

I would like to be able to use the lamp like they did in the old days.
.

You would have to live in a drafty old house like they did in the old days where the sooty smoke would soon dissipate. Back then it wasn't considered a bad smell.... at least compared to the way people smelled in those days of once a month bathing, bad breath and rotting teeth.

[6.5 shooter]

I built my own candles rather then but up with the constant smell of kerosene.

Got wax from Micheal's and the 5/8" wide wood wicks placed them in a 3" deep tin can filled with wax. They burned for roughly 8 plus hours and gave of a major amount of heat and light. From my experimentation 3 wicks are 1 too many.
Best thing is they can live in your vehicle and when your done they don't constantly give of fumes. And if you break one the whole house is not covered in a real flammable material. (think about the westerns and how they routed the bad guys). Still like the lamps and have a few but the candles just make more sense.

[Davey Boy]

Would ethanol work? I use it in my tabletop fireplace. No smell. CDN Tire sells it by the gallon jug.

[BPman]

You will get max heat but very little light....alcohol burns with almost colorless flame. If you just have to try alcohol then test it outdoors after dark for the effect. Not what you want for a lamp.

[jungleboy]

We used to do this for the kerosene heater in the tent and it seemed to work:
A method of deodorizing kerosene is by using common rubbing alcohol. This is known as isopropyl alcohol, and it is purchased at retail stores. Depending on the uses of the kerosene, you could add the deodorizing components to help minimize the odor. If you are using kerosene for camping lamps or heaters, you may want to add about 1 ounce of the rubbing alcohol to 1 gallon of kerosene

[HalfBreed]

I use paraffin in my oil lamps inside, citronella oil outside.

[Dean2]

The reason everyone switched to Coleman style lanterns was they produced better light and they didn't stink near as much. There is no way to use a wick type lamp or Aladdin style heater and not have it produce some smell. I still have the Aladdin heater we used for room heat in France when I was a kid. It definitely smelled when it was on but it produced good heat. Used to use it for heat in unheated garages, ice fishing shacks and the like. Still works great. Keep the wick at the right height, trimmed and use clear Kerosene and a little alcohol. That is the closest you will get to low odour.

[Brian Bildson]

Try burning olive oil

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by Brian Bildson

Try burning olive oil

Only if you do it outdoors. That would REALLY stink up the place. Whale oil, bear oil and the like are also very odoriferous.

[Brian Bildson]

Have you tried it? far cry from whale oil and burns clean. I'm old enough to have burned lard in a tobacco can lid with a twist of cloth for wick, now that smokes if the wick is too big.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by Brian Bildson

Have you tried it? far cry from whale oil and burns clean. I'm old enough to have burned lard in a tobacco can lid with a twist of cloth for wick, now that smokes if the wick is too big.

We must be about the same age. To be fair, never actually used olive oil in a lamp but I know how bad it smokes and smells if you get it too hot. I have tried sunflower and canola oil in lamps and both of those smoke bad and stink.

[Da'Newf]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

A product called 'clear kerosene' burns with less fumes and odors in lamps. Home Depot or other places have it. We used coal oil lamps and I do remember there would be some odor. If you are getting smoke from your wick turn the wick height down.

I got the clear kerosene at Home Hardware. Relatively cheap for the big jug from what I recall. I keep two old style latterns that I use on either side of my fireplace for ambience on a cold winter night. Got them as a backup if we ever have a power outage where the power is gone for any length of time in the winter.

[bat119]

Never heard of burning olive oil did a little googling very interesting

The cleanest burning fuel is olive oil, the fuel that Aaron was directed to use for temple light in the book of Exodus. Olive oil is more than 99% pure. If the wick is properly trimmed and there is no draft, it should not smoke. Olive oil is a clean renewable fuel that does not produce smoke or odor. The concept of burning vegetable oil (olive oil) in the home rather than petroleum based kerosene is quite appealing, less toxic and much safer.

Those who are sensitive to fumes in kerosene or paraffin can light a pleasant flame with olive oil. It is good for our environment. Each year the renewable fuel oil supply is replenished by trees which produce oxygen as they grow. No complex methods are needed to manufacture or refine the oil. Oil is simply pressed from olives, two thirds of which is oil, and strained.

Used as a fuel, olive oil is not expensive. In general it is cheaper to burn than most candles. The cost of burning an olive oil lamp will depend on the size of the wick. The size of the wick determines size of flame and corresponding fuel consumption. If you spill your lit olive oil lamp on the floor it will be smothered and not ignite.

Burning olive oil is the cleanest fuel and it is no more complicated to figure out how to use than the profitable petroleum fuels introduced in the 1850s.

https://www.redhillgeneralstore.com/...-Oil-In-A-Lamp

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by bat119

Never heard of burning olive oil did a little googling very interesting

The cleanest burning fuel is olive oil, the fuel that Aaron was directed to use for temple light in the book of Exodus. Olive oil is more than 99% pure. If the wick is properly trimmed and there is no draft, it should not smoke. Olive oil is a clean renewable fuel that does not produce smoke or odor. The concept of burning vegetable oil (olive oil) in the home rather than petroleum based kerosene is quite appealing, less toxic and much safer.

Those who are sensitive to fumes in kerosene or paraffin can light a pleasant flame with olive oil. It is good for our environment. Each year the renewable fuel oil supply is replenished by trees which produce oxygen as they grow. No complex methods are needed to manufacture or refine the oil. Oil is simply pressed from olives, two thirds of which is oil, and strained.

Used as a fuel, olive oil is not expensive. In general it is cheaper to burn than most candles. The cost of burning an olive oil lamp will depend on the size of the wick. The size of the wick determines size of flame and corresponding fuel consumption. If you spill your lit olive oil lamp on the floor it will be smothered and not ignite.

Burning olive oil is the cleanest fuel and it is no more complicated to figure out how to use than the profitable petroleum fuels introduced in the 1850s.

https://www.redhillgeneralstore.com/...-Oil-In-A-Lamp

COOL!. I am going to give that a try. Really surprised that Olive Oil burns so much cleaner than Canola or other renewable oils but never know till you actually try it I guess.