Cedar Rapids Iowa flood: lighting advice?

[Sub_Umbra]

...Wall outlet>Surge protector>Batery backup>Surge protector>...

I'm much less concerned about transient events than I used to be. Most of the spikes have the potential to damage menory -- but only in a cumulative sort of way. Living in a place where power lines are often under water I used to be much more careful. My main machine is up 24/7 and has been for years and years. I used to run a UPS behind a 1,000 watt Tripp isolation transformer which was rated for a 3,000V spike. The Tripp got smoked -- literally -- and I had to rethink how I should proceed.

The price of memory and even CPUs have dropped so much that I have blown off most of the protection I once ran. My main box has been custom built for longevity and ease of rebuilding and with prices as they are now I'm much better off just rebuilding it.

 

[Diesel_Bomber]

I'd advise against running the Britelyte or any other Petromax-type lantern on anything more volatile than kerosene in anything but a very extreme emergency. These lanterns simply do not have the most basic safety precautions for burning volatile fuels and are bombs waiting to go off when used with anything like gasoline. Search the archives on http://www.lampguild.org for good info on fuel powered lighting, including the Petromax and its clones. I'd link to a thread with several pages of why running a Petromax on gasoline is a bad idea but searching is currently disabled and I'm tired and grumpy and just don't feel like looking for it the hard way. I'll post it later if I remember to.

:buddies:

 

[Kilted]

I'd advise against running the Britelyte or any other Petromax-type lantern on anything more volatile than kerosene in anything but a very extreme emergency. These lanterns simply do not have the most basic safety precautions for burning volatile fuels and are bombs waiting to go off when used with anything like gasoline. Search the archives on http://www.lampguild.org for good info on fuel powered lighting, including the Petromax and its clones. I'd link to a thread with several pages of why running a Petromax on gasoline is a bad idea but searching is currently disabled and I'm tired and grumpy and just don't feel like looking for it the hard way. I'll post it later if I remember to.

:buddies:

Have you read the Britelyt website? They say the same thing about the "Petromax" clones on eBay. The site says Britelyt lamps are safe NOT the clones.

For the Lamp Guild I have been there, Google seached the site and have read every comment. Most of the comments appear to be old and out of date. The poster(s) do not seem to realize there are several different models of "Petromax lanterns". Old WWII German, newer Swiss made, Asian made knock offs, and the Britelyt series - also Asian made. The only true multifuel ones are under the Britelyt label.

Sadly even the Britelyt owners do not seem to really understand that their own product promotion adds to the confusion. My opinon after having spent months web searching to see if I wanted to collect the old WWII series lanterns.

The part I agree with are any Lanterns that have "Petromax" in the name are kerosine only.

I have run my Britelyt on Coleman camp gas, K1 Kersosine, liquid parafine, citernola oil, in several combinations with no fuel problem. But then I have always been careful. With the way the filler is angled and so many joints and screw fittings getting the leaks sealed can take time.

I have had problems getting the fuel path sealed, but that is taken care of now. The instructions are on the website.

=D~~ Kilted

 

[Kilted]

I'd advise against running the Britelyte or any other Petromax-type lantern on anything more volatile than kerosene in anything but a very extreme emergency. These lanterns simply do not have the most basic safety precautions for burning volatile fuels and are bombs waiting to go off when used with anything like gasoline. Search the archives on http://www.lampguild.org for good info on fuel powered lighting, including the Petromax and its clones. I'd link to a thread with several pages of why running a Petromax on gasoline is a bad idea but searching is currently disabled and I'm tired and grumpy and just don't feel like looking for it the hard way. I'll post it later if I remember to.

:buddies:

The way you search the site go to Google and enter;

petromax site:www.lampguild.org

=D~~ Kilted

 

[Diesel_Bomber]

I'm sorry, but no. Adding a heat shield between the mantles and the base does not make these lanterns safe to use with volatile fuels. Coleman's meant for gasoline use have:

Positive fuel shutoffs so you can shut 'er down in a hurry(not just a cleaning needle which does NOT shut off fuel, or it would shut off the lantern every time it was used),

Double check valves on the air pumps, both would have to fail to cause a problem,

The air pumps exhaust ABOVE the fuel level so that even if both check valves should fail only the air on top of the fuel will be expelled and not the fuel itself,

And lastly, there is no way to vent tank pressure(laden with gasoline fumes) short of removing the filler cap. The Petromax/clones have a valve specifically for venting pressure, and as there's no positive shutoff valve this is the ONLY way to shut down the lantern.

There's a large difference between whether a lantern will actually run on gasoline, and whether it will be safe to do so. The people at Lampguild.org are to fuel powered lighting what CPF is to flashlights, they know what they're talking about. I urge anyone using a Petromax/clone to do very careful research before using anything other than kerosene or diesel and make your own decision. Yours and your family's safety is at stake.

Edit: I meant searching here on CPF. There's a previous thread here on CPF regarding the Petromax and it's clones, lots of good information there. Lampguild's Archives have their own search.