I was always taught and still stand by the rule that nothing good can come from trying to burn old fuel. Time after time I read of folks finding stoves at garage sales etc. with fuel still in them and firing them right up. To me, this is a recipe for unnecessary cleaning shortly thereafter. Who knows what the previous owner put in the tank? Granted, I've fired and will continue to fire stoves that I personally fueled years ago with clean Coleman fuel. But I also ALWAYS give it the sniff test. If it smells like fresh fuel, it is fresh fuel. Coleman kept sealed will keep in any metal container for many years. I recently retrieved an old Coleman 220 slant generator lantern that had been in my mother's basement for 23 years. It was still pressurized. And when I opened the fuel cap to dump it out, it smelled like new fuel. But I was the one who fueled it 23 years ago and I know what went into the tank. However, I've bought many stoves that were still fueled and smelled like the varnish the fuel degraded to. In the old days "white gas" was common and easily obtained. Now, Coleman fuel is about it. In a pinch, I've use painters Naphtha with no ill effects. If I could find bulk naphtha, I would buy it, but can't find it anywhere cheaper than Coleman fuel anyway. I don't have enough experience with kero on this issue to give an experienced opinion. Am I just anal retentive on this? Or did I just fall into a corporate conspiracy to buy more new fuel? I invite those with experience to chime in on this. There is more knowledge here than anywhere else I know on the issue. Mike
I have emptied some nasty looking brown stuff out of stoves and lanterns that I have bought. Why risk it?
last year i bought an old Coleman 228 and emptied the tank... it looked like the previous owner had tried running it on muddy water with dirt and leaves! (after disassembly, cleaning, and a new generator, pump cup, and mantle it works great!)
Hi mike i agree with you who knows what quality fuel has been used and in some cases the wrong fuel an example about a yaer ago i purchased a tilly lamp from the bay it was for a mate at work for night fishing and i agred to service it when it arrived it was filled with petrol/gasoline the fuel for the tilly lamp is paraffin/kerosene this could be very dangerous. Even if the right fuel has been left in a stove who knows if it has been contaminated condensation could have got into it
i give it the sniff test.if it smells nasty i dump and burn it.my 123R find had fuel and burned fine but after the first run i put in fresh fuel.Coleman lamps seems to be the worse for having brown cruddy old fuel.
Hi Mike, As far as kero is concerned I'd take the same approach as you do with Coleman. Kero lasts for years and I have no hesitation firing up stoves and lamps that have "old" kero in as long as I know the origin. Anything that comes new to me full of kero gets emptied and cleaned before my first use. Cheers, Graham.
I empty out old fuel from stoves and lanterns, let it stay in a plastic can until everything that is heavier, sinks to the bottom, then filter it through a coffee filter and use the fuel in heaters or wick lamps
K1 or 1K kerosene is getting harder and harder to find here. They used to have a dedicated pump at nearly every gas station when I was a kid. Now I have to pay $10 a gallon for the stuff in a 5 gallon can. Has anyone else here used Medallion(or similar) lamp oil(kerosene substitute)in kero burners? I've had good luck with it so far. Mike
For bulk Naptha contact a fuel distributor, (tank farm operations) and request a drum be there for pickup. They will supply you with one if you ask. If you can find such a distributor they may also give you a "deal" on the price since you are buying in bulk. Do the same for Kero. I had a contact at Chevron of California, at the El Sugundo refinery who supplied me with all i could use when i was living in SoCal. He has since retired. lance
