At this time I am using Trangia bottles for alcohol and Coleman gas. Since the bottles are identical, I put a black stripe of electrical tape around the Coleman gas bottle. As long as I can remember that the striped one is gas, I am good to go.
I purchased a little transfer pump for $3 at Ocean State Job Lots, a local retailer that gets job lots of things, oddly enough. It pumps about an ounce each stroke. When refilling (kero only, I'm off the hard stuff) all one has to do is count strokes. 16 is a pint, etc. It's pretty easy to estimate. As much of my use is aboard a sail boat, I keep my fuel in Rotopax containers. Yes, Rotopax cost dearly for a good reason. As the Filson line of clothing says, "May as Well Have the Best." http://home.rotopax.com/ After draining the lines, the pump goes into a heavy-duty ziploc bag.
@Canuman You're a man after my own heart! Here's the set up I put together for changing the oil on my boat using a couple of water packs from Kolpin which are similar to your Rotopax. I outfitted each container with quick connects and added a reversible 12 volt pump on top. To change the oil I simply screw a fitting onto the dipstick of my Volvo-Penta engine and pump the used oil into the empty container. Then I switch containers using the quick connect, reverse the pump, and pump the new oil into the engine. When I'm done I take off the used oil container and carry it to the disposal site. Ben
Gosh, I must be a fossil cause still use the same kero can last 45-50 years or so ; just have to replace <cut> gaskets bout every 10 years ; the 5 gal is the same style as this 1 gal. galvanized can; to transfer just open the big center opening and pour from the 5 to the one gal, use a Coleman filter funnel when I transfer tween cans and to stove; HTH
Do you have a photo of or source for your little pump? I've been looking for something similar for filling my kero lamps and lanterns around the house. I have one of these: https://www.walmart.com/ip/21804882...75035&wl11=online&wl12=21804882&wl13=&veh=sem Which does the job, but I would call it very far from ideal. If you get overzealous on the pumping and have the jug of kero and the lamp at the wrong heights, it'll start a siphon. Probably great for xfering a gallon of kero into a heater with a fuel gauge, and a great way to make a mess when transferring a pint or two into a lantern with a metal font and no fuel gauge. I've considered making better pump. Other priorities.... Thank you for any help you can offer.
Canuman's remarks about the 1oz per stroke reminded me of an ex girlfriend who was a barista. They used pumps on their syrup jugs to quickly and repeatably measure syrup for drinks. With that in mind: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GOXFCLS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 There were other pump options, but I made sure to get one with a round output spout so that I could add a length of tubing to it, as shown above. The pump can be screwed down when at the bottom of it's stroke to lock it down. Made some mess while figuring things out, but once I had it all together, filling of tanks went easily and without a spill. The 1oz/stroke measurement appears to be fairly accurate, based on the 2.5l-oz conversion I did, and how full the red lantern was at the end of its 85 strokes. For the small amounts of kero per tank that stoves and lamps generally use, this 1oz pump will be HUGELY more convenient than the common siphon pumps. With more thought, this: https://smile.amazon.com/Gallon-Pum...id=1475373007&sr=1-2&keywords=hdpe+gallon+jug is the option I wish I'd have gone with. Fill from my bulk supply at ~1/3rd the cost of the kero in the photo.
Your second link to a 1 gallon jug with pump looks good. Unfortunately the exact same thing is the equivalent of $35 plus $5 postage here in the UK!
@Ian and @Marc I thank you for the information and links. I have to admit that this morning I did not spend a lot of time searching for alternatives. But I was stunned/amazed/annoyed when I found the exact same product on Amazon UK for four times the price when postage is taken into account. I was thinking that some enterprising person could make a bit of money if they imported a few from the US . . . . . but maybe the shipping from the US will cancel out any potential profits.
@shagratork Glad to be of service. You've all helped me a tremendous amount, I'm thrilled to be able to give back where I can. If there's enough interest to make it worthwhile, I'd be happy to trans-ship a box of pumps from the USA. We're well set up for intl shipping at work, would be quite easy. If speed isn't important, we could probably get it done relatively inexpensively as well. Before doing that, searching for a UK based restaurant or food service supplier might be a good idea. My understanding is that syrupy oversweet dessert style coffee drinks are just as popular across the pond as they are here, I'd imagine someone has the pumps readily available there.
@shagratork Hi Trevor, Here are some options in the UK. Granted it doesn't come with a pump but it may serve your propose. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-Litre-P...103676?hash=item5b27950d7c:g:Fw0AAOSwl8NVZuug http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/8-Litre-P...886531?hash=item1eb0f55343:g:v6QAAOSwuR5XPvaa If you don't want to poor out your fuel well this might come in handy. One is in London and the other ships from Hong Kong. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TekBox-De...857499?hash=item210f6f0f9b:g:Rn4AAOSwxfNXNzuz http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Universal...621845?hash=item41aaa20fd5:g:5yMAAOSwfZhXNFGF Cheers, Norman
@teckguy_58 Ha, that is amazing! I have the jug in your first link. Great minds think alike! Also thanks for the other links.
@shagratork Hi Trevor, The 8 liter jug may be nice to have also and it's only just a little more expensive. Both have a very nice poor spout. Cheers, Norman
Interesting tidbit. I refilled the jug from a 3.5gal can of kero I received with a local kero heater purchase. The 3.5gal can was sealed and unopened, I had to break the seal to open it. Notice that the now-refilled kero jug has a straw color to it? Looked at the can, sure enough it does not say "K1" or "1K" anywhere on it. Called "Krystal Kerosene" - just a marketing term. The can DOES say "with added corrosion inhibitors," though. What is jet A? Kero, with corrosion inhibitors. What color is jet A? Yep, straw colored.
