Here is one for you... Wikipedia says... "Although not normally marketed as a fuel, white spirit can be used as an alternative to kerosene in portable stoves, since it is merely a light grade of kerosene.[citation needed] It cannot be used as an alternative to white gas, which is a much more volatile gasoline-like fuel." Has anyone tried it in a stove? or a Pressure Lantern I would think it stinks to high heaven and smokes a lot. I am interested to know out of pure curiosity.
I'm not at all sure that what's called "white spirit" in one country is the same substance that's called "white spirit" in another. ....Arch
I've read that information before. Without going looking, I think US Stoddard solvent also falls into that category. Fuel nomenclature internationally is all over the place, and there was a lot of discussion particularly in early years here at CCS about the subject. I think there'd be some good old threads here on the subject.
Oh yes! I run it on a regular basis for some monetary reasons! I have often been running the petroleum based (not turpentine) white/mineral spirit in both kerosene lamps and stoves, and it works pretty much the same, but I have a feeling that it is clogging up the vapourisers a bit quicker than the dedicated fuel. Atleast it smell a bit more than it, but frankly it also depends a bit on which dedicated kerosene you are comparing it to. Still no big problems. Apart from the possible smell, it is hardly a problem nowadays if it should clog up a bit quicker when we seldom use this stuff on the daily basis they were intended to. I actually have a Primus 1020 that I set up as a guinea pig for "white spirit only" many, many years ago, just to test if it was any worse than the "normal" paraffin/kerosene, and it still work as it should but I believe it is time to de-coke the vapouriser now. It needs much pricking... But on the other hand, it probably still would after all these years if I had used standard kerosene/paraffin too... If your question is based on the search of a cheaper alternative, I'd say; go for barbecue lighting fuel instead! That's the main thing I run my kerosene/paraffin stuff on nowadays. Cheap, pretty odorfree and well working.
When it comes to “White Spirit” the name is used for quite different products and the only reliable information is in the MSDS. In Australia, at least one brand if “White Spirit” is a mineral turpentine substitute, not suitable as a substitute for either naphtha or kerosene. Tony
As above @Plantpot 'Wbite Spirit', and most fuel names for that matter, mean different things in different countries. In the UK WS can be readily used but check the MSDS for the carbon content. I've used it many years ago when I first started just to confirm to myself that it was practical as the price of paraffin from the garden centre was highly volatile haha....
Most fuels/chemicals have a UN number. Kerosene (parrafin) UN 1223 Naphta/Coleman fuel UN 1255 (no longer used) Gasoline (motor fuel) UN 1203 Diesel UN 1202 ....etc Unfortunately not all packaging has these numbers . I would think that this would considerably eliminate the confusion. There may be a requirement for these numbers only on large volumes??? Google UN numbers for a huge list.
Interesting replies folks, Paraffin (kero) is difficult for me to get here in London, but white spirit (used for brush cleaning) is available in my local paint and decorating store. So all in all interesting to know, especially about the BBQ lighting fluid, good to know about when my paraffin supply hits rock bottom in these difficult times.
Good morning Tony from a locked down NZ. White spirits we have here South Pacific (is) clean burning in wick type (non-pressurized) apparatus's,but always check spec sheets which are readily online. Kind regards Alex
@Toad of the Cape Greetings from west NZ (well, Tasmania, anyway). Not being a Kiwi I won’t stick my neck out too far, but when I was last in wonderful Aotearoa I noticed that “White Spirits” (spirits plural) was naphtha (Coleman fuel/Shellite). The stuff Diggers sells here as “White Spirit” (spirit singular), is a turpentine substitute. Keep safe. Tony
True that Turtle, The post is about White spirit,Turpentine sub was what one/I had been referring to as"White Spirit",As Ed so rightly pointed out fuel nomenclature is a cot case worldwide. Looking for the chemical make up as we speak,so to speak,which I had done sometime ago and was to make a post about and that may well have been done here already. @Blueflame herein NZ, White Spirit is: UN 1300 cheers Alex P.S Tony we can share Ardern with you folk,of coarse.
@Plantpot, access to kero across the UK is patchy and can get pricey. The London question has cropped up before, and probably a few years ago now. Generally if yo have an old.style hardware store that sells greenhouse heaters then they will probably stock the kero in 4 ltr containers, the same for garden centres. Prices vary wildly. B&Q may be another source although may have opted for electrical heaters and dropped the old parasene ones. I've found a home heating oil supplier who sells stand in quantities at 25ltr barrels for people who don't want to leave fuel in the tank while they're in the middle of moving house, enough to keep them going for a few weeks.
K-1 kerosene remains quite widely available in the US in hardware stores, including all of the 'big boxes'. What it means to me is that there are still a whole lot of kerosene heaters out there still, of the Kero-Sun type, which were hugely popular a couple of decades back. These heater types are also still readily available. When you think about it, it's interesting. Folks like us, with old keroburning camp stoves, can't be more than an infinitesimal part of the market. But it's a big country, and evidently still a big market.
@Ed Winskill I have a house in France, and use woodburning stoves to heat and kerosene heaters like the kero sun type as kerosene is avaliable right across the country and heaters are avaliable in supermarkets, and DIY stores. In larger supermarket gas stations you will find a kerosene pump that takes a bank card for delivery up to 50 litres. Its also in the supermarkets in 20 litre plastic disposable containers. Not so in the UK, it used to be, back in the 1960s where you could go with your esso blue or pink paraffin metal container and get it filled. Heaters in france: and the kerosene you get in the shops for about 20 euros
