If I leave fuel in a spiritburner, it will turn red. Any one have experience with this happening? I last tried to rinse with acetone. Most likely a used burner, as most Trangia stoves I use were used.
Howdy, @snwcmpr , Ken, I'm betting the burner was originally from overseas. Some other Countries add a red dye to their Methylated Spirits, and call it "Rød Spirit" (Red Spirit). Seems like your good, clear Methylated Spirits is leaching out the red dye that was left in the inside of the burner. Sounds like it, to me, anyway. Keep using it, and see if the red thins out, and eventually turns pink, then disappears altogether. Take care, and God Bless! Every Good wish, Doc
Coleman fuel in the red plastic quart containers is dyed red, versus the blue or green that they alternate over the years with the gallon metal cans.
Hi Ken ( @snwcmpr ) , the scandiwegian names for methylated spirit are variations of rødsprit meaning red spirit. And it is indeed red. Regards John
Indeed. From Rødsprit – Wikipedia translated into English: Red spirit is 70-95% denatured ethyl alcohol , ethanol (C 2 H 5 OH). The red spirit has added a denaturing agent that makes it unusable for food and drink, as well as often the dye fuchsin which gives a reddish colour. Red spirit is a cleaning and solvent intended for technical use.
Thanks. Am I right to assume burning it will keep the red color, and rinsing with fuel will possibly remove the red color? Along this line of thinking. How likely is a stove sold in USA that was used where red spirit is sold? Is red spirit used in USA? I just bought 2 new burners from a local store.
@snwcmpr Sorry Ken, Only just seen your latest entry. As @Doc Mark suggested, if the burner has previously been used in Scandinavia it is quite likely that the red dye, fuchsin, as @Paul Lydon named it, has absorbed onto the wicking material that is trapped between the inner and outer walls of the burner. Fuchsin is clearly soluble in alcohol, otherwise they wouldn't use it, but is it more soluble in the whatever the wick is made of? Also, if the burner was full and allowed to dry by evaporation rather than burning, there could be quite a lot of dye in there and it may have become "fixed" so it only comes out slowly. Are you using colourless alcohol? Here in the UK, where meths is dyed bright purple, I doubt if I would notice the extra red leaching into my fuel. Regards John
Yes, using clear alcohol. I have been letting it set, and draining it to see. It "appears" to be less red each time, but that may be simply the amount of time. I am not burning/lighting this stove, only draining it. I burn the 'red' fuel elsewhere, like priming.
I have the same thing. My clear colorless and odorless alcohol turns reddish and gains some odor after burning it for a while and extinguishing it. Red color, in my opinion, may be related to NOx's that form due to high temperature combustion. Just an assumption.
I am not burning the fuel. I think that just prolongs the problem. I am leaching the color out. I keep draining the fuel, and each time it is less red. It has a very faint pink color this last time, yesterday.
