any pics of your oil lamps?

Last we were without any electricity it got me to looking around to see if there were any other non electric lighting options for long term power loss besides the usual kerosene lamps and candles...

...and I found oil lamps.



This one is a 2,000 year old clay design (the design, not the lamp ;  ) and runs on any cooking oil fresh or used. Burns for about 7 hours on one filling which is about an ounce and a half. This makes a reasonably economical source of light. Does anyone else here use oil lamps for emergency lighting? If you do I'd love to see your ideas, as you can make an oil lamp out of just about anything!

I'm interested in reusing waste cook oil too, since I got more soap than I ever need. Oil lamps sounds nice, but so far what I've managed are more like oil candles, not a very bright light. It's a cork with a cotton wick floating in a vase with oil. Very dim light.

Abraham Palma wrote:I'm interested in reusing waste cook oil too, since I got more soap than I ever need. Oil lamps sounds nice, but so far what I've managed are more like oil candles, not a very bright light. It's a cork with a cotton wick floating in a vase with oil. Very dim light.

Aladdin lamps have a reputation for being brighter than other oil lamps. Maybe they have differently designed burners as well, but I think they're brighter because they use mantles.

Edit: Not sure why the link doesn't show up for me. (It did in preview.) Here's the URL. Aladdin Oil Lamps - http://www.aladdin-us.com/

T Melville wrote:

Abraham Palma wrote:I'm interested in reusing waste cook oil too, since I got more soap than I ever need. Oil lamps sounds nice, but so far what I've managed are more like oil candles, not a very bright light. It's a cork with a cotton wick floating in a vase with oil. Very dim light.

Aladdin lamps have a reputation for being brighter than other oil lamps. Maybe they have differently designed burners as well, but I think they're brighter because they use mantles.

Edit: Not sure why the link doesn't show up for me. (It did in preview.) Here's the URL. Aladdin Oil Lamps - http://www.aladdin-us.com/

Sadly they can't be used with waste oil, those require lamp oil. Besides, they are too expensive.

This afternoon, I've tried a piece of cloth attached to the cork in a small container with oil, the light was strong like a torch, but the cork has started to burn too, so I had to blew it off. I'm certain the wick support made of steel cable will stand better, but this requires the oil to keep the same level, so I'm considering some kind of feeding.

As long as you don't mind experimenting, what if you smeared the cork with a thin layer of clay or silicone, or wrapped it with foil? A non-flammable oxygen barrier so the cork won't burn. Or replaced the cork entirely? A Briggs & Stratton carburetor float comes to mind. Something ceramic would be great, but nothing comes to mind.

Coleman (maybe primus, if you're not in the US) mantles are cheap. My attempt to incorporate one into an alcohol lantern was a failure. Either it was the wrong kind, or I lack the understanding to apply it correctly.

Deer tallow candle.  Scrap paper for a wick.

T Melville wrote:Coleman (maybe primus, if you're not in the US) mantles are cheap. My attempt to incorporate one into an alcohol lantern was a failure. Either it was the wrong kind, or I lack the understanding to apply it correctly.

I thought those mantles were just for gaz. They sure give a bright light, too. But honestly, I don't think they are suit for olive oil. Olive oil needs a very short wick since it does not permeate very high. Also, mantles brightness comes from ions that the burning gaz produces in contact with the material of the mantle, that's a slightly different mechanic than the usual flame brightness, coming from a carbon base. So, my guess is that it might become a huge torch with sufficient oil in the mantle, but it won't refill by capillarity.

The burning flame of olive can only be increased by increasing the efficiency of the combustion (wick with the proper form and size) and by the performance of the combustion (by having a larger wick or extra oxygen intake). The wick I've just used is 3 cm wide, the flame was big but unstable, like a torch. The extra oxygen requires a glass chimney, so the air intake can touch the flame, but that's expensive stuff, at least for my project. If I can make one out of a salvaged glass bottle, that'd be ok. Keeping the wick the proper form can be achieved either by a non-flammable floating device (you gave good advice here), either by an oil feeder that maintains the oil at the same height, as a bird feeder does with the bird water, then I could place a fixed wick holder. The floating device would be much more compact, so I might try again isolating the cork.

EDIT. Yay! It worked! It's a 1 cm slice of fork, enveloped with aluminium foil, it holds a 3 cm wide old rag stripe. I had to trim it just 1 cm tall, so total distance to the oil level is 2 cm. The brightness is what you would expect of a candle, but unlike previous designs, this one should keep the brightness steady until it runs off of fuel. The only problem is that it smells fishy... since the oil we use for frying fish, mostly. Sadly I can't take pictures right now.

Abraham Palma wrote:I thought those mantles were just for gaz. They sure give a bright light, too...

EDIT. Yay! It worked! It's a 1 cm slice of fork, enveloped with aluminium foil, it holds a 3 cm wide old rag stripe. I had to trim it just 1 cm tall, so total distance to the oil level is 2 cm. The brightness is what you would expect of a candle, but unlike previous designs, this one should keep the brightness steady until it runs off of fuel. The only problem is that it smells fishy... since the oil we use for frying fish, mostly. Sadly I can't take pictures right now.

My understanding is that heat causes the mantle to glow. Not sure how much the type of fuel matters. Regardless, if you're trying to keep it low tech and low cost, a mantle is probably not what you need. If the oil is a waste product, and conserving it isn't an issue, more wicks would mean more light. I've also burned an emergency candle (the rolled cardboard in a can kind) switching between wax, oil and animal fats. Very large flame, probably as good as 20 - 30 candles. It seemed to burn about the same, whichever fuel I used. Trouble is the smoke when you blow it out. If you snuff it out and leave it covered a while, that goes away. I think it smokes if the fuel gets too low. My solution was to add fuel. Maybe yours would be getting the wick to float.

Might there be a way to clean the oil? Maybe fry a potato in it, or boil it in water, then let it seperate and discard the water?

At any rate, congratulations that your upgrade worked!

Could a clear wine type bottle, bottom and top removed, act as a glass chimney?

OR just remove the top and use it as a reservoir for a floating wick?

OR any clear glass vase/glass partially filled could be both reservoir and chimney.

We use a kerosene indoor (yes, specially designed to be safe for indoor use; and we have a detector) heater so the same fuel goes in our lamps.

We have rechargeable nightlights (that automatically light up when motion is detected, and last for days when there is no power) that are permanently plugged in and light dark hallways or nooks and double as flashlights.  We have an assortment of LED lanterns and flashlights (electric and solar) that do double duty as "power banks" for USB charging.

Abraham Palma wrote:I'm interested in reusing waste cook oil too, since I got more soap than I ever need. Oil lamps sounds nice, but so far what I've managed are more like oil candles, not a very bright light. It's a cork with a cotton wick floating in a vase with oil. Very dim light.

Hi Abraham
I haven't been here for a while, but just checked in bc. I am making soap from used olive oil and wanted to see if there was anything on it here. I'm done now and have made 4L of liquid olive soap. I can see that you are in Malaga, I live in Cartama - if you are interested maybe we could do it together one day?