kerosene heater fuel...k1 vs aviation jet A

[saaboc]

Hello, long time no post (I had kids). Hope I've picked the correct forum.

I was just given a kerosene heater...dusty, but it cleaned up nicely & appears hardly used. I've drained out the old kerosene (only because I got water past the cap when rinsing it off) - it's pale yellow & the unit says to use "water clear kerosene" (sans water I assume )..i'll give what's on top to my furnace.

My research on where to get kerosene indicated Lowes has K1 by the gallon for $6.90 - but it seems aviation "jet A" fuel is more or less the same & I may be able to get it (haven't called yet) for $3.71 per gallon at a local small airport. I've also read that "jet A" is also obtainable cheaply (or free) as waste, from the routine draining of airport fueling trucks, or jets under repair. I'll call some heating oil suppliers Monday to see if kerosene is available...& if I can come get a 5g jug filled.

I plan on using the heater in the house should the power go out this winter (lotta trees here & a good snow dump can/has/will down power lines for days). Anyone have info on the smell/fumes of "jet A" vs "k1"? Am I correct in assuming a 1500w space heater run off a small generator will provide inferior warmth for fuel consumed? Thanks

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: saaboc
Hello, long time no post (I had kids). Hope I've picked the correct forum.

I was just given a kerosene heater...dusty, but it cleaned up nicely & appears hardly used. I've drained out the old kerosene (only because I got water past the cap when rinsing it off) - it's pale yellow & the unit says to use "water clear kerosene" (sans water I assume )..i'll give what's on top to my furnace.

My research on where to get kerosene indicated Lowes has K1 by the gallon for $6.90 - but it seems aviation "jet A" fuel is more or less the same & I may be able to get it (haven't called yet) for $3.71 per gallon at a local small airport. I've also read that "jet A" is also obtainable cheaply (or free) as waste, from the routine draining of airport fueling trucks, or jets under repair. I'll call some heating oil suppliers Monday to see if kerosene is available...& if I can come get a 5g jug filled.

I plan on using the heater in the house should the power go out this winter (lotta trees here & a good snow dump can/has/will down power lines for days). Anyone have info on the smell/fumes of "jet A" vs "k1"? Am I correct in assuming a 1500w space heater run off a small generator will provide inferior warmth for fuel consumed? Thanks


I think some gas stations sell it, but you'd have to look around, not sure what they charge.

 

[itguy08]

I have a kerosene heater that I used at our old house in the basement - it was finished but would still get cold in the winter. Working from home in the basement it was cheaper to fire it up than run the heater in the house. Just make sure you crack a window to get some fresh air to keep CO/CO2 levels in check. Odorless Kerosene heaters don't emit much of either gas and have been used throughout the world for many, many years.

It will stink a bit when first started and when shut off but usually pretty odor free when running. You do have to keep after the wicks and make sure they are clean and burned off.

I can get kero at convenience stores around here - about $3.99/gallon. 5 gallons lasted me about 2 months at the old house.

When we lost power during the Halloween Storm in 2011 I ran the kerosene heater in the house for a while to keep the place liveable. When we went to bed I plugged the 1500w space heater into the generator and ran that ll night. It did good to keep our bedroom warm. I'd say it was a wash as far as efficiency as the generator used about a tank of gas in those 8 hours until the power came back on. I'd say it was a wash but we were also generator powering the fridge and freezer so it was running anyway.

 

[MolaKule]

Not only will you have to be concerened about the odor, but these heaters take up oxygen and give off CO2.

If the jet A is waste fuel, it may have some water in it and small water droplets tend to explode.

 

[JHZR2]

Jet A will not be as deeply desulfurized. K1, especially clear kerosine should have a negligible quantity of sulfur. The sterically hindered heterocyclic sulfur compounds are difficult to efficiently remove, and is why the clear, clean kerosine is more expensive.

Also, the deicing and other additives in jet fuel can be toxic, Id not want their vapors or combustion byproducts in my home.

 

[JR]

I have burned jet a in a oil furnace in the cabin. But i would never burn it unvented. I have used dyed in heater and never will again.i burn clear kero in the shed. The clear burns so much cleaner.

Ken

 

[JR]

P.S. i have burned used hydro and atf mixed with farm diesel or kero. Seems to burn the same and save many dollars in the process. My work has a oil burner so whats the difference.

Ken

 

[JimPghPA]

Back in the 1800's there were no standards for what was used for fuel for lanterns, and the electric lite, and automobiles had not yet been invented. Sometimes people would fill up their oil lamps and light them and the fuel would burn too fast (more like gasoline, and less like kerosene) and the lamp would erupt in flames and burn down the house. John D.Rockefeller found a good chemist and learned how to obtain oils of different weights. He used this to create a fuel that was safe, (standardized, always the same and never burned too fast) and he created Standard Oil. The big selling point was that the oil was standardized, and it never caused your oil lamp to erupt in uncontrollable flames and burn down your house.

Now days kerosene is kerosene, unless someone without any education in chemistry interrupts the distribution chain and does something stupid like dedicate an existing gasoline tank for kerosene and ends up with a mix of both that is too volatile and burns down a few houses when people light their kerosene heaters in their houses and the whole heater erupts into an uncontrollable fire. It happens about once every couple of years somewhere here in the United States.

So, the way to test your freshly purchased kerosene is to wet some length of material such as a strip of cloth, paper, TP, or paper towel, lay it down outside in a safe place to have a fire, be sure no fuel is on you, and light one end and see how fast it spreads along the length of wick you have just tested. You can do this every time you purchase new fuel, and there is little chance you will ever get some fuel that burns too fast, but you at least will be making sure that new fuel you purchase will not burn down your house and or family when you first use it. And someday you may hear of someone who did not test the kerosene, and got some hot fuel and burned down their house. It still happens about once every couple of years somewhere here in the United States, but if you do test, it will not be you.

 

[JimPghPA]

BTW, if the fuel burns too cold you will get CO instead of CO2. I hope you have a battery powered CO detector and pay attention to it if it goes off. CO (carbon monoxide) is nothing to fool with, it will kill you and all in the building.

 

[Quest]

some good points. Thx for sharing.

Q.

 

[Michael_P]

JHZR2 brings up a good point. I actually did not know that about the sulfur content of Jet A. If the fuel lets say has collected moisture, the could create an acidic condition in the wick / burner area. The first power boat I bought was by previously owned by an individual who would fog his engine for winter storage with gear lube. A year after me owning it, I had to pull the cylinder head. The pistons were corroded significantly. This damage done to the pistons did not look like it was from detonation either. Seeing that gear lube is usually high in sulfur, I couldn't wonder if the corrosion on the pistons were as a result of fogging with a high sulfur oil, thus causing an acid build up. I will never know for sure, but I can suspect this could have been a cause.
In short, based on what others say and my gut feeling, I would stick with K1.

 

[johnachak]

I personally wouldn't mess with the jet fuel indoors. I have no idea what additives etc. may be in there. I get my kerosene from the local gas station. They have a dedicated pump for k1 kerosene. I pay ~$4.50 per gal.

 

[Whimsey]

Originally Posted By: johnachak
I personally wouldn't mess with the jet fuel indoors. I have no idea what additives etc. may be in there. I get my kerosene from the local gas station. They have a dedicated pump for k1 kerosene. I pay ~$4.50 per gal.


I buy my kerosene from a Hess station near here. They charge just under $4/gallon, as of earlier this year anyway. I'll get another 5 gallons to go along with the 5 gallons I have. I have to run dry my current fill and get a new wick for this heating season. This kerosene heater was a life saver during Hurricane Sandy and it's aftermath. Plus it does give nice heat in my smallish ranch house. I use it as a supplement for when I'm home. I never leave it burning when I'm not home or sleeping. I do have a CO detector.

Whimsey

 

[Ken2]

Some kero heaters are really picky about their fuel. I've had failures with bulk kero where canned expen$ive kero burned OK.