Aladdin Blueflame paraffin (kerosene) heater...

[twocvbloke]

That's basically how it was here too for things like the Aladdin heater (other brands were also available, such as Valor, which was sold by Esso), the mother recounts how they were used in parts of the house where it was colder when she was a kid, the smell of running mine brought back memories apparently!!

And back in the day they did door to door deliveries here too, varied from place to place, but some places it came on the back of a funny little van with a small tank fitted on it to decant into the customer's branded paraffin container, these days you have to go out and buy it yourself, or have it sent by courier from an online shop...

Speaking of which, I should stock up on the stuff...

[19and41]

It's interesting, I did a little looking up, and it turns out we are both discussing virtually the same product.  The Valor is just the same as the Perfection,  Standard Oil sold the fuel in the states, and Esso did so where you are.  Esso = S-O = Standard Oil.  The old stoves are almost fixtures at antique shops here and if they are in a fit state, people bring them back to use in homes where solid fueled convection stoves are used.

[twocvbloke]

Yes, Esso used to sell "Esso Blue" paraffin here in the UK, Aladdin had their "Aladdin Pink", and there were a few brands that sold Green paraffin (Regent and Fina seem to be the ones that come up the most), Esso still exists here (rather than being called Exxon) but they don't sell paraffin any more, if they do it's usually the Pre-Pac brand stuff in 4L bottles...

After looking about for info on the heaters, the most results from this country seem to be post-apocalyptic survivalist nuts, rather than sensible people who use them for everyday heating, makes me wonder how they'll fuel them when there's no fuel to be had...

[twocvbloke]

Well, spent a couple of hours out in the shed with my heater going, worked superbly, was still cold out there but with that heater there it took the edge off quite nicely, especially as snow showers keep falling today, didn't help with getting my briggs engine running but at least I felt warm and comfortable...

[19and41]

Looks like it's doing what you want it to, good luck with it!

[twocvbloke]

Yep, just need to make more room in my shed for it (8x6ft shed, with a lot of stuff I need to clear out), I knocked it a couple of times and it's safety flame-snuffer thing operated perfectly, so had to re-light it a couple of times, which is fun when it's hot!!!

[twocvbloke]

Had a bit of a tidyup in the shed, and it's been a cold day today (snowing this morning, though the ground was too warm to have it settle), but inside my shed was nice and warm while I did what I needed, I'm rather glad I bought that heater...

[19and41]

Just keep it well maintained and it should last a long time.  Keep an eye out for maintenance parts.  I've just had to do the spring cleanup on the A/C unit, already as the temperatures are creeping up.

[twocvbloke]

Yes, one thing that needs repairing is the brass gear that pushes the wick up, it's rather worn and struggles to pus the wick up if I pull it down too low, though I'm sure I can get a generic replacement for that...

Everything else looks pretty good though, despite tarnishing and paint peeling in places, it's in great shape, the main issues these tend to have are the tank rusting out causing pinhole leaks, but so far this one is fine, with no leaks anywhere, it's just a workhorse that has many years of life left in it...

[twocvbloke]

Did a lighting clip of the Aladdin yesterday when moving the clutter about in my shed, ran it for an hour before I started messing with my dirty old chinese yamaha-clone generator that's been a PITA to fix since I bought it!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Fo4RGG35MI

Very easy to light and get going, that's for sure, just have to avoid the butterfingers with opening it up to avoid unnecessary dents...

[19and41]

Looks just like a good gas burner when it's going.  Be careful with those flammables, though! 

[twocvbloke]

The flammables are fine, the Butane tank is empty (no pressure in there whatsoever), the old mattress is getting cut up and thrown out, and everything else, well, if i catches fire there's plenty of tubs of water outside the shed to use for fire extinguishing purposes...

If anything, that generator was more of a danger with that leak from the carb, and when I tipped it on it's side and poured the contents of said carb all over the already hot exhaust that could have caught fire..........

[19and41]

I thought I saw a Northern Tool logo on the fuel tank.  They are a nice go to place for special tools.  They carry a particular magnetic tray that is mighty handy for storing and carrying sockets.  I used mine a lot today replacing the power steering pump on my truck. 

[twocvbloke]

I thought I saw a Northern Tool logo on the fuel tank.

You did, they tried to set up a UK branch but seemed to fail, and the generator was one of their branded products that you can find absolute zip info-wise on!! It was only by trial and error I figured out it was a chinese Yamaha clone engine, as it wasn't the Honda GX160 clone I thought it was, so could work from there to restore it to operation, mostly fitting a new NGK spark plug & cap and using a Honda GCV135 lawnmower carburettor and air filter assembly (as it lacked a carb & filter when I bought it) to fuel it, aswell as replace the starter rope with some Briggs & Stratton branded rope, so it's a right ol' mishmash of branded parts... 

Still need to refit the tank somehow as the Honda GCV air filter fouls on the tank before it'll even sit on the frame, and I need to repair one of the mounts (on the generator bearing plate) as that's been snapped by the previous owner(s), it's not exactly going to do commercial service, but I would like it to work...