Gunner Quinn
(Continued from Part 1.)
Paraffin Lamps
Halfway between a candle and an oil lamp are paraffin lamps. They’re similar to oil lamps and burn the same fuel but they come in a small jar with a wick. They’re essentially a small oil lamp that burns more like a candle. I thought it would be interesting to test one but by the time I finished with the candle portion of my tests, there was no doubt in my mind these paraffin lamps with their small wicks and long burn times (one claimed 115 hours) wouldn’t be much better than candles. There’s only X amount of light energy per ounce of paraffin or oil no matter what form it’s in so a 115-hour burn time would have a mighty small flame. Online reviews confirm that the flame is tiny and they don’t burn anywhere near that long.
SECOND OPTION: OIL LAMPS
Kerosene and lamp oil (aka paraffin oil) are related petroleum products with kerosene being less refined. Kerosene also burns brighter than lamp oil.
JWR Adds: Many people who can tolerate the smell of lamp oil cannot tolerate the smell of kerosene. Check on this with your family members before you stock up on lamp fuel in quantity.
In my trials, I quickly learned that kerosene is not a healthy option for indoor use. I started the kerosene hurricane lamp test in the house. Within a few minutes I decided it was a mistake so I took it outside. It cast a large shadow underneath and produced just enough light to illuminate the pathway. In my shop, there was only enough light for low-light work like sharpening a hoe or sanding a board where feel is as important as sight. The light from a kerosene lamp with an average ¾” wick is too dim with large shadows for any moderately precision work like using a drill press. Kerosene is less expensive than lamp oil so probably makes a good choice for nighttime outdoor activities like checking out that racket coming from the chicken coop, but it is not a good choice for the house or closed shop.
Next, I tested lamp oil.
I tested two kinds of oil lamps, both with glass chimneys. Both had ¾” wide wicks which I trimmed and adjusted it to the correct height. I started with just a single lamp and it produced considerably more light than 15 candles. My first thought was that this could be a feasible way to light the homestead after the SHTF. In the kitchen there was sufficient light to prepare food on the counter. Though not an ideal amount of light, it was still far better than candles. There was also the advantage of having that much light from a single source so it could be moved around as needed, an option not available with a group of 15 candles. A single lamp on the table was also an improvement over candles. Reading was easier and possible up to three feet from the lantern so the tinfoil hats could be left in the drawer.
I tried both a regular mirror and a parabolic mirror behind the oil lamp. Neither increased the light as much as they did with candles, probably because of the width of the lamp getting in the way compared to a tall thin candle.
Hanging the lamp on the wall using a special oil lamp holder was detrimental instead of helpful. Because the light diminishes by the square of the distance as mentioned, the light was unavailable where it was needed on a table or counter.
I lit the second lamp and though the room was brighter with two, the minimal light would still take some getting used to as far as working and reading goes. When all is said and done, though not ideal, it’s a feasible source of lighting in TEOTWAWKI-ville. It worked well enough for our ancestors so over time we’d adjust to it.
The major annoyances were the large shadows cast and the odor of the vapors emitted.
As with paraffin, lamp oil can more or less only make a certain amount of light per ounce regardless of the brand, color, etc.
Two factors determine the amount of light an oil lamp can put out at a time: the wick size (width and thickness) and how high it’s raised. For maximum light without wasting the wick, the wick should be raised until it gets to the point of smoking, then backed off slightly until no smoke or soot is formed. For light output, the numbers I found online conflicted with each other, oftentimes within the same website. The Wikipedia article on kerosene lamps contains a chart comparing wick widths with total light output in foot candles and its lightbulb watt equivalent. NOTE: The lumen and watt-equivalent numbers don’t correlate with lamp oil since kerosene burns brighter. This chart as it applies to lamp oil is to show the relative light output based on wick size.
Numbers on fuel consumption also conflicted across articles so I’ll use my own numbers based on my observations. I weighed one of the oil lamps in grams before beginning the oil-burn-rate test. I ran it for two hours and reweighed the lamp every 30 minutes, adjusting the wick each time. After accounting for lamp oil having a density of 0.8 compared to water, the lamp burned 1.01 ounces of oil per hour. Two oil lamps burning for an average of 4 hours per night will use 23 gallons/year.
The least expensive lamp oil that I could find was 14.6 cents/ounce in gallon-jugs, and 14.1 cents/ounce in 55-gallon drums. The difference in total price for drums vs. gallon jugs is minimal enough for those wanting the convenience of not messing with transferring oil from a 55-gallon drum.
Two lamps using two ¾”-wicks burning four hours per night each comes to 8 lamp hours per night. Eight ounces of fuel at 14.2 cents per ounce equals $1.14/day or $416/year. Prices for oil lamps range from a few dollars to $100+. Oil lamps break so a minimum of four (8?) would need to be purchased to have 2 backups on hand. With such an important resource as light, five is one and four is none would be a good approach. Some oil lamps have a side handle that allows the lamp to be carried like a coffee cup. Wicks are available in bulk rolls. At $416 for oil and four oil lamps plus wicks for $80, our total would be a minimum of $500. For those interested in oil lamps for lighting, research would have to be done as far as what makes a quality lamp to determine a more accurate total cost but we’ll use $500/year as a minimum. Inexpensive oil lamps are fairly common at estate auctions.
With all said, one lamp for each of two areas of the home provides less than ideal light so a more realistic annual cost would be double that. For those who think oil is the best bet, a realistic multi-day or week-long test with our everyday activities would need to be carried out. There’s no other way to do a thorough enough test to see how practical it is as a long-term light source. Questions to be answered are, how uncomfortable and unhealthy are the fumes for using oil as long-term lighting solution? Can we get used to the shadows cast by any type of flame-based lighting?
Wick size is another thing to test. I regret that I only had two ¾” wick lamps to test but based on my initial observations with those, and the increased cost of oil for brighter lamps with larger wicks, I think the yearly cost for that much light would surpass $2,000. These factors would have to be realistically tested to see how much and what quality of light is desired to have in a post-SHTF life.
The best lamps I could find had two 1” wicks which the catalog claimed could put off the same amount of light as a 75-watt incandescent bulb. Since manufacturers and sellers tend to exaggerate their product’s performance, perhaps the aforementioned Wikipedia chart is more accurate. The data in the article is for kerosene, which burns brighter than lamp oil, and shows that a double 1” wick lamp produces the equivalent of a 25-watt incandescent bulb. If the Wikipedia data is correct, then a double-wick oil lamp would burn less than 25 watts. Any lamp with two large wicks would burn considerably more oil than a ¾” single-wick lamp.
Total cost for lighting with two oil lamps: $500-to-$1,000/year.
If it’s the only option, the cost isn’t too unreasonable for oil lamps to provide a year’s worth of post-SHTF lighting. Since lamp oil has a nearly indefinite shelf life, storing several years’ worth of fuel wouldn’t be a problem. The yearly amount needed for 2 lamps is just short of 55 gallons so for each year of lighting desired, a 55-gallon drum could be purchased ahead of time. For something as critical as lighting, buying two wouldn’t necessarily break the bank for those seriously preparing for a TEOTWAWKI life.
Oil lamps have some big downsides: stinging eyes, oxygen depletion, fire hazard, soot deposits in the house, breathing fumes from burning petroleum products, and substandard lighting. Compared to having no light at all, these issues may or may not be problems for some.
(To be concluded tomorrow, in Part 3.)
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