Methelated spirit blow lamp.

Does anyone have a design for a meths blow lamp, suitable for firing a centre flue boiler? I know that the current preference is for gas firing, but I would prefer meths. I have just seen one opperating on ebay (end of April). Just what I want. Years ago, Stuart Turner used to list some sort of blowlamp, although I am not sure what fuel it used. Perhaps someone has one that they could photograph or measure for me. Thanks in advance for any imfromation that anyone can give me.

A place which sells tilley lamps might sell one.

When I were lad...they pumped them up to pressure for lighting, and I vaguely recall a couple of blowlamps, used by old guys, which used the same kind of pump-it-up pressurised system

edit

There's a whole bunch of "vintage blowlamps" on fleebay

Edited By Ady1 on 30/04/2012 21:36:46

I remember my Father using a pump up blowlamp, I still have a couple of them polished up for display,  operating the things seemed to involve all sorts of pre-heating etc which I never got to grips with.

Kind of think they worked on parafin not meths, but it was along time ago and my memory banks are not briliant to start with!

Edited By V8Eng on 30/04/2012 21:55:39

The self pressurized methylated spirit has a preheated camber above the blowlamp. It will generate the pressure by heat of the blowlamp. The nozzle size is about 0,5 mm.

How the Saito self pressurized blow lamp works:

The spirit container who is airtight has a wick of woved cotton inside and the woved cotton wick is partial entered into preheated camber who is brazed above the blow lamp. ---> Between the wick and the part of camber are the fine mesh metal filter to prevent clogging the valve/nozzle by dirt. ---> In the room of preheated is spirit evaporated and pressure is developed by heat of blow lamp. ---> Between preheated camper and nozzle who has a size at 0,5 mm diametre is the regulating valve placed to adjust amount of evaporated spirit to mix with air inside the blow lamp to get right hotter flame. ---> The canal between regulating valve and nozzle is inside between preheated camber and blowlamp.

Do you understand how it works? I can come with the plan of the blow lamp next time in case you do not understand what i wrote.

Edited By Jens Eirik Skogstad on 30/04/2012 22:15:13

I have got a copy of an old article by Edgar Westbury for a vapourising spirit burner for internal flue boilers. If you think that it will be of use, PM me and we can arrange to have it e mailed to you.

I am a huge fan of pressure stoves and lamps in the hands of people who can use them. Mine run on what we call Shellite, not sure but think this is parafin. it is certainly not kero.

Its biggest advantage is portability compared with disposable gas - I could get approval for small quanitities on military aircraft with the right doco and containers. Never for gas - and low temp operations. This is ALWAYS the fuel used for mounatin and cold temp operations because gas will not ignite if the cylinder is not warm enough to miantain pressure.

Having said that - its a good idea to learn how to light one properly.

I would like to find a plan to construct. The concept is simple, but like boilers it would be nice to have a proven design. Can anyone help?

cheers

David

There are (was) stoves designed to run on parrafin, and to run on meths. but not to be mixed. Parrafin pressure stoves are very good, and easy to use. Parrafin blowlamps very similar, and I think produce more heat (higher temp. ) than a gas blowlamp. Meths stoves ,as said, are self pressurising by the heat of the flame. These are OK for fine weather camping but not much else, may be ok for model boilers. I did find a meths fueled self pressurising burner for use in a hot air engine on the net, but can't find it now, might be worth looking under the hot air engine searchs.

Edited By David Clark 1 on 01/05/2012 10:05:46

A petrol blowlamp is the reason I use LPG. When I was very young, Mums father, a plumber from Paisely (Scotland) came out to NZ to visit, he bought some tools with him, amoung them was the petrol blowlamp, about 20yrs ago i was using it, when it blew back through the gland on the control valve, I dropped it, caught it with my toe, and kicked it out the door. I went and bought the LPG torch. The petrol lamp has no pump, unlike the kero one, but it is started the same way with a small reservior of meths that is lit to preheat the unit.

I also have one of those meths blowlamps with the two cylindrical tanks about 3/4"dia X 4" long, one has the burner attached to the top, the other is opened and the wick is lit this pressurises the lamp. Never found a use for it, but its there on the window sill.

Got one of those little pencil torches, quite a good source of fuel is discarded Plasode fuel cells found on builing sites, or Ronson lighter fuel (but yer gotta buy that stuff). GO FOR GAS much better than liquid fuels, and here at least its cheaper than meths. Ian S C

Meths (wood alcohol) has rather low calorific value but is used by gauge 1 and 16mm loco guys in unpressurised wick burners. It was used for larger ones in the 1920's so might figure in blowlamp form in some old Model Engineers.

Paraffin (kerosine) in pressurised blowlamps was used extensively in model boats up to the '60s and still is a little. Check the website & forum Modelboatmayhem and 'steamboatphil' who has a boat stand at the ME show and is probably the world expert on these blowlamp boilers. Designs will probably be found in ME in the '50's when the magazine still catered for boating interests.

Petrol evaporates much more easily than paraffin so the plumbers blowlamps designed for petrol have fewer coils in the preheater making it essential to know the fuel type intended.

The only pure meths blow lamp I've come across is the one mentioned by Ian S C (two cylindrical tanks) It is the Valtock and I've got a couple lurking around somewhere.Only recently found the operating instructions but haven't yet used either.

Rgds

Bill

Bill my petrol blowlamp has no vaporising coil, It relies on heating the metal surrounding the jet being sufficient. Ian S C

Thanks for all the feedback. I have no intention of using petrol for the obvious reason, and paraffin is a bit smelly. I have taken up Mick H's offer of drawings. Thanks to you all once again.

Hi David,

Paraffin is what kerosene is called in the UK, Ireland and South Africa. In most other countries paraffin is a soft wax similar to Vaseline or an oily liquid- see here and here.

The different names we insist in using in the UK are the cause of a lot of problems. For example Ady's advice that the British Army used petrol in their 'paraffin' stoves in the North Afican campaign is probably due to the fact that Kerosene (UK - paraffin) is called 'petrole' in some usages in the French language, and North Africa was much influenced by French coloniosatiion - hence the use of 'petrole' in kerosene stoves. All I have to say on that matter is Never use petrol (gasoline) in appliances designed for other fuels. I have a camping stove designed to use Gasoline (petrol) and is quite safe, but in a blowtorch designed for kerosene - never.

Regards

Terry

Regards

Terry

Edited By Terryd on 01/05/2012 22:30:27

Dave Paterson.....I need your e mail details to send the plans

With regard to Maurice's comment about paraffin being smelly, my local hardware shop sells litre bottles of non-smelling lamp oil, which can be used instead of paraffin. I've tried it in a Tilley lamp and it gives a good light with hugely reduced smell. It's also a good lubricant for machining aluminium. Can't find the bottle at the moment (workshop needs a good clear-out!), so can't provide brand name or price.

"my local hardware shop"

Glad you are one of the people who help by having a profile. I imagine the standard range of products in your loacal store is somewhat different from those available in leafy London. There again a 'quaint' oil lamp might be the trendy thing to go with the outdoor fire basket piled high in asda at the moment to ensure fuel resources can still be squandered as gas prices make the patio heater expensive.

Thanks, Bazyle. My home village, Portgordon, used to be known as "Paraffin City" locally, and still is by some of the older residents in nearby communities. Oh what am I saying - I'm 70! We didn't get mains electricity or gas until comparatively recently compared to the rest of the UK, and as a result paraffin was used extensively for domestic heating, lighting, and cooking. The first street lamps, installed in the 1920s, were paraffin powered. The smell must have been awful!

About six or seven years ago we holidayed in cottage in Scotland. Four miles from the road, quarter of a mile from the forestry track. Brown water and gas lighting.

Neil

I notice that cornish Jack says he has a instruction leaflet for a valstock blow lamp. Would it be possible to get a copy of this?

If so could it be emailed to me at

dave.parry@ntlworld.com

Many thanks.