Kerosene Stove How To/Info

Posted by imnotmellomike@reddit | sailing | View on Reddit | 18 comments

Hello /r/sailing

So we are mid refit/essentially full rebuild of our boat and so when somewhat in the area a marine stove showed up the size of where ours is to go on marketplace we took the day drove out through a myriad of car problems and bought it and now realize it's most likely a kerosene stove. Yes we are dumb but hey the rest of the systems aren't built out yet so we thought we'd try this if only for the rest of the refit.

It's a Dickinson Mariner but by Marine Stainless Steel LTD out of Auckland NZ. The only info we can find on these style of stoves is on Taylors with separate pressure tanks while ours appears to be built in. Does anyone know about these, how to fill it to give it a whirl, and if one could convert it to propane?

Thanks!

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is0ph@reddit

Late to the party, we’re coming back from a cruise. We bought a boat with a Taylor kerosene cooktop + oven, which we thought we would get rid of. But piping gas in is a hassle. So we researched and experimented.

The method to start the burner with alcohol was not ok with us (the big yellow flames thrill gets tiring).

According to the original Taylor manual (which I can forward to you if you wish), we bought a handheld welding torch. You lit it and can stop at amy time (not the case once alcohol is ignited). You turn the burner off, direct the torch not towards the burner but just below the alcohol cup to heat up the pipes leading to the burner. It takes from 45s to 1mn. Then you turn the burner on.

There is a learning curve. The biggest thing is to keep the torch at a distance from the piping, putting it in contact would be too hot.

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imnotmellomike@reddit (OP)

Thanks for the response! We have played with it and used it a few times and while ya it is a bit interesting, it does seem to work well so we are going to rock it for now. We are using methylated spirits to light it and I think the flame is a lot hotter with those? We slowly decreased the amount of liquid we were using to prime it and found the big yellow flame point and so have upped the dose from there. Seems like if the fire below the burner is going longer than a minute thirty, we let it burn out, then open the kerosene to the actual burner and light it the flames are immediately blue and clean.

Where did you get off to whilst on your cruise? Did you have issues finding kerosene and how long did your supply seem to last?

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SurfSailRide@reddit

These things are incredible. I can’t speak to how to make it work/hum, but I have a friend who used one to comfortably live aboard for 15 winters in New England. He’d firs it up in October and it would run until April. I know stack airflow is important. Good luck!

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Secret-Temperature71@reddit

OK, we have 2 Taylor kerosene stoves with ovens and 1 additional as a cook top. One on each Boat and one in a cabin. So, yeah, we think highly of them. They are very safe and reliable and easy to maintain. The burners are identical to Taylor's burners and are readily available to purchase new. The Taylor stoves are still in production. It is likely the tank fittings from Taylor will work.

Yes you p I mp it up with a bicycle pump attached to the Schrader valve (inner tube fitting). Pump to about 1 bar, 13 PSI.

When starting if you use too little alcohol the burner will flare, a dramatic yellow flame, which will quickly die down. Do NOT be alarmed, we have done this many times, I makes a bit of soot. You can light as the alcohol burns out OR use a BIC lighter. Hold it to the side and start the flame and move it to the burner.

There us more to say but I will leave it here for now.

Perhaps would be best to chat by phone. I guess there is a way to send me a private message?

It is a great SAFE stove that works with out electricity.

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imnotmellomike@reddit (OP)

Hey! Thanks for the comment. We are excited to give it a go and try it outside the boat first (the boat is in shambles) so we get the hang of lighting it before its inside. I'll shoot you a private message, I have a few other photos of it which might be of some help then ya I'd love to chat.

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Secret-Temperature71@reddit

OK, I am in a weird time zone, 1-1/2 hours AHEAD of New York. 10am there is 11:30 here.

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imnotmellomike@reddit (OP)

Lol we are half an hour behind you. I wrote you a chat message thing

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Late-Hotel-861@reddit

Big safety win with these is: can't go boom as kerosene really hates burning opposite to propane

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imnotmellomike@reddit (OP)

This is interesting and pretty neat for sure

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Late-Hotel-861@reddit

What a beauty of a stove. Ok starting a kerosene stove is rather easy, but can be unnerving at first. Take it slow and try it outside first. First make sure there's kerosene in the tank and pressurise the tank Next you drip a few mil of any kind of alcohol cleaner on the burner, and let it burn nearly off. Just before all the alcohol is gone you turn on the burner. If it's a blue flame it was hot enough. If it's a tall yellow flame it wasn't hot enough. Don't panic, just turn off the burner and wait for the flames to go out. And then restart with more alcohol.

If it's a petrol burner just take a lighter next to the burner, open the burner and let it heat up burning yellow first and blue in about 30 seconds. But it's unlikely to be a gasoline burner v

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imnotmellomike@reddit (OP)

Tanks on the bottom and then we aren't sure I guess where to:

Fill it up. Do we unscrew the plunger and tilt the stove flat and fill it there?
This plunger seems to be seized? Should we try and get this collar moving?
This looks like a bike pump fitting on the bottom corner. Is that how we should pressureize it and then fill with the larger hole?

I'll see if I can add a photo or two here

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TallBoiPlanks@reddit

The one I had you unscrew the bike pump filter and fill it with a funnel. Then screw it back on tight and use the pump to pressurize. It’s worth noting that you have to insure you use enough denatured alcohol to warm the burners or you’ll get liquid kerosene burning.

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imnotmellomike@reddit (OP)

Gotcha so you filled it through the smaller bike pump like thing on the far bottom right corner? Then used like a regular pump attached there?

The slightly further left looks like a plunger but it's seized. I can unscrew the whole thing though it'd be pretty easy to fill there and then use a bike pump on that fitting to get pressure.

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TallBoiPlanks@reddit

Mine had a separate pressure tank

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imnotmellomike@reddit (OP)

Gotcha okay. Ya this one has the tank on the bottom, though it has a bike pump valve. How'd you fill through the bike pump valve? Did you have some special funnel you could press down into it?

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