Salamander heater question....

[rusty ol ranger]

I just bought a little 40k btu heater at the auction last week. Its got this sticker on it....

It heats my shed up great and i ran it on kerosene (thats what was in it when i bought it)

But my question is if i wanted to run it on say, diesel, would i have to run the kero dry first?

I know diesel and kero are pretty close related....but can i mix them and burn them togther?

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I believe those don't care what mix they burn...

 

[Shran]

Nope, probably nothing you'll need to do especially on an old one like that. I had an ancient torpedo heater years ago and it gave zero fawks what I put in it.

I had a newer one that would not stay lit unless I messed with the pump pressure when changing fuels though. It was just a simple adjuster screw, very easy to change. I seem to remember that it would burn both types of diesel no problem but once I tried died kero and clear kero I started needing to mess with the pump once in a while.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Nope, probably nothing you'll need to do especially on an old one like that. I had an ancient torpedo heater years ago and it gave zero fawks what I put in it.

I had a newer one that would not stay lit unless I messed with the pump pressure when changing fuels though. It was just a simple adjuster screw, very easy to change. I seem to remember that it would burn both types of diesel no problem but once I tried died kero and clear kero I started needing to mess with the pump once in a while.

Yeah i have no idea how old it is.

I dumped clear kero in it cause i had some already. But i got it for 50 bucks and it got my shed up to about 60-65* in 10 minutes lol

 

[Blmpkn]

Yeah i have no idea how old it is.

I dumped clear kero in it cause i had some already. But i got it for 50 bucks and it got my shed up to about 60-65* in 10 minutes lol

Jesus.. how big is your shed? Those things put out some serious heat lol.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Mine is great in my shop, little stinky when it's been running a while but bearable... Kerosene isn't really obtainable (I see jugs at stores but it's like $10 a gallon or more so no...) so I just run mine on diesel. I'm hoping to get a propane tank by next winter and get the furnace thing installed but don't have time to think about that right now since it's gotta be converted to LP from NG too...

I got mine new and I did leaf through the manual a couple years ago when I got it and it didn't mention doing anything between fuels.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

Jesus.. how big is your shed? Those things put out some serious heat lol.

Lol....its like 16x14. So had i let it run longer then i did it woulda been t shirt weather.

Mine is great in my shop, little stinky when it's been running a while but bearable... Kerosene isn't really obtainable (I see jugs at stores but it's like $10 a gallon or more so no...) so I just run mine on diesel. I'm hoping to get a propane tank by next winter and get the furnace thing installed but don't have time to think about that right now since it's gotta be converted to LP from NG too...

I got mine new and I did leaf through the manual a couple years ago when I got it and it didn't mention doing anything between fuels.

This one stinks like shit. But it still had probably 1/2-1 gallon of god knows how old of fuel in it i dumped a gallon of fresh ontop of.

Kerosene from the store ia 15/gallon here. I about choked. Atleast when i bought the bottle i had on hand for a few months. But we do have a station in town that still sella it i believe.

I thought about diesel but i figured it would stink worse.

 

[DeeRanger]

Here in Pennsylvania there are some gas stations that sell #1 kerosene at the pump. I bought some recently at a Sheetz that was about $4.50/gal. At W-mart it's almost $30. for 2.5 gallons..

 

[KaHOnas]

Jet A (preferably negative PRIST) is basically kerosene. JP8 is the military designation for jet fuel with PRIST. You might be able to get it for about $4-5/gallon at your local small airport. Not sure about the odor difference between that and diesel.

As lil_Blue_Ford said, those old salamanders burn just about anything. I don't think it'll care if you mix the two fuels. One of my previous mechanics took the daily jet fuel samples and ran them in his diesel Dodge Ram. Normally they would just toss them in the used oil container for disposal. I recall he had to add a little bit of transmission fluid or something just for a little extra lubricant but he claimed his truck loved the stuff.

*PRIST is an anti-icing additive that usually adds about 15¢/gal. Sometimes it's premixed.

I bought some recently at a Sheetz that was about $4.50/gal. At W-mart it's almost $30. for 2.5 gallons..

It's crazy how much kerosene costs now. I've seen it going for $10/gal at Ace hardware.

 

[Shran]

Fleet Farm has a kerosene pump at their gas station and IIRC it was about $5.50/gallon last time I needed some.

It's frickin dyed red though. It's not clear. If you run dyed fuel in a radiant heater it will ruin the wick! I don't understand why they would dye it unless it has to do with running it in diesel road vehicles/fuel tax... but it's 2-3x the cost of road diesel so why would you in the first place?

 

[Uncle Gump]

A bit of a side track...

I've beening looking at these newer diesel heaters. I haven't made my mind yet... but i think this could keep my one car garage pretty comfortable on cold days.

LF Bros Diesel Heater https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7BS72QG?tag=959media-20

 

[sgtsandman]

A bit of a side track...

I've beening looking at these newer diesel heaters. I haven't made my mind yet... but i think this could keep my one car garage pretty comfortable on cold days.

LF Bros Diesel Heater https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7BS72QG?tag=959media-20

I know these are popular with the truck bed camping crowd, which raises the question if they have enough output for something larger than a van or truck bed.

 

[Uncle Gump]

I know these are popular with the truck bed camping crowd, which raises the question if they have enough output for something larger than a van or truck bed.

Understood...

But i have a plan to knock the chill off with my propane torpedo heater. Then switch to the diesel heater. I'm also not looking for t shirt kinda warm... more like coverall warm while staying busy. I've seen reviews where folks heat small hunting cabins and sheds and are happy enough with performance.

 

[sgtsandman]

Understood...

But i have a plan to knock the chill off with my propane torpedo heater. Then switch to the diesel heater. I'm also not looking for t shirt kinda warm... more like coverall warm while staying busy. I've seen reviews where folks heat small hunting cabins and sheds and are happy enough with performance.

If this helps any, I do similar. From memory, my garage is 12x14 and is uninsulated. I use a propane torpedo heat to quickly warm up the space and two reflective kerosene heaters, with two small electric heaters to supplement and circulate the air. That takes the chill out of the air and gets to the level you are talking about as long as you don't have to do work under a vehicle. You can feel the concrete sucking the heat out of the air under there and it is still cold.

In that scenario, I don't think a diesel heater will be enough but if your garage is insualted, that might be enough to make the difference.

 

[Shran]

@Uncle Gump my buddy has one of those that he uses to heat the back of his truck when he has a topper on it for camping. He has been really happy with it but it's sensitive to elevation changes and it has to be recalibrated. Not an issue for home use.

The guy who runs the Destination Adventure channel on YouTube has one that he heats his camper with too and IIRC he was pleased with it.