Propane Lantern

[DonPedro71]

I was hoping someone could trouble shoot a propane lantern for me...

 

I have a double mantle (tie kind) propane lantern that I put on the top of a "tree" that comes out of a 20# cylinder.

 

It worked beautifully for 3 nights. I could turn the gas all the way on and both mantles had that bright, white light producing glow. There was no flame at all. Just clean burn.

 

Then...on the fourth night I lit the lamp, it had yellow and red sooty flames around the mantles and I couldn't turn up the fire without just feeding the flames. The flames are, of course, not bright at all. So, I took off the mantles (which appeared fine) and replaced with new mantles, but I got the same result.

 

Yes, there is plenty of gas in the cylinder. It runs my stove fine.

 

- PETE

[OneHour]

Pete,

 

Did you prime the new mantles? Hold the lighter or match under the newly installed mantles (with the valve off) and burn the new mantles evenly. Each mantle will burn completely after 2-3 minutes and will turn gray to white color. Don't touch the mantles after that. They are extremely hot and they will fall apart. The way that you described with flame and yellow/red sooty flames (probably emits black smoke as well) and taking the mantles off intact sounds as if you did not prime the new mantles.

 

1Hour(This message has been edited by OneHour)

[kenk]

I can't imagine its the mantles' initial burn since you said it worked earlier.

 

You didn't mention whether this was a Coleman lantern, but you could contact Coleman service with your question at consumerservice@coleman.com.

 

I did find this on their web site:

 

Why does my lantern flare excessively with a yellow flame when lit?

 

It is normal for a liquid fuel lantern to burn with a large yellow flame when first started. Until the generator assembly is hot enough to vaporize the fuel, the lantern will burn with a yellow flame. Once the generator heats up enough, the flame will settle down to a glow. Under normal use, this can take from 20 to 60 seconds depending on the outside temperature. The colder the lantern and fuel, the longer it will take.

 

On both liquid fuel and propane lanterns there is a tube that pulls outside air into the burner assembly to mix with the fuel. On the liquid fuel lanterns, this tube runs up in back of the generator and bends where the generator intersects it at mantle height. On propane lanterns, this is the only tube that runs from top to bottom inside the globe. It sits directly over the gas tip at the top of the valve.

 

If either of these tubes is blocked or partially blocked by a spider web, an insect or a wasp nest, the air flow to be mixed with the fuel to the mantles will be restricted and only a large yellow flames will appear at the mantles. The mantles will never settle down to a glow. If this occurs, the burner will need to be removed from the lantern and the tube cleaned with a small bottle or gun-cleaning brush or a pipe-cleaner.

 

Over-filling the fuel tank can also cause excessive flame on liquid fuel lanterns. You should always fill a lantern on a flat, level surface. Inside the filler hole is a short neck reaching inside the tank. The maximum fuel level should always be just below the bottom of this neck. If the fuel level reaches up inside the neck or is enough to require you to tilt the lantern to keep fuel from pouring out the filler hole, the lantern is over-filled and can flood when lighted. This will cause large yellow flames and the mantles will not settle down and glow.

 

I'm guessing your lantern's air supply is blocked.

 

Ken

[packsaddle]

Assuming the mantles are intact, they should have no effect. I also believe there is a blockage, perhaps some dust or other debris in the jet or valve. A good cleaning should do it. If you disconnect the supply line from the tank, you must take care that some protective cover is installed on both disconnected ends to prevent fouling. Around here, a couple of hours is all it takes for a wasp to stuff the hole full of mud. What a mess!