I remembered someone telling me a few years ago about what a great light source alladin lamps were. So lately, after several weekends of beating the bushes I finally found a few new ones.

I spent fifty something Dollars for one, took it home, opened up the box and found that there were no instructions on how to operate. Seemed simple enough; fill with oil, light and away we go. I was VERY disappointed with the dull smoky light. So when I tried to blow it out, pooph, the mantel erupted into a brilliant white light, bright enough to light the entire room.

What a cool invention.

My problem is that I still am not sure what is the best way to light the wick (do I have to remove the mantel?), and what did I do in the first place to even get it to work.

If I can get this one to work, I will be buying another one. Any and all suggestions will be appreciated!

thanks ww:-)

-- WAYNE WITCHER (WWITCHER@MVTEL.NET), November 23, 1998

Answers

I bought mine this past summer...and promptly broke the glass shade.

I have the instructions but am not keen on re-typing them. Replacement parts are available from 1-800-456-1233, and they may have instructions they can send you. Otherwise email me a fax number or snail mail address and I'll get a copy to you.

-- Ron Southwick (southwick@macconnect.com), November 23, 1998.

Are you refering to a hurricane light? Kind of rounded, bublous glass cover with an open top, kept over a wick with a turnable knob that raises and lowers it up and down from the oil that's in a bowl below?

To "turn off" mine, I just "roll" the wick down. It goes out.

To light, roll it up - less than 1/2"-1/4" (10-15 mm for youse Canadianians) - lift up the globe slightly, but not all the way off, and light it with a match or butane torch. Pretty good light for a room, no noise, rather romatic unless the kiddo's are also sleeping in the area....

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), November 23, 1998.

With steady use, the wick will need trimming after a while. Trim off the charred tip (good scissors will do) so that the top of the wick is flat and square. Also, get extra wicks!

-- Robert Michaels (sonofdust@net.com), November 23, 1998.

Wayne, I have one also. The instructions that you needed and didn't have concerning the mantle: it is covered with a protective coating. Just a portion of the instructions: Remove mantle from box by wire frame and handle by "ears" (Never touch fabric.) Fit mantle to burner gallery and lock by turning clockwise. Apply fire to base of mantle to burn off protective coating. Take care that match does not touch mantle. Lock chimney in burner gallery by turning clockwise- do not force. (Also, turning the wick up too high will cause a "burn through" effect- orange flame. It will create smoke and may cause glass to break.)

-- Gayla Dunbar (privacy@please.com), November 23, 1998.

Alladin is still in business, just find them on the web, I believe they are located in Tennessee. I purchased 2 lamps at yard sales a couple years back and sent away for information. Also, hardware stores should carry globes, wicks, etc. That's where I purchased extras for mine. Here in California Ace Hardware carries extra parts. Also, I found 2 globes (lucky me) at thrift stores. They are quite expensive to replace.

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), November 23, 1998.

I believe the concept is the same as a Coleman in that the fuel is "burned" on the ash of teh mantle after being vaporised. In the Coleman, the vaporisation happens in teh generator and a gas is extruded through the ash and burns there. In the ALLADIN, the vaporisation happens as the wick is heated (starting with the match) and then by the burning on the mantle, as Kero is not very volatile.

Always qualified with "I COULD be all wet!!"

Chuck

-- Chuck a night driver (rienzoo@en.com), November 24, 1998.

What happened to the Genie?

-- Richard Dale (rdale@figroup.co.uk), November 24, 1998.

The mantle should be burnt, before being lighted. Clear? Sounds funny I know, but the fact is the cotton thread in the mantle is just there to support a mixture of chemicals that will hold together at great heat. So attach the mantle, then burn it with a match. Then, after the mantle is burnt to an ash, turn up the wick and light the lamp. Funny, but it works.

BTW - don't breathe the smoke that comes from one of these things when it is first lit. It is fairly radioactive, due to the chemicals containing cesium. Probably would not damage you, but why take chances.

-- Paul Davis (davisp1953@yahoo.com), November 24, 1998.

$50!! they certainly saw you coming, and the thing doesn't work to boot.

-- Richard Dale (rdale@figroup.co.uk), November 24, 1998.

Richard,

If you saw how bright these things are you would not think that $50 was such a bad deal. Actually these lamps are very expensive but are a good deal in that they put out as much light as a 60watt bulb.

There is no other oil lamp that comes close to that! The propane lamps are noisy and CO2 is a real problem.

The lamp works but just needed a few tips. To me real light vs the dingy, shadowy light a candle or other than oil lamp puts out is well worth the extra bucks.

Thanks for the advise. After my trial and error I recommend to the Y2K community that:

1. Candles - little light, a fire hazard 2. Standard oil lamp - little light, smell 3. Propane - noisy, hot and probably a C02 hazard (expensive 2) 4. Generator- Wish I had one 5. Solar- to cloudy where I live 6. Alladen Lamp- Excellent inexpensive light, hard to light and hot 7. Any other suggestions??? thanks again

-- WAYNE WITCHER (WWITCHER@MVTEL.NET), November 24, 1998.

Chuck, Paul;

I believe you're thinking of the classic Coleman lantern or propane lantern we use camping - the mantle in that type of lantern is light weave of cotton fabric shaped in a cup, almost always with a drawstright at the open end of the cup, with a powder ceramic in the cotton. Tied on, the pressurized gas enters from a tube from above, and the mantle must be burned off the first time.

Once burned, the cotton "disappears" and the residual ceramic is fused into the cup shape. This ceramic is what glows when the gas is burning.

If this assumption is correct - they're asking about a "wet wick" lamp going down into a basin of liquid oil below the lamp itself. The oil soaks up the wick - maybe 3/8" x 1/16 thick - then the oil burns in a straight flame inside the hurricane glass. But I'm guessing that's an "alladin" lamp - cause I've always imagined those are the "teapot" shaped lamps with a wick and open flame at the tip.

Wish email lets you draw with a pencil - a sketch is worth a thousand bad phrases.

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), November 24, 1998.

My 2 Aladdin lamps are worth several hundred dollars each. The yard sale I purchased them at didn't know the value of them and I picked them up for a couple dollars each. The company has been around since the 1800's.

-- bardou (bardou@baloeny.com), November 25, 1998.

Amazing what they're worth, though can't really picture them.

-- Richard Dale (rdale@figroup.co.uk), November 25, 1998.

Where can one get these lamps? I did a search, and all I found was an antique lamp site. Are they still being made?

-- Ned (entaylor@cloudnet.com), November 25, 1998.

OK, Richard, this is for you:

http://waltonfeed.com/aladin.html

This is just one type of lamp. Lehman's also sells them, but their online catalog doesn't show pictures.

www.lehmans.com

-- (privacy@please.com), November 25, 1998.

Ned,

There are dealers for the Alladin lamp. They are generally old style hardware stores. I went to a lot of flea markets to mayby find a good used one. I found lots of old lamps yet they usually were missing the globe.

There is one style of alladin lamp which looks just like a table lamp, complete with a shade and all (the shade is decor. frosted glass). A very beautiful lamp and probably very useful. I only wish I had the $180.00 to spend. I may yet end up buying the lamp.

These lamps require no pumping (unlike outdoor colemans) and yet put out as much light as a low watt light bulb. I was and am amazed at the effeciency of the unit.

I am told that the name Alladen was given due to the wonderment it caused the early settlers who were used to the old style dingy light provided by most lamps as we know them. Once the alladin was lit, it was magical, thus the name alladin lamp. It was and is a very unusual venturi design.

There just a real hassel to light, oh well.ww

-- WAYNE WITCHER (WWITCHER@MVTEL.NET), November 25, 1998.

After contemplating being without electricity for an extended time and since reading is one of my favorite past times......I decided to invest in an Aladdin lamp because of the brightness of the light it produces....close to a 60 watt bulb. If you'd like to see pictures of these lamps....try this site. http://www.teleport.com/~dany/mill/aladdin.htm

-- Dusty (dusstmopp@aol.com), November 26, 1998.

Robert

The alladin lamp is an oddball hybrid between the propane camping lamp and the old fashioned wick lamp. It uses the same general type of mantel, often supported by a wire frame either underneath or just over the wick. The wick does not burn, it just provides vaporized fuel to the mantel. So they burn very badly for a couple of minutes until the wick heats up by conduction through the copper gimmick that supports both the wick and the mantel - and then it gives a really nice brilliant light.

-- Paul Davis (davisp1953@yahoo.com), November 29, 1998.

Try http://www.oillampman.com/ He's got lots of different ones, and parts and wicks too.

-- Bobbi (volfnat@northweb.com), November 29, 1998.