[AT] Shop heating

[Robinson]

At 08:45 PM 11/10/04, you wrote:

>--- Spencer Yost <yostsw at atis.net> wrote:
>
> > I cranked up the shop's Seigler oil stove tonight
> > for the first time this
> > season.  36 degrees and falling outside but it is a
> > comfy 62 inside.
>
>Spencer, I do like it toasty/comfy when I get to spend
>a day in my shop.  We have both a crawl-space furnace
>(mounted from the ceiling) to get things started, and
>a wood stove to keep it warm.  We just like the heat
>and "ambiance" (big word :->) of a wood fire better
>but the stove is a little small for the shop.  Both
>were seconds and so cost very little when purchased
>many years ago.  If I were to build new today I would
>definetly go with floor heat, MUCH nicer on the feet,
>generaly very comfortable, and real cheeeeeap to
>operate.
>Still, would have to have a stove to sit around and
>have a cup of hot chocolate, ya know?  Just wouldn't
>be quite right otherwise.
>Oh, not really a 'by the way' but, nice stove you have
>there.  From the 50's ?
>Keep up the fine work you do for us,
>
>
>=====
>Dave Myers
>Paw Paw, Michigan
>
>Being crazy just helps me keep my sanity!
>
>
>

         That is probably a 4 man space heater... (takes 4 guys to carry 
it)    :-)    That company liked a lot of cast iron. They were the Cadillac 
of space heaters.  Most others used very little cast iron. Many had none at 
all but were made of stamped sheet metal right down to the door and hinges. 
I believe that those oil space heaters started showing up in the 1930's in 
big numbers. I would guess that yours is late 1940's to early 1950's. About 
the early 1950's they all started making them lower and wider and so that 
they didn't stick out into a room as far. Many had a blower which made a 
world of difference in spreading the heat around. Almost all of them were 
what were called "pot" burners. Not to be confused with a 
"bong"...    ;-)   They were quite efficient and when the draft was right 
would burn with the whole burner inside filled with an almost clear blue 
flame. They should always be used with an "atmospheric draft control" (a 
little swinging door controlled by adjusting a weight that lets air into 
the stove pipe) mounted where the stove pipe comes out the back or in the 
first foot of stove pipe. The stove pipe should be checked for carbon 
build-up much like checking for creosote in a wood burning flue. When ran a 
lot at low fire they can build up with an oily carbon that can catch fire 
and burn very hot. You learn how to tap the pipe and tell if it is getting 
a build-up. Even in milder weather you should burn it hot every few days to 
keep it clean. They can also get a deposit on the bottom inside of the 
burner where the oil dribbles in. Every oil stove I ever saw has a "Tee" in 
the line at the back where a steel line runs into the pot so that you can 
take a plug out and clear the pot end of the line. If not cleaned now and 
then (sometimes only once a year) it can get plugged and stop all oil flow 
into the pot. We used an old coat hanger wire for years buy it didn't clean 
well. Finally my grandfather who was tool maker for IHC in Indy got several 
very long 1/4" drill bits from work that worked great for cleaning them. On 
the one we had the line slanted down into the stove and you could remove 
the plug to clean the line without shutting the stove down. We kept an old 
pie pan handy to sit under the clean-out to catch the dribbles and crud 
pulled from the line. Another good simple cleaning tool I made for an old 
two burner "Super-Flame" I used in a shop years ago was just a piece of 
1/4" rod about 16" long with an "Ell" about 2" long bent on one end and the 
other end ground off at a long angle to produce a cutting edge. Some of 
them were fed from a bulk tank outside but many were used with a small tank 
mounted on the back of the stove that you filled almost daily. A few simple 
stoves just used a common valve to control oil flow but most of the better 
ones used a carburetor of sorts that had a float valve and usually a filter 
that needs to be cleaned occasionally. Having a float kept the stove from 
filling up to the door with oil and running out on the floor if the flame 
went.   :-)   I used to have an old duo therm with a bulb type thermostat 
control that mounted on the carb and operated the tiny pin that stuck up 
out of the carb. Some of the later ones were made so that you could have an 
electric thermostat mounted on a wall across the room somewhere.
         There were a number of wick type kerosene burners, some vented and 
many unvented. The best would burn with an all blue flame.
         In addition to Siegler (sp?) and Super Flame a few others were 
Duo-Therm, Monarch, Warm-Morning and several lines sold by Sears, Wards etc.




"farmer"

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Francis Robinson
Central Indiana, USA
robinson at svs.net