My main central furnace went out, with it being allmost spring I purchased a floor model, K-1 portable heater with a 3 1/2 to 4 inch wick type model, cylinder wick. It has worked well for 3 to 4 week, until tonight, I lit it and it smoked like a diesel/used oil smug pot, there was major carbon desposits on the screen at the top of the "vaporizing" cylinder; a glass/metal cylinder on the flame area. I cleaned it like a boot camp rifle and it resooted immedianntly. The wick looks like a synthetic fiber with a 3/16 inch area of burnt wick tip. Do I have bad fuel or need to trim the wick or do a voodoo dance or what?? The flame was a blue/orange glow, now it is a flickering yellow/ orange smokey mess.

-- mitch hearn (moopups@citlink.net), April 07, 2002

Answers

Sounds like bad fuel to me, soot is the major problem with fuel that isn't top grade. Buy K-1 fuel and try it again. If it still carbons up, you probably have a problem with lack of air to the wick when it is burning causing poor combustion.

-- Paul (treewizard@buffalo.com), April 08, 2002.

sounds like you need to clean the wick and maybe trim it up

-- dale (dgarr@fidnet.com), April 08, 2002.

It sounds like bad fuel to me also. I gave up my kero heater because I could not find a steady source of fresh K1.I was also sold diesel fuel one time out of a K1 pump(I have since learned that diesel has red dye in it). The wicks are self cleaning on new heaters, just let them burn completly out of fuel once in a while(I did mine once or twice a week).If you have bad fuel carry the unit outside and drain the tank,add a small amount of fresh fuel light the wick and let burn out of fuel. You can also tell the wick is carboned up when you have trouble using the electric igniter.

-- Brian N. E. Ohio (brilas@hotmail.com), April 08, 2002.

you need to burn the "carmel" off the wick. Your owners manual will have instructions for this . You will need to take it outside and burn the heater until it uses all the fuel. After its cool, remove the batteries from the igniter. Remove the tower assy and lift the coil assy free of the wick. Raise the wick to 'ignite" height and crack the carmeled (burned) edge of the wick all around the circumference until pliable again (do NOT trim the wick as that will cause it to soot quicker). Activate the shutoff lever to retract the wick, clean off the residue, reseat the coil and reinstall the tower. Repeat when the heater begins sooting again.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 08, 2002.

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K1 kerosene also has red dye in it nowadays, at least if you buy it from the pump anyway. The stuff that comes in the 5 gallon metal can is still clear. The dye is used so the government can distinguish which fuels are taxed.

-- curt (curtislarson177@hotmail.com), May 06, 2002.