Propane Vs Fuel

[Guest]

Which is more economical a propane lantern or one that runs off of coleman fuel? Does the fuel powered lantern put off nastier fumes? Thanks -- Robert

[Gissert]

I have both, and I prefer my propane powered unit.

There is no fuel/funnels to mess with, and it uses the same one pounders that I use in my buddy heater.

The mantles can still be a PITA, however.

[This message has been edited by Gissert (edited 01-31-2003).]

[Bobb-o]

in all the years i have been using fuel lanterns i have never noticed any fumes besides when it needed to be filled. I like the fuel lanterns cuz you dont have to carry all those d@mn propane cylinders with. Two cans of white gas normally lasts us through the 5 days of deer hunting. and that is with filling 3 lanterns and running them from sunset (5 ish) to aboot midnight.

[Swill]

I bought the new North Star lantern by Coleman and it is great. It runs off propane which burns clean and it is the brightest lantern on the market. I usually get 6-9 hours on a propane tank but I really can't be for certain.
I know of this bait / sporting goods dealer in White Bear Lake...Hansens that sells a sweet hook up so you can attach your lantern and mr. heater to a 11 or 20 lb tank. That would probley be the cheapes route. I think it sells for around 27 bucks..

Swill

[Guest]

Fuel is definately the most economical, propane is more convienient, but the latest and greatest is the LED headlamp units; lightest, plenty of light wherever you look, compact, no fumes, and run for dozens of hours on a few AA batteries. I like lithium AA for extremely cold multi-day expeditions, or the rechargable metal-hydrides for overall performance and economy.

[marine_man]

A friend of mine and I go back and forth on this almost every year...

He always uses propane, and I've used the coleman fuel lantern. Although I've never run the numbers, I'm almost certain that the fuel method is more economical. Also, I can run a couple of nights on one tank of fuel while he needs to replace his propane bottle at the end of every night.

I've never noticed any fumes from the fuel lantern. As long as you fill up before you go out fishing spilling fuel on your hands won't be an issue either.

marine_man

[Guest]

I've never seen a more efficient setup than my dual fuel running on white gas. It seems better than the old white gas laterns. I'm still suprised how long it lasts. I think they should quit making those 1 LBers. that way no one has to pay 2 bucks for the stupid things and I don't have to pick them up on the ice. Bring a bigger tank. Think about it 2.50 for 1 lb of propane, come on,......you're just paying for the canister.

[Gissert]

I like my one pounders. They are light, and do not take up much space. I don't mind paying for the convience they provide. I sure as heck do not leave thm on the ice. That really chaps my hide when I see that some slob has left their trash. The bigger tanks would be cheaper by far, but space is at a premium when I fish, so the little bottles just work better for me.

Then only time my fuel lantern has ever made my eyes sting is when I have had a bad mantle. The fuel lantern throws a ton more heat than my propane unit, however. I grab that unit on the subzero days.

If it is fairly warm, I don't even run the lantern. I have a LED light that velcros to the top pole of my Otter, and that provides enough light to fish with.

[Steve Foss]

I used to use the white gas, but dropped it like a hot potato when the 1 lb propane canisters came out. I've got a Northstar now, and love it. I actually use it more and more rarely, because the Princeton Aurora Tech headlamp comes close to making it obsolete for the types of ice fishing I do. One exception is night tip-up fishing, when a lantern on the dim setting is all I need to catch the reflective tape on my flags.

Yes, propane probably is more expensive, though not tremendously so. I can get two-packs on sale for $2.99, and each one lasts five hours for my lantern on the high setting.

But propane involves no mess, and I always worried I'd have a fire when I fueled up the white gas lanterns when they ran low. I suppose I wasn't supposed to fuel them while they were still running, oh well. I don't like hauling around flammable fuel (auger gas is bad enough), having the containers banged around, having to slop it around while fueling, etc.

So propane is the ticket for me. I know there are lots of guys out there who swear by the white gas lanterns, and it's just a personal preference thing.

Now if someone would just make a metal mesh mantle for the lanterns, one that doesn't crumble to ash like the current ones every time you look at them funny, I'd be one REALLY happy catfish.

[This message has been edited by stfcatfish (edited 02-01-2003).]

[neusbaum]

I have to agree with stfcatfish on the Princeton Aurora Tech headlamp. I've had mine for a year or so and use it ALOT. With the LED lights I have enough light to operate effectively inside my portable and the batteries last a long time. I even used it this past deer season for field dressing after dark and it worked great. The only downside is that if you're fishing with someone else, they sort of need one too or else they are in the dark quite a bit. Also, the unit isn't cheap. I think I paid around 40 bones at Cabelas for mine. Despite these negatives, I highly recommend this option. Hey stfcatfish, Princeton ought to pay us for this positive report.

[This message has been edited by neusbaum (edited 02-01-2003).]

[Steve Foss]

neusbaum, you mean you haven't gotten your check from the company yet?

Kidding, of course.

[Big Dave2]

I second everything stfcatfish just said. However I probably would consider switching over to liquid fuel if they made a sunflower or some other type of heater that would burn that stuff too. I dont see any reason to haul 2 types of fuel around.

Plus if you are talking about which one is more economicable, I may be wrong but I think most of the good fuel lanterns are about $50.00 where you can get a good coleman propane for $20.00. You can buy a lot of 1lb tanks for $30.00.

By the way, where are you getting those 2 packs of propane? The best deal I have seen was a few years ago at Sam's Club they had a 6 pack but it was that american camper brand and the threads seemed to be kind of funny on those and made it hard to get a new tank on my heater. Coleman's seem to be $1.89 or more.

Dave

[This message has been edited by Big Dave2 (edited 02-01-2003).]

[Steve Foss]

Coleman North Star propane lanterns run about $45 in most stores. They are the brightest lanterns I've seen.

I got a bunch of two-packs of 1-pounders at Walmart on clearance last spring for $2.99. They are that same American camper brand or whatever that Sam's Club has (Walmart and Sam's are owned by the same corp), but I have had no trouble with the threads, either on my heaters or my lantern. Even on regular price, they go for about $1.65 per cylinder at Walmart.

[This message has been edited by stfcatfish (edited 02-03-2003).]

[Big Dave2]

I probably just got a bad batch of those cylinders. I was so disgusted with them that I never tried them again. I will have to pick some up and give them another whirl. I never go to Wal-mart but there is a new one opening up in Shakopee which is pretty close to where I live so maybe I will have to start frequenting Wally world.

Thax, Dave

[invadersmn]

You can pick up 2 packs at Wal-Mart!

Charles

[Crappie Killer]

FYI -- for those of you looking for a deal...

You can find great deals on White gas Coleman products on Ebay. Last summer, I bought a lantern w/ case, 3-5k heater, and cooking stove,...all for under 50 bucks! All three products were like new condition. I don't think the stove was ever used! I don't mind working with the coleman fuel at all, and the price was definately right.