Lantern Advice

Sep 7, 2022
62
Captiva Yachts Sanibel 18 Lake Wylie
Hi,

Can anyone tell me if the Weems and Plath yacht lanterns (link below) give off enough light to read by? Do they give off enough heat to warm the cabin of an 18-foot boat? They look cool, and having one would be a checkmark on the intentional redundancy list, but LEDs are sure brighter.

Thanks
Brass Yacht Lamp
 

JBP-PA

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Apr 29, 2022
474
Jeanneau Tonic 23 Erie, PA
I have both the #700 and the #600 (no longer made). Both get quite toasty and give off a bit of heat, enough to take the edge off but not really enough to heat my 23 ft boat. They both give off a warm glow you could read by, but it's not optimal. The same as any other oil lamp. They are beautiful and fun to have, I'd never give them up, but it's only aesthetic not practical.
 
Jan 11, 2014
12,171
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
How long do you want to read? And how small is the print?

These lamps are more for use as general lighting than as a reading lamp. The light is pretty diffuse and very yellow. They do provide minimal heat, we were desperate on this morning with the cabin in the low 50s. :confused:

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Mar 2, 2019
501
Oday 25 Milwaukee
Ambience ..that's why I bought ours . I love the look ,the feel and the weight of a well made oil lamp . Ours is mounted on a bulkhead and is gimballed .
Even turned all the way up ,I'm not sure I would want to read small print for very long . I most certainly would peruse a map with one .
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,543
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
@dlochner is in NY. You are on the border of NC and SC... (much warmer) and your boat is smaller. You may find that it will make your cabin warm enough... you could alway get two...

BUT! Please install a CO and CO2 monitor... the alarm is the cheapest insurance you can buy...

 
Jan 11, 2014
12,171
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
We were just trying to get the heck out of NC, it was too cold. A few days later we woke up to 46° in the cabin in Oriental.:yikes:
 
Dec 25, 2000
5,855
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
Can anyone tell me if the Weems and Plath yacht lanterns (link below) give off enough light to read by? Do they give off enough heat to warm the cabin of an 18-foot boat?
No and no. We've had one for years. They look nice with a comfortable ambient light. If you want a lantern that will give off lots of heat and brightness to read by, get one of these. They work great, but do need some ventilation. Aladdin Oil Lamp, Model 12 Brass Oil Lamp Burner / Model 12 Lox-On Chimney | eBay

Also here. Aladdin Wall Lamps
 
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dLj

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Mar 23, 2017
3,769
Belliure 41 Back in the Chesapeake
OK, I don't know the models being discussed, but having grown up with kerosene lamps, it doesn't look to me like any of these lamps would be good for reading. We had a kerosene reading lamp that had a reflector behind the flame and a lens in front that really aided in giving directed light specifically for reading. I can't imagine any kerosene lamp without at least a condenser (the lens in front) could be used for any length of time reading without a lot of eye strain...

dj
 
Jan 22, 2008
79
Hunter 30_88-94 Ipswich, Ma MA
We have two on our boat, the large and small model. Both are bulkhead mounted on gimbals. As mentioned they give off a warm glow. It’s possible to read by them once your eyes adjust and you’re fairly close.
Make sure you use smokeless fuel or you’ll have soot all over your cabin.
 

Rick D

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Jun 14, 2008
7,176
Hunter Legend 40.5 Shoreline Marina Long Beach CA
I have one in the main cabin of our Hunter 40.5. The best use over the years was offshore races when I had it on all night. It produced as soft glow and took the edge off the cold. Otherwise, it's sort of having a little fireplace at home.
 
Jun 8, 2004
1,045
C&C Frigate 36 St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia
I second what Terry Cox says above. In order to get decent light for reading (and the consequent increase in heat output) the lamp must have a round wick like the Aladdin lamp in his link. I have always favoured lamps by Den Hann and have a Trawler Jr. on my current boat.

And use only pure lamp oil (paraffin) not kerosene!
 
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Dec 25, 2000
5,855
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
OK, I don't know the models being discussed, but having grown up with kerosene lamps, it doesn't look to me like any of these lamps would be good for reading.
If you've ever experienced the light and heat from a Coleman lantern, you'll know the difference. That separates the Aladdin mantle lamp from a standard wick lamp.
 

dLj

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Mar 23, 2017
3,769
Belliure 41 Back in the Chesapeake
If you've ever experienced the light and heat from a Coleman lantern, you'll know the difference. That separates the Aladdin mantle lamp from a standard wick lamp.
I've not seen mantle lamps run kerosene. But running a search, it appears that they will run with kerosene. Mantle lamps do provide enough light to read by.

Traditional wick lamps are hard pressed to produce sufficient light to read by, even the large ( including circular) wick types although those are certainly better.

I also ran a search on the type of lamp we used to have running a traditional wick and used for reading, but did not find a reference to one. I imagine I'd have to go into museums to research them. The one we had was from the early 1900's as were many of the original kerosene lamps we had in our farmhouse.

I have used the pressurized mantel lamps, but all the ones I've used ran off gasoline. They are very bright!

dj
 
Jun 8, 2004
1,045
C&C Frigate 36 St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia
Mantle lamps - Aladdin, Coleman or Tilley - are too bright for a small boat cabin IMHO. If you like reading by a 200 - 400 Watt (incandescent) bulb, you might want one. They do give off a lot of heat, if that's a priority. Round wick lamps are a happy medium for me.
 

dLj

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Mar 23, 2017
3,769
Belliure 41 Back in the Chesapeake
Mantle lamps - Aladdin, Coleman or Tilley - are too bright for a small boat cabin IMHO. If you like reading by a 200 - 400 Watt (incandescent) bulb, you might want one. They do give off a lot of heat, if that's a priority. Round wick lamps are a happy medium for me.
They also go through fuel much faster than wick based lamps - at least the gasoline ones do. I've never used a kero pressurized mantel lamp.

dj
 
Dec 25, 2000
5,855
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
Unlike Coleman gas mantle lanterns, Aladdin lamps are not pressurized. It is a highly refined white kerosene that burns exceptionally clean with very low consumption. I purchase ours from Home Depot. While the light is quite bright, it is more localized and does not spread out like a high wattage incandescent bulb. It will also heat up a small boat cabin nicely during those cooler outside temps.
 

dLj

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Mar 23, 2017
3,769
Belliure 41 Back in the Chesapeake
Unlike Coleman gas mantle lanterns, Aladdin lamps are not pressurized. It is a highly refined white kerosene that burns exceptionally clean with very low consumption. I purchase ours from Home Depot. While the light is quite bright, it is more localized and does not spread out like a high wattage incandescent bulb. It will also heat up a small boat cabin nicely during those cooler outside temps.
Do you buy the lamps at home Depot or the fuel? Or both?

dj
 
Sep 7, 2022
62
Captiva Yachts Sanibel 18 Lake Wylie
How long do you want to read? And how small is the print?

These lamps are more for use as general lighting than as a reading lamp. The light is pretty diffuse and very yellow. They do provide minimal heat, we were desperate on this morning with the cabin in the low 50s. :confused:

View attachment 220924
Thank you for the information. What a cozy morning there!















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