Will Coleman fuel last indefinitely?

[Maineboy]

I just finished the reading the mantle thread and remembered I have a couple cans of Coleman fuel that are quite old, one can is unopened the other about 2/3 full. I'm not sure when I bought them and both have the plastic cover but they have to be at least 20 years old. I have 2 double mantle lanterns and a gas stove that have been sitting unused for 18 years and I want to fire them up. I know new fuel is quite pricey and scarce in these parts.

[Dryb2860]

AS far as I know, as long as the seal holds you should be good.

[Buzz Krumhunger]

Unopened cans last a long time. The opened can will eventually evaporate even with the lid screwed on. I’ve never had it “go bad” like auto gas will.

[XDROB]

I am in the same boat. Used three lanterns. And the Deluxe Coleman stove. For many years. Now they sit unused. And I also have fuel. My question is if the one opened does evaporate. Is it just the volatiles in mix that evaporates and leaves an inert liquid? Or does it evenly evaporate?

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[BJK]

It's white gas. There are no additives. It's just gas.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

every once in a while I find a partial can of coleman fuel at a garage sale or the County's household hazardous waste "free/exchange room". As long as the inside of the can is not rusty and the fuel has a good smell, I'll use it. BTW, I haven't found a bad can yet.

[hoodat]

I've never run into any that was bad. And I've had some that looked to be fifty years old. Seriously. jd

[lksmith]

Pretty sure as long as it doesn't get contaminated with water or evaporate it doesn't go bad. Unlike modern gas, it doesn't have additives to do bad and is a more highly refined homogenous mixture.

[jimlj]

I have a 42 year old Coleman stove and lantern that hadn't been used in years. I opened up the cap on the tanks and the fuel still smelled as fresh as a new un-opened can for fuel. I was going to get rid of the stove because I didn't think I'd ever use it again. A few drops of oil in the pump and it pumped up pressure good as new. Since I got a pellet grill the Coleman stove and a cast iron fry pan gets put to good use to sear burgers and steaks when they come off the grill.

Love the Coleman hiss.

[Gator 45/70]

What is Coleman gas, Is it 93 octane white gas or Av-gas?

[Geezer in NH]

Coleman fuel is a naphtha product marketed by the Coleman Company . Historically called white gas

[barrabruce]

All true it is Naphtha ,white gas.
It is actually petrol but in the 1940’s sense. Pure that is.
It don’t go off and leaves very little waxy easters behind.
They use special decantered and filtered stuff in the Antarctic as a failure is more life threatening.They also use special seals and things too.

People think that you can use petrol but with the additives they will gum up the evaporator and turn you into a pumpkin head.

My 1946 2 burner Coleman stove still works well when I fire it up.
We use Shellite which our equivalent.
Price has gone up 4x as much as metho and kero and is sort of prohibitive.
Americans tend to use white gas stoves and is ozzies and britts kerosene.
The Old m42’s and 52 trench stoves are sweet to fire up every now and again.
The locked pump non return valve is one of the best pump systems used in fuel stoves.

[yovinny]

Lasts forever or until the can rusts through for it to evaporate.. Ask me how I know,,lol

Im pretty sure Kerosene is the same, or at least the older stuff was.
Back in the 80's I emptied a 250gal kerosene tank that was probably 50yrs old at the time,, and it all burnt just as good as new..

[Shuz]

For years I used Coleman fuel as 1 of the ingredients in Ed's red bore cleaner. Recently, C.E.(Ed) Harris, the original formulator of Ed's red, told us to use K1 kerosene in place of the Colman fuel. So, at least for me, I no longer need Colman fuel.

[Graybeard96]

Some of our Whitegas (Coleman Gas) sits in Caches for years before its used. Previously opened Cans may contain condensation Water and or Rust. Poor the whole Can into a White 5 Gallon Can, Rust and Water will settle on the Bottom and easy to see and and avoid when pooring the Whitegas back into original Can or filling Lamps.

Cheers

[jimlj]

I don't know how the computerized automobile would like it, but as a kid if we ever ran out of gas while camping we always had a gallon or two of Coleman Fuel. Always got us home without any problem.

[BJK]

It might work in a gas engine in an emergency, but I wouldn't make a habit of it.

[Winger Ed.]

Smell it.

It'll tell you if its still good.

[GregLaROCHE]

Coleman fuel or white gas has a very low octane rating, if any at all. My father had an old Sears Water Witch outboard motor. Back then you could still find white gas for sale. It worked great in that motor, but I am sure it would knock like heck in a modern gas burning car.

[too many things]

you are fine if the can dont rust from outside
as a note . most towns have a place or 2 that carry RV non alch gas . its works the same ,but about 1.50 more . a gal
look up RV gas in your town. in wv its about 3.75 gal
but lot cheaper than the 15.00 i have seen on Colman
and NO it is not low its 90 octane

[bakerjw]

See my post on the Lantern mantles thread... ;)

[jaysouth]

you are fine if the can dont rust from outside
as a note . most towns have a place or 2 that carry RV non alch gas . its works the same ,but about 1.50 more . a gal
look up RV gas in your town. in wv its about 3.75 gal
but lot cheaper than the 15.00 i have seen on Colman
and NO it is not low its 90 octane

My local Shell has No ethanol gasoline pumps. Is this ok to burn in coleman stoves/lanterns?

[hoodat]

any unleaded gas will work, but as said by a previous poster they will gunk up your stove or lanterns "generator" . Coleman a few years ago came out with models that were sposed to work with any gas. Propane stoves and lanterns are more the norm these days and you don't see as many of the gas types.

I still use one of mine to smelt my dirty lead. jd

[megasupermagnum]

My local Shell has No ethanol gasoline pumps. Is this ok to burn in coleman stoves/lanterns?

I can't speak for the lanterns, but yes, gasoline works in the stoves just fine. It doesn't have to be non-ethanol either. I've even run mixed 2 stroke gas through my stove. I'm sure it will crud up the heating tube faster than coleman fuel, but I clean it out yearly anyway.

That's what I really love about these stoves is their bone simple, bullet-proof system, I really wonder why anyone would ever mess with those garbage 1 lb propane bombs ever again. These coleman stoves will run on all the common fuels, gasoline, diesel, kerosene, white gas, etc. Do some research, and it will blow your mind how versatile these are with fuel. There's nothing to really fail unless you drop it and break the tank. If it doesn't pump up, I usually take the leather seal out, and flare it slightly, and it helps to wet with fuel. Maybe keep a spare leather taped inside the cover. These aren't fuel hogs either, a full tank must last me half a dozen meals at least, probably more.

I love these, a true end of the world tool that isn't a gimmick.

[JimB..]

My local Shell has No ethanol gasoline pumps. Is this ok to burn in coleman stoves/lanterns?

Non ethanol gas still has a bunch of additives. The stoves probably handle the gunk pretty well, but I don’t think I’d burn it in a lantern.

In a pinch you can distill gasoline to get white gas. Takes a pressure cooker, you boil the gasoline and condense the fumes. Boiling gasoline is probably pretty nerve wracking, I’ve seen it done but have never done it myself. Probably violates some law.

[megasupermagnum]

Non ethanol gas still has a bunch of additives. The stoves probably handle the gunk pretty well, but I don’t think I’d burn it in a lantern.

In a pinch you can distill gasoline to get white gas. Takes a pressure cooker, you boil the gasoline and condense the fumes. Boiling gasoline is probably pretty nerve wracking, I’ve seen it done but have never done it myself. Probably violates some law.

So you burn a fuel, to cook another fuel, to create a third fuel? I've been sitting here for a couple minutes trying to imagine a single situation where that would ever be a reasonable idea. I can't think of one.

Gasoline runs fine in the stoves. Actually not just fine, they work fantastic, every bit as good as Coleman fuel. When I clean that burner tube, it has a char crust inside. It is a simple matter to unthread it, unthread the nozzle, and run a cleaning brush through it a few times. Mines due for the yearly cleaning, I should take a picture. I ran mine the entire year last year on nothing but gasoline. This spring and summer I used it three times with mixed 2 stroke gas.

Coleman fuel is cleaner, but I don't consider it a huge benefit. The real benefit is that it doesn't go bad. You can keep the same can of fuel at your cabin for 10 years if you want. I've never tried to run a stove on 1 year+ old gas, and I have no idea how it would like it. Both fuel's light extremely easy, even well below 0, which is one drawback I've found to an alcohol stove if you've ever tried to use one. I've heard diesel works great, but I have to wonder if it doesn't suffer the same cold weather fate as alcohol fuels.

[JimB..]

So you burn a fuel, to cook another fuel, to create a third fuel? I've been sitting here for a couple minutes trying to imagine a single situation where that would ever be a reasonable idea. I can't think of one.

Gasoline runs fine in the stoves. Actually not just fine, they work fantastic, every bit as good as Coleman fuel. When I clean that burner tube, it has a char crust inside. It is a simple matter to unthread it, unthread the nozzle, and run a cleaning brush through it a few times. Mines due for the yearly cleaning, I should take a picture. I ran mine the entire year last year on nothing but gasoline. This spring and summer I used it three times with mixed 2 stroke gas.

Coleman fuel is cleaner, but I don't consider it a huge benefit. The real benefit is that it doesn't go bad. You can keep the same can of fuel at your cabin for 10 years if you want. I've never tried to run a stove on 1 year+ old gas, and I have no idea how it would like it. Both fuel's light extremely easy, even well below 0, which is one drawback I've found to an alcohol stove if you've ever tried to use one. I've heard diesel works great, but I have to wonder if it doesn't suffer the same cold weather fate as alcohol fuels.
Sorry, can’t give you an example where it makes sense, but then I struggle doing so for making your own black powder and some other things. I do believe that you can distill old gas, the yield is lower.

[trapper9260]

Can you use Denature Alcohol in a Colman stove and lantern ?

[rbuck351]

I have a very old coleman stove and have run nothing but pump gas through it for the last thirty years I have owned it. It actually works better (lights and burns clean quicker) with the alcohol gas. Never cleaned the burner tube and I know I've burned more than 10 gals of gas through it. I have also used it in lanterns without issues.

[XDROB]

I have a very old coleman stove and have run nothing but pump gas through it for the last thirty years I have owned it. It actually works better (lights and burns clean quicker) with the alcohol gas. Never cleaned the burner tube and I know I've burned more than 10 gals of gas through it. I have also used it in lanterns without issues.I have always used white gas in mine. Have not used it in more then a few years. But my question is what octane gas do you use?

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[megasupermagnum]

Can you use Denature Alcohol in a Colman stove and lantern ?

I've never tried it, as I usually have an alcohol stove with me if I need it. My guess is that if you use the stove as intended, the flame will go out quickly. Alcohol turns to fumes at a very low temperature on it's own. In the heating tube of the coleman stove, my guess is it would evaporate immediately. You need a LOT more alcohol to equal the same quantity of gasoline. The amount of work required to do this would not be worth it. You can run alcohol as a stove with something as simple as a can filled with alcohol, bonus points if you make a lid and drill some holes in the lid and around the top edge of the can.

@XDROB, I'm guessing this a joke question, but I've run 87 octane ethanol, 91 non-oxy, and 105 racing fuel in mine. I might hesitate on 100 low lead Av gas. I'm disappointed to report they all smell the same. It does not smell like a race track with 105.

[rbuck351]

I use regular as it's the cheapist and has less additives than the higher octanes. Higher octanes are derived by adding things such as lead ( no longer used ). Now other things are added to raise the octane rating. The less the octane rating the less the additives. Lead used to be the standard additive for octane and was not so good for colemans as it doesn't burn and will deposit on the inside of the coleman heater tube. The nolead fuels don't seem to have that problem. White gas is no additive gas so has nothing to plug anything.

[trapper9260]

I've never tried it, as I usually have an alcohol stove with me if I need it. My guess is that if you use the stove as intended, the flame will go out quickly. Alcohol turns to fumes at a very low temperature on it's own. In the heating tube of the coleman stove, my guess is it would evaporate immediately. You need a LOT more alcohol to equal the same quantity of gasoline. The amount of work required to do this would not be worth it. You can run alcohol as a stove with something as simple as a can filled with alcohol, bonus points if you make a lid and drill some holes in the lid and around the top edge of the can.

@XDROB, I'm guessing this a joke question, but I've run 87 octane ethanol, 91 non-oxy, and 105 racing fuel in mine. I might hesitate on 100 low lead Av gas. I'm disappointed to report they all smell the same. It does not smell like a race track with 105.

Thank you that is what I was looking to know, thank you for explaining it to me .

[XDROB]

@XDROB, I'm guessing this a joke question, but I've run 87 octane ethanol, 91 non-oxy, and 105 racing fuel in mine. I might hesitate on 100 low lead Av gas. I'm disappointed to report they all smell the same. It does not smell like a race track with 105.[/QUOTE]

Why do think this is a joke question?

I've never run any else through my Coleman stoves and or lanterns then the fuel that was sold for it. Never had to think of an alternate fuel. Have not used any of them in a few years. So have not had to talk about running gas in them. So was asking a question to see if there was a preferred octane.


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[toallmy]

Hehehe the fuel might but the can won't , I checked my can of Colman fuel in the shed and it's empty . Through evaporation or a rusty can it's empty .

[megasupermagnum]

Why do think this is a joke question?

I've never run any else through my Coleman stoves and or lanterns then the fuel that was sold for it. Never had to think of an alternate fuel. Have not used any of them in a few years. So have not had to talk about running gas in them. So was asking a question to see if there was a preferred octane.


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You never joke about that kind of stuff? "Wow you got the lawn done quick, must have put some race gas in the mower."

I'm just wary because in the last week I got a bunch of nasty messages because I answered seriously to a question that was a joke (and I didn't know). And now I answered jokingly to an apparently serious question. What I said was true though, I've run all those octanes in my stove, and there is no difference at all. It's just not as fun as saying "I cooked Klotz burgers".

[XDROB]

You never joke about that kind of stuff? "Wow you got the lawn done quick, must have put some race gas in the mower."

I'm just wary because in the last week I got a bunch of nasty messages because I answered seriously to a question that was a joke (and I didn't know). And now I answered jokingly to an apparently serious question. What I said was true though, I've run all those octanes in my stove, and there is no difference at all. It's just not as fun as saying "I cooked Klotz burgers".I was just asking because in the time I was using my stove and lanterns I never thought of using anything else then the original Colemen fuel.

Ya never know until you ask.

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[GregLaROCHE]

I always ran Coleman fuel in my stove lanterns and a catalytic heater I used to heat my airplane engine during the winter. I never tried to use gas, because I heard too many stories of how it ruined lanterns especially and probably would have caused problems with my catalytic heater.

I knew a guy who would only burn gas in his lantern, but he had a supply of replacement generators that he changed during the winter.

Coleman once came out with a line of products that you could burn Unleaded in. I think they were blue in color as I remember. I don’t know if they still make them.

I had a Coleman kerosene lantern. It worked, but you needed to preheat it with alcohol and that was a pain to have to carry an extra fuel.

I once had a kerosene stove on a boat. We used to burn paint thinner in it because it burned cleaner and hotter. We used a propane tourch to preheat the burner instead of alcohol. We used a garden sprayer fore the fuel tank. It held a lot more, you could put the whole gallon of paint thinner in at once and was much easier to pump up and lasted longer between refills.

[blackthorn]

In 1963 (at age 24) I applied for and acquired a free, special use permit for a piece of lake shore property from the BC forest service. In the interests of keeping this missive short (relatively speaking) I will leave out most of the ensuing history, except to say that in due course I managed to erect what passed for a cabin to use as a summer vacation home. Now, this place was totally off grid. There was road access that (depending on weather and use/abuse) often resembled a goat track more than a road. My palace (appropriately named Mosquito Manor) needed light, so I went out and bought a brand-new Coleman, double mantle lantern. Much to my aggravation, that lantern, once hot, had the annoying habit of producing a pulsating light, rather than the expected bright glow for which Coleman lights are famous. At a yard-sale I found an old single mantle Coleman lantern for a dollar. After a lot of cleaning and replacement of seals, I suddenly had the light I so desired! In communication with my parents, who lived in Manitoba, I mentioned the problem I had with the original lantern and shortly thereafter, I began to receive single mantel Coleman lanterns (several with CN etched into the glass globe). CN stands for Canadian National (railway) and these, in the past, had been used by railway signalmen. Some of these lanterns were designed to run on kerosene, while others used white gas (but I did not know that then). For those readers that are not familiar with Coleman lights, the procedure for lighting a white gas lamp/lantern is to; fill the tank with fuel, pump air into the tank, clear the generator, turn on the gas and light the lamp. Those appliances that run on kerosene require you to preheat the generator by burning alcohol in a small thimble size cup that fits loosely on the generator, before turning on the fuel supply. Now, at this point I feel it is only fair to admit that I have an affliction that borders on OCD, albeit selective OCD, in that when I begin to acquire certain types of “stuff” I tend to go a bit overboard at times. Over the next several years, flea markets, yard sales etc. produced no end of various Coleman products that followed me home. I acquired many Coleman lamps (as well as lanterns), again some of which ran on white gas and some on kerosene. I was introduced to the difference (rather rudely), when I reconditioned a double mantel Coleman lamp and began to test my efforts, with the lamp sitting on the kitchen table. I turned on the fuel, lit a match, applied the flame to the underside of the mantles, and promptly got a six-foot flame shooting up from all over the lamp from the top of the tank up. Oh---that’s what that little cup thingy on the generator is for, it is used to preheat the kerosene generator. I guess it is a good thing that I do not panic easily. I shut the fuel valve, grabbed the lamp by its base and ran outside and set the lamp on the cement sidewalk, where it continued to burn until all the released gas was gone. Thereafter, all gas appliance testing was relegated to the outdoors! After a little bit of thought and experimentation however, I discovered that with care, by opening and closing the fuel valve, one can release just enough white gas fuel to light safely and doing that a couple of times will serve to preheat the generator, causing the mantels to emit steady, bright light at which point it is perfectly safe to open the fuel valve fully. Be it known, therefore that one must determine which type of fuel is required before setting the appliance alight! If your light has a small metal cup through which the generator stem passes you most likely have a kerosene fueled light/lantern. If there is no small metal cup you may have a white gas light, but you may also have a light that has had that cup removed so, extreme care is a must! On Coleman two mantle lamps (not lanterns), look on the bottom if it is stamped R-55 generator use kerosene. On the small single mantle lanterns, the stamp on the bottom of the tank for kerosene is T-44. Once I understood how to make white gas burn safely in a kerosene lamp, I have used it for the last 50+ years. Next thing to try is unleaded car gas in the kerosene lights.