Hi all. I put the food vaccum sealer to good use, preserving my investments for the future. I guess oxidation will be a bit more tricky without air. Didnt compress the mantels and documents to max as i think they would take damage. Here is how the 930 is packed to protect the glas. And here is a 119 packed to protect the glass. A long term storage solution i got is to also put the lantern in a plastic bag with a silica gel bag inside.
If you are storing them "long term", the fitted mantles will be useless by the time you take them out again...
I'm not sure why they should be useless over time. I have had many lanterns where previous owners since long ago have left un-burned mantles on them, and they have worked as usual despite perhaps 20-30 years of being left hung on the mantle holder. They tend to get very long over time, of course. Generally they will reach the bottom of the globe rest with margins, but that doesn't matter. They will get free during the pre-burning shrinkage.
It probably depends on a number of factors but they sag under their own weight and then don't form properly when lit... It's best to keep them in the packets until just before you intend to use them.
Yes, I fully agree. But as I also said, they just get long. It's in reality most a matter of looks, not function. They generally still work even if they are more cylindrical than bulbous. Unless you have a very picky lantern where the mantle must be extremely close to the vapouriser. Two quick examples! The Primus to the left show what a mantle look after many, many years of "hanging free". This is a very common sight here nowadays on used lanterns, since people seems to often have stored their lanterns in this ready state. Many remained like this until e.g. a son or grandson eventually put the old scruffy lantern out for sale. That's probably what Fjellot's mantles will look in many years from now. The Radius to the right looked exactly the same before I took it in service, and it still work just as well as a more roundly shaped mantle, and I have many examples of this.
Matty I don't think there is any kind of protocol... I always have either used mantle - to show the lamp works, or no mantle (ie the mantle broke in use). Each to their own, I say. Tony
Tony, I generally pre-burn mine as it's much better to do that outside. Then they (lamps) are ready to go if I have a blackout. Blackouts aren't uncommon on the island. Especially during cyclone season. I'll often light a table lamp or even hanging lamp and use them of a night. Not for any reason other than I simply enjoy seeing them burn as part of collecting them. Yes, even my nice and shiny lamps get lit. The difference is they have my dirt and grime on them.
Be careful when wrapping the globe. Some paper qualities will contain some nasty acids which - over the years! - also will affect (?) borosilicate glass and cause damage to the glass surface. Erik
Guys, how do you prepare the tank for long term storage. Do you just rinse it and let it dry? Do you unscrew the filler lid, pump and level indicator and keep them separately? Finally do you loosen all screws and nuts to avoid them getting stuck during long term storage or do you use some chemicals for this?
It depends on the fuel and the tank material... Brass lamps running on paraffin I tend to just leave the fuel in there with the filler cap slightly loose to prevent self presurisation with changes in temperature. If it runs on more volatile fuel then I tend to empty it into a proper storage container as I don't want my garage filling up with explosive vapours! Steel tanks I always empty them, let them dry out and then loosely fit the filler cap. The exception is my Tilley floodlights as it would be a bit of a pain to empty them every time, so I tend to leave them filled.
