Leaking hurricane oil lamps?

puddy

We bought (or should I say, my OH bought) some dirt cheap hurricane oil lamps on ebay. When they arrived they looked like they were made out of aluminium paper and they proved that they were top quality by leaking all the oil out the bottom.

We dont want to get expensive ones and OH has failed to inform the vendor that these are rubbish and really we cant be bothered with the hassle of sending them back etc.

First thoughts were that we should put super glue round the outer seal at the bottom, but we find that they still leak

Now OH wants to fill them with melted wax, spin them round, let the wax dry and solidify into the gaps in the seal and hey presto, he thinks that will work
(did I mention that he doesnt want the 'hassle' of sending them back?)

What do you think is the solution to sealing these up properly?

Gloomendoom

Solder up the base. I think you might find that paraffin dissolves paraffin wax (I haven't tested it myself).

You can get liquid petrol tank sealer that is designed for this purpose. Linky. Decent lamps would be cheaper.

datostar

Araldite (old-fashioned slow setting type) might do it. I had an Austin 1800 years ago with aluminium sump which got a hole knocked in it. I took it off, cleaned it thoroughly, used a blowtorch to burn off the remaining oil, then Araldited it. I wasn't confident, but it worked perfectly and it never leaked again all the time I had it. That resisted very hot oil constantly sloshing around. A more hostile environment that paraffin, I should think. As previously said, soldering is probably the best solution (they're soldered to start with) but not everyone has the equipment or skill to do it.

Mankysteve

I reckon Datostar has the best idea. Aluminium is pain to weld, I'm not sure how well it solders.

Gloomendoom

Mankysteve wrote: »

I reckon Datostar has the best idea. Aluminium is pain to weld, I'm not sure how well it solders.

Those lamps are usually tinned steel, especially the cheap ones.

Another thought I had was to mix up some fibreglass resin and hardener and swill it around the inside of the tank.

DVardysShadow

Aluminium will not solder. And wax will dissolve in paraffin. Hopefully it is actually tinned steel and you can get somewhere with solder.

cybergibbons

I've never seen an aluminium hurricane lamp, though they could exist.

All of the steel ones have a crimped joint that is then soldered.

I'd question the value in using any half-arsed technique to solve it. You don't want 200ml of paraffin leaking out of a lit lamp.

Gloomendoom

I have a large aluminium hurricane lamp. It wasn't cheap though.

You can solder aluminium. It is tricky though, and you need to use the right flux to cut through the oxide layer on the surface.


Edit: I'll second the safety concerns. If it isn't going to be repaired properly, it's probably best thrown away.

puddy

i wouldnt know if they are actually aluminium, i just know they look cheap and thin

may just wait then until we can get ourselves some decent ones, what a waste