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Paraffin/Kerosene mix to heat greenhouse.

jimmy.mcknightjimmy.mcknight Posts: 7
in Plants
Can I mix kerosene with paraffin to heat my Greenhouse?.......I have an old paraffin heater that works great in my greenhouse but it's a tad expensive, I use kerosene (A lot Cheaper) to heat my home and was hoping mixing the two would be ok. 

Posts

  • steephillsteephill Posts: 2,841
    In the UK kerosene and paraffin are the same thing. Not sure why they would be priced differently.
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    Kerosene and Paraffin are different names for the same thing:
    https://www.crownoil.co.uk/guides/kerosene-guide/
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • jimmy.mcknightjimmy.mcknight Posts: 7
    Trust me there is a big difference in price, currently Kerosene is 24.5 per litre which is extremely low, at one point some years ago we weren't that far off a £1 per litre.......Paraffin will cost you right now £8.00 for 4 litres!.......  
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    I looked it up and the stuff sold for greenhouse heaters etc is more refined so it produces less soot, apparently.  You could try a small amount first, to see if there any issues of that kind.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • jimmy.mcknightjimmy.mcknight Posts: 7
    I will try a 25% Paraffin 75% Kerosene Bob........I will come back with results for future users, Thanks for your time.
  • BraidmanBraidman Posts: 274
    .
    Once I got the "wrong" paraffin from my usual hardware store the greenhouse and plants were black the next morning.
    Although it looked and smelled the same it was not, the store denied there was a problem at their end but I bought a 4 lt prepack for £9.99 it was fine.
    Never "blackened" their door again for anything and at that price was too dear to heat the GH so I no longer do so!


    Cheers!


  • jimmy.mcknightjimmy.mcknight Posts: 7
    Well I'm happy to say all is going well with my 25% 75% split, no soot or blackness, I am using a very old paraffin heater with a recently purchased new wick, perhaps that has something to do with it.......I live in Scotland where the night time temperatures can be tough on plants, I'm pleased to report all my plants and seedlings are very toasty, and at a reasonable cost.
  • evh320evh320 Posts: 1
    Hi Jimmy
    Thank you for sharing this. I have a Juliana greenhouse heater and it does soot up quite quickly although it is very efficient and does the job! I would like to try the kerosene/paraffin mix you have suggested (I also live in Scotland on the Moray Firth which is often quite mild but not at the moment!!) 
    Where did you get your new wick from? The Juliana heater seems to take a specific type of wick and I can’t find replacements anywhere even on eBay. Do you or anyone else know where I might get one from
    the other option of course would be for me to get a different heater!!
    Thanks in advance
    Emma
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