When we lived in Korea, we had small kerosene-burning heating stoves ... and the air would get a bit foul after a while, but I never heard of anyone having serious trouble while using them. The houses weren't heavily insulated, but we didn't keep a door or window open a crack, as I recall.

We also used kerosene burning a small fire under our fridge to operate it.

And many of us had kerosene-fired stoves with a round wick for cooking.

One of our number married a British Red Cross nurse and I think it was through her knowledge that a couple of families got a cooking stove that burned kerosene, but vaporized it so that it worked like a gas stove. I can explain its working further, if you wish.

ole joyfuelled ... helped by kerosene ... in almost an earlier life, over 50 years ago

P.S. If we'd depended on the hot air that some claim that I purvey, on occasion ...

... we'd have been darn cold!

o j

I could not stand the smell at all. They heat up well but if you have any scent allergies or sensitivities then you probably won't be able to handle it, it gave me horrible headaches.

The small propane ones are better

'but I never heard of anyone having serious trouble while using them.'

Every year there are incidents reported in the paper like the ones described in the linked article. Unvented heaters are illegal to use inside a residence in many states - but try telling that to people who think they know better. Also note in the article that at least in Mass, it's not permitted to bring a small portable propane tank indoors. I suspect other states have similar rules.

If your power goes out when it's too cold to stay in the house, the safest thing to do is to go spend the night or a few with a friend or relative. Or in a motel, get in the car and drive until you see lights!

Here is a link that might be useful: Carbon monoxide deaths

if you have a lot of power outages? i'd look into the new generator that is natural gas fired. it isn't cheap and it has to be installed, but what a live-saver! it looks very much like an ac unit, mounted on a cement pad, and hooked up to the natural gas...the power goes off and in a matter of minutes it restores the entire home....they're at Costco (among other places) and are about 4 grand...

we have the "old-fashion" generator that runs on gasoline. it runs most of the house...of course when gas was $4 a gallon we were sure glad when power was restored!

We live in the country and under certain weather conditions we would not really be able to leave. We have 4 wheel drive vehicles but they don't do well on ice.

We do have a fireplace with a wood burning insert and I suppose that would be the safest way to go. We haven't used it for a few years now that we are older, but the chimney has a nice new stainless steel liner so it's good to go. I used the oil lamps during power outages years ago and I didn't have a problem.
But that wouldn't be the same.
Thanks for the input everyone.
Check back later.

The one I'm looking at is suppose to be for indoor use. After watching you tube video's some are cracking windows while using them indoors. This is why I asked here.

susan, is your gasoline powered generator difficult to start during extremely cold weather?

We have a generator ours are not difficult to start. We want to get the professionally installed whole house generators that come on automatically when power goes out. They are very expensive but worth it when you live in areas that lose power for weeks and more.

Of course no one should use anything that is not approved for the type of use it's being used for. I would definitely have carbon monoxide alarms with any type of fuel burning units.

Yrs ago we used an indoor Kerosene heater in our basement room. Many, many people used them at that time. You could smell them when 1st lit and when turned off. We never had a problem. Didn't crack a window, but the area was by no means air tight. I think it would be a good option for emergency use.

It is my opinion that any combustion device that is powerful enough to heat a living space should be vented like a heating stove because that it what it is. Suppose it does manage not to emit carbon-monoxide, it can deplete the oxygen supply. Furthermore, breathing the products of combustion is not good in most cases.

The kerosene kitchen ranges (cook stoves) mentioned in a post above was used years ago. However, usually it was limited to cooking, not heating a large space. We had one and there were warnings that there should be adequate ventilation. Most folks in our neighborhood got by because the houses were drafty. In winter, most of us did not use the kerosene range since there would be a fire in the kitchen cook stove. so naturally, cooking was accomplished on it (and it was vented to a regular chimney).

Kerosene space heaters used to be the norm here when I was younger. I disliked the smell but was in the minority. They were unvented and portable. I don't recall ever knowing of anyone who became ill or, worse, died.

Well, my parents had one for one winter, actually for about 2 months, and it put my mother in the hospital. Granted it was almost 35 years ago, so hopefully they are made better now, but the fumes from that thing could gag a maggot.

My mom had severe asthma all her life. So it was downright dangerous for her.

Thanks for the replies everyone.

I feel that if we were to go that route, we would have to have ventilation for peace of mind, if nothing else. And the alarms too.

If you are going to go that route do look at the small propane ones they are very well made and the fumes are not like the other.
Many homes in remote areas have all propane heating and cooking. Just check what is allowed in your area. I saw some at Walmart and home Depot.

Houses in remote areas that use propane as a fuel have properly vented appliances to heat water and air. It's the same equipment as used in houses using natural gas for fuel. For built-in equipment, building codes require a supply of outside air and that combustion exhaust products get exhausted outside of the living space.

The carcinogens and poisonous substances that are released when fossil fuels are burned (like with kerosene or propane heaters) are odorless and colorless, thus accounting for the "no smell" comment above. That people say "we always used one" simply means that the danger was averted, not that they're safe. Their use indoors is dangerous, people die from them every year. As I said before,

"Unvented heaters are illegal to use inside a residence in many states - but try telling that to people who think they know better"

Why not go and talk to the firemen at firehall and ask them about it and what is safe and what isn't and see their suggestions if its not what you can do.

We had too many die, families from trying to heat and keep warm and the things they did, no, go there and talk to them in person.

Be safe then sorry.

And also if you have pets about them breathing it all in plus sizes they are, big or small. Children, your kids or grandkids, same thing.

kathy

missy may sorry late getting back to you...I don't recall if we've had to use it in really cold weather...it's like starting a snow blower...and gas doesn't freeze?

It was not only scores of missionary families in Korea that used those portable kerosene-powered heaters, which did smell some, but many business, professional, business people and others used them, as there were frequent power outages, just after the Korean War. I never hard of anyone dying, or even suffering illness because of their using them.

It would be a good idea, were one considering using a portable propane-fired heater, to check out whether they are permitted by local codes, as in many areas it is illegal to store gasoline or propane containers inside homes/buildings. In our area, people who heat or cook using propane must have bottles or tanks outside, with a copper pipe like a fuel line in one's vehicle to feed the appliance.

It seems to me a good idea for half a dozen families to go together and buy a generator, which they could share, for use in power outages. With six families, they could get (almost, allowing for transfer time) four hours of generating each in a 24 hour period. They could probably obtain a somewhat larger one, or of higher quality than most would choose to buy on their own. One of the owners would need to have sufficient space to store it comfortably between times of use.

Some years ago we had major power outages and a couple of times I took a borrowed generator into such an area to generate power to keep freezers operational. Once, in August, I couldn't find a generator to borrow, and didn't choose to buy one - so didn't offer such.

Several people wanted me to hook up their furnace, but most of them have a direct line from the central fuse box and I wasn't willing to even take a chance that, though the breaker was thrown, it might get pushed back on, thus feeding power back on to the line which linemen expected to be dead, with possibly drastic consequences. It seems to me that, if code allows, one should set up the connection to the furnace with one that can be interrupted easily, so that if one wanted to operate the furnace with generated power, one could disconnect from the regular line first. And if local code doesn't allow a break between breaker and furnace, what's the possibility of changing the code?

ole joyful

I'm old enough to remember Kerosene heaters. I wonder what has made the difference? Better insulated homes now, new research? I don't know. The kerosene heater I was looking at on amazon is meant to be used in homes. Having said that..a lot of people prefer some ventilation (cracked window..etc..along with the carbon monoxide detectors. I don't recall seeing the warning about ventilation on the kerosene heaters like what was on the propane.I certainly could have overlooked it though. It is true with the propane heaters the propane must be kept outside If I understood that right...due to risk of explosion I think.

But nonetheless, we have opted not to use either kerosene or propane as back up heat, but rather use our existing wood burners only for backup though. It's funny but I actually prefer the wood heat over our electric.

It's been interesting reading everyone's comments, a lot of good information here. Thanks to all.

We have a kerosene heater that we use when it gets really cold or the power goes out. Every winter, my husband 1st lights it and burns it for a little while out on the carport. Then he will bring in it for us to use. We never smell it or have any problems with it. We set it up in the other room, not where we watch tv and only keep it on if we are up. We never go to bed with it on. They are an excellent source of heat as long as you are smart with them.

No way....a year or so ago, when a cold winter was forecast, DH bought a gasoline fired generator put it on a dolly with wheels, and had an electrician wire the indoor circuit board to switch necessary circuits to generator with one switch,
When we had the BIG snow, just weeks later, all major appliances, heaters and telephone back in just a few minutes,
All he had to do was roll the generator out from the garage and plug it into an outdoor outlet.
Yes, it costs money, but cheaper than finding a hotel that accepts pets, paying for a room, and hotel meals - if they are not taken first.