Kerosene heater doctor

By Jessie Burchette

jburchette@salisburypost.com

When the temperatures dip Phillip Lyman's work heats up.

Lyman, known by most as Junior, services kerosene heaters at Bernhardt's Hardware at 113 N. Main St.

Over the years, he's seen a little bit of everything.

A customer once brought in a heater filled with gasoline.

"They sure are lucky they didn't light it," Lyman said.

He's worked on kerosene heaters for 25 years and services between 400 and 500 a year.

Most of the problems he sees come from people not taking care of the heaters.

"They don't clean them, the tank rusts out. They put them in the cold, the tanks get moisture, messing up the wicks," Lyman said.

"Drain the tank out, or burn out all the kerosene before you store it. That will take care of the problem."

He replaces a lot of wicks.

"You don't need a wick every year, they'll usually last about two years if you take care of it."

Lyman said some people use the red kerosene instead of the K-1 clear kerosene. The red kerosene makes the wick hard, causing it to burn irregularly.

"Some people ask me how to put wicks in," Lyman said. His best explanation: "Look at the way you take it out and put it back in the same way."

Bernhardt's charge for wick replacement is $20 plus the cost of the wick, usually around $10.

And he's a believer in kerosene heaters.

"If you want to stay warm, it's the best thing. I've never had one to catch fire."

Many more people also have them now as backups in case of power failure.

Lyman and firefighters have tips for those using kerosene heaters:

- Keep kerosene in the marked blue cans. If you use a red gas can for kerosene, it increases the possibility of forgetting and putting gas in the heater.

- Keep the heaters away from combustible materials — curtains, wood, paper — and kerosene.

- Don't store the kerosene near the heater or in the house. Store it on an outside porch or in a utility building.