Are you still in the eighteenth century or have you advanced to the 20th Century? People in the 18th Century used kerosene heaters – though wood was always available for burning. Kerosene was a great advantage when wood was in short supply and people needed to stay alive by huddling together around huge fires.
Today, this is no longer necessary. Central heating systems have replaced the old kerosene heating stoves. Today, the reverse is the problem – you need centralized air conditioning more than heating, though the latter is as important.
Heating Of The Greenhouse – The Most Common Use For The Kerosene Heater
People who have greenhouses will need to have it heated in winter to keep the temperature and moisture inside at optimum levels. The kerosene heaters are now used mostly for this purpose. However, the greenhouse should have a good ventilation system, otherwise, the kerosene heater would actually raise the moisture content to such an extent that it would kill plants inside the greenhouse, instead of protecting them. This stands for heaters, which use propane as well.
Concurrent to the heating material, time and ventilation, you will need to be careful to provide sufficient insulation to the greenhouse to prevent gas formation inside when heat is raised. The best material used here is polyethylene because it (i) is transparent to let light pass through it without any inconvenience, and (ii) is capable of trapping a barrier of air making is almost impregnable.
Survival Mode For Developing Countries
In developing countries, kerosene heaters are still used a main source because of lack of alternatives. Firewood is very scarce and requires long travel to get a sufficient amount for heating, and any other fuel is highly inadequate due to the cost involved. Hence, between coal and kerosene, the kerosene heater wins hands downs because it is easily available and it is cheaper than any other type of fuel.
People in third world countries use kerosene as a very precious commodity since it is the only alternative they have to cooking, heating, and burning. Thankfully, the Government provides subsidies in most places, but even where they do not, people still prefer kerosene to wood or coal because it is much cheaper and easier to obtain than the rest of the fuel materials.
In this context, it looks like the kerosene heaters, will be around for at least two or three decades longer, both for human consumption and other types.
