Paraffin Heaters

At one time the humble paraffin heater was a familiar part of everyday life, and brought warmth and comfort to the masses. Today, most would be horrified at the thought of having something as smelly, primitive and dangerous in the heart of their home.

In the days before paraffin heaters, coal fires provided the only source of warmth in the most houses. Working families might live in a single room where the coal-fired range was used to cook food, boil water, dry clothes and keep bed recesses warm at night. In better-off homes there might be a hearth in most rooms, but coal fires needed to be kindled, tended throughout the evening, and cleared of ashes in the morning.

The development of the paraffin heater brought liberation from this drudgery. Lighting a heater brought instant, controllable, and mess-free heat that could be carried from room to room to where it was needed. Advertisements from the 1920’s and 30’s show elegant ladies in cloche hats effortlessly carrying stylish heaters around the home, or happy families gathered around the paraffin heater delighting in each other's company. Early models featured streamlined curves, decorative grilles and a glossy black enamel finish, which made them welcome additions to any fashionable modern home.

But there were downsides too. Early upright designs were prone to being knocked over, spilling paraffin onto carpets, which sometimes caught fire. Heaters got ferociously hot, creating a real hazard to curious children, and of course there was the distinctive paraffin smell. There were two main rivals in the paraffin heater market; Aladdin heaters, which were promoted alongside the Pink Paraffin of BP & Shell-Mex Ltd, and Valor heaters, fuelled by the Esso Blue of the Anglo-American Oil Co. There were many other makes of heater and other “colours” of paraffin produced by lesser known brands.

Ever more sophisticated (and safer) models of heater evolved, some with “cabinet styling” imitating treasured pieces of furniture. Paraffin became part of the weekly shopping, with gallon containers being refilled at many grocers, ironmongers, and garages.

The start of the 1960’s brought a new age of the paraffin heater; with clean simple lines reflecting the tastes of the day, and enabling cheaper production. Even though more new homes were being built with central heating, systems using hot air or underfloor heat proved terribly expensive to run, and many preferred the simplicity and certainty of a paraffin heater. The introduction of paraffin delivery services, bringing cans of paraffin right to your door, fuelled further growth. The rivals Pink Paraffin and Esso Blue produced a succession of light-hearted sing-along TV adverts which raised a smile and competed for popular loyalty.

Despite this, the paraffin heater came under increasing threat, being blamed for producing condensation in some ill-designed houses, and being banned on safety grounds by some housing authorities. Paraffin power was increasingly displaced by cabinet heaters powered by bottled gas, which offered greater convenience with none of the smell.

The three-day-week and the winter of discontent during the 1970’s proved the swansong for the paraffin heater, as oil heaters, lamps and candles were dusted off and brought out from cupboards to provide a little comfort during shortages and power-cuts.

Today a primitive cousin of the paraffin heater is still used in greenhouses, while hi-tec digital domestic heaters can still be imported from Japan. Any paraffin heaters that may survive forgotten in sheds and garages seem destined to rust slowly away