Any tricks to replacing the whick on my kerosene heater?

[Chris W.]

Hi!
We picked up a Carona (dk17) kerosene heater at the thrift store. It looked to be in great shape except for the wick [sic] was burned right down to the wick
Here's the problem: I can't seem to get the new replacement wick installed correctly so that it will adjust up/down, the material on it appears to be thicker than the old one. Is this common when replacing the wick on these stoves? (and yes, it's the correct wick that is meant for model of heater, so that's not the case). If so, how do I remedy this problem?
Thanks in advance!

[Helena]

I have never had any real luck in replacing the wick on ours either. My husband insists that he can but last time it filled my greenhouse up with black soot and it was a real "joy" to clean that on Mother's Day. So...I usually about every 2 years take it to a fellow and for $29 replaces the wick and cleans it up for me. Yes..it's an expense but I feel as thought it is checked out and the wick burns well for a couple of years and doesn't smoke or smell. Don't know what you paid for it at the thrift store but they aren't cheap anymore to buy so perhaps another $29 would be a good investment...ask the repair guy how you replace them..but being it is used I would have him clean it up too at the same time. Good Luck !!

[JAK]

Helena has a good idea. Old guys especially are very good at maintaining old stuff and often have a lot of rare old parts around still in their shipping box if you ever need a piece. He might even show you how to do it yourself next time. My auto mechanic sometimes lets me do the work, and it only costs me double

Perhaps the wick needs to be wet or something?

[MELOC]

i had trouble with mine too. it seemed everything was very tight. i had alot of dirt and or rust etc. i cleaned everything up and it all went together better.

the adjustment can be tricky. sometimes you need to wind it up several times and hit the little reset button to advance the wick. sometimes this mechanism gets stuck and needs to be prodded.various combinations of winding and jiggling should do the trick, lol. that is if everything went together ok.

be sure to give the heater time to soak up the kerosene before lighting or you will ruin the new wick and have to replace it again.

[Farmer Willy]

I found most used heaters (never had money I was willing to spend on a new one) had fuel stored in them for who knows how long. The end result was a lot of rust from moisture collecting. I always had to clean off the rust and polish the metal to get the wicks to work easily. You also want to clean kero wicks often as they will collect crud on them, this goes for heaters, lamps, ect. I've also woven fishing mono through wicks to give me a handle to pull them through, they pull out fairly easy once wick it threaded through.

[Chris W.]

Thanks all! I will check a little closer to see if it needs cleaning/polishing.

Cheers,
Chris

[Stickywitch]

Whicked little thing.