Dead Men Tales: The Game-Changing Arrival of the Oil Burner

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The Game-Changing Arrival of the Oil Burner

William Newton Best developed the earliest oil burner just as the world entered the 20th Century. Coal was king, but he didn’t let that stand in his way. In this episode, Dan Holohan shares how oil burners disrupted the coal industry.

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Robert O'Brien

EBEBRATT-Ed

The oil company I started with in 73 had sold "Petro" burners which had been around since the early 20s and before. By the time I got their "Petro" was no more and we sold Iron Fireman another old brand. They had both been folded into a company called "Space Conditioning" out of Harrisonburg, VA They also owned Dunham Bush and other companies which made steam traps, pumps and other things.

All gone now

I spent a few days at the factory in Harrisonburg just after I started.

Our office was like a scene from the 1920s. They never threw anything away. There were books and brochures from those old days all over the place and I read through a lot of them before they eventually got tossed.

In those days we hated natural gas......that was our mortal enemy LOL.

If I recall correctly Mr Best had something to do with Petro. I will have to look that up...forgot

JUGHNE

Robert's poster would have gotten some attention in 1926....actually grabs your eye even today.

But I see no open windows for healthy sleeping.

JUGHNE

Maybe it wasn't sleep time anyway.

Makes one almost want to switch to oil.

Jamie Hall

The original burner in the immense HB Smith which preceded Cedric by a couple of boilers was a Quiet May -- there are still manuals for it hanging around someplace.

dopey27177

The closing statement of this story fits what I learned he least ten years of my consulting business.

There are two types of engineers:
1. The shop engineer.
2. The field engineer.

The shop engineer never reads a maintenance manual, installation instructions or goes out into the field. He/she knows everything about the specs and blue prints.

Te field engineer goes out to the job looks at the problem goes into the assembly instructions, measurements trouble shooting guides if available and finds a solution, some a very costly one.

How do you recognize a field engineer, he/she don't come on the job in suit, he/she comes to work with some small basic tools like a rule, a level, an ohm meter, amp probe, pencil paper, and the manual for the equipment.

That's for mechanical equipment, piping, wiring, steel work, and other items will require blue prints and many other items that needed to design a project.

I met them both in my consulting work and I found the field engineer for the most part started life with tools in their hands.

Jake

Dave in QCA

Dan, I ALWAYS enjoy your stories. Automatic heat was a revolutionary thing. Then Tinken came along and not only was it automatic, it was Silent Automatic.

DanHolohan

Thanks to all for your comments. I appreciate you so much. 

jeant

"sell the benefits of the product, rather than its features", words that tickled my ears. thank you

jumper

Interesting story in "Appointment in Samarra". Coal strike in Pennsylvania in 20s provided opportunity for oil heat. Coal cannot get those customers back. Not even in Pennsylvania.

Labenaqui

Recalling the plethora of oil burners and conversions we encountered in the 1950's in rural New England. The Quiet Automatic, Timken & TorridHeat Rotaries, Petro's, Williamson's, Up-firing Waltham's, Down-firing GE's, etc. Loved the U.S. Carlin "Shell-Head" and ran one in my home until 1995. Still have some NEFI School Documentation around. We have come a long way since with burners, but kinda miss the seemingly daily challenges of old.