64 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
draw off a full bucket of water before he 
got to the crude oil. 
In conclusion, let me say that in all the 
years of my firing, I do not see that I have 
saved enough to pay the interest on the 
cost of my stoves. 
Mr. Skinner: I might make a sugges¬ 
tion about this heater proposition that Mr. 
Stevens speaks of ; and that is, when you 
put oil into the tank, you have two open¬ 
ings ; one six inches below the other. 
Then you can draw the water from the 
lower opening and the oil from the top 
opening. 
G. M. Wakelin 
Mr. President , Ladies and Gentlemen : 
The chairman of this committee has 
asked me to give some information on 
handling and operating oil and heaters. 
The first step is to provide adequate 
storage capacity for enough oil to> burn 
at least for three nights, say thirty hours. 
Damaging cold seldom lasts more than 
two' nights, but it is wise to’ have plenty 
in reserve. It takes considerable time to 
get a new supply into the grove, usually 
more than one expects. The best plan 
yet would be to store a supply for the 
whole winter, and be absolutely safe. 
Cement tanks are all right for the purpose, 
it is said, if properly made and plastered; 
(otherwise the oil will percolate) but not 
much cheaper in first cost than metal. Oil 
may be stored in tanks at a central spot 
for distribution thence by tank wagons or 
may be placed in tanks of smaller ca¬ 
pacity, 800 gallons or so, at intervals 
through the grove. The latter plan is 
well enough for an emergency supply or 
sufficient for a small installation, but calls 
for dipping out, filling and refilling by 
hand buckets—laborious operations. 
The ideal plan is to have the cisterns, 
so located on a side hill that they may be 
both filled and emptied by gravity. This 
being seldom possible in Florida the next 
best plan is to place metal tanks on a 
framework high enough to give a quick 
gravity flow into the tank wagons. Of 
course that means a pump of some kind 
to put into- the tanks the initial supply, 
but as you will have to pump one way 
anyhow it is far better to pump in than 
have to pump out , when minutes may 
count and delays may be costly. Our 
plan when completed will give us 10,000 
gallons reserve in a cement cistern, and 
10,000 gallons more in two 1 metal tanks 
on a framework. There is no likelihood 
of oil ever being any cheaper. A 2-horse 
power pump run by the sprayer engine 
handles the oil very quickly. 
Now as to kind, get the regular fuel 
oil. Mexican crude is cheaper, but it will 
prove troublesome even in the draft 
heaters. It contains upwards of 40 per 
cent asphalt, which positively \vill not 
burn up in an open heater, and even in the 
draft heaters with careful handling will 
leave a layer of hard ash difficult to get 
out when cold unless every drop of as¬ 
phalt has been burned up. It was a sur¬ 
prise to find by test that the two oils 
burned just about the same length of time 
and gave off similar amounts of smoke. 
The crude oil, however, left a large 
amount of soot in the stack; the fuel oil 
hardly a third as much, and no ash what¬ 
ever. Fuel oil must be primed and lit in 
one operation as the gasoline mixes so 
