Another Steam Lamp

[R.S. Fregdon]

i also think you could cut little holes around the base, and and maybe even cut a little biohazard symbol into it or something like that. Also i was just thinking it would really be cool if you had something in there, like some fake creature(mini cthulhu or something) as though your keeping it in there...just and idea....great lamp im definatly gonna make one

[Jarod20]

I did more experiments and cut some wholes, and the heat did dissipate a bit. PVC is heating and warping still but not as bad, up to an hour without weighted bottle causing tipping.

How adjustable is the speed of that magnetic stirrer? A slow circular movement in the bottom seems to look cool.

[Zapan]

Virtually any speed, by adding a potentiometer (easily found on a trashed radio or turntable).
For the mag stirrer, the simplest form is a vertical electric toy motor with a magnet bar spinning on it.
The magnet dipped in the bottle should be coated with plastic to avoid annoying noises resulting from the friction between metal and glass.

If you have some skills in electronic, why not upgrade your lamp by putting the light on the same circuit than the stirrer (this way the stirring and the light intensity rises together), or even making it a USB device, who reacts to music, a bit like

the USB Tiki Mask

!

[Anaesthesius]

So I've begun experimenting (woo, first project!).  Problem: melting plastic.  Solution?  Use brass and glass!  I got a tall glass jar from a thrift store that formerly held a holiday candle, and a piece of a brass lamp.  I hammered out the fitting for the lamp chimney to make a snug fit for the jar.  Unfortunately the brass was painted, but when I remove it (hopefully solvent will work...) it should be pretty snazzy.  Currently this assemblage is held above the 30W incandescent bulb by a tin can and duck tape, but that's fixable... 

Obviously the glass means a longer warm-up time, so I think the bulb should be as close to the glass as possible.  Maybe even use 60W, but I'll need a better socket.  I also need to try different soap.  I did see movement with opaque glycerin soap, but not a lot.  I think it should be translucent, and moisturizers might have messed it up, too.  Such soap is proving elusive - I'm thinking health food stores...
Overall, I have high hopes!

[Jarod20]

I was told never to use the soaps with moisturizers or aloe. I am getting a larger Vos Bottle Monday and will try some metals, but it is hard to work with when I have no devices for cutting here.

[Brandonicus]

So, I liked this project so much I created my own... I couldn't use your PVC (my local ace wasn't stocked) so I had to improvise and in doing so I found a solution to your heating problems.  I found an old lava lamp and removed the lava bit and placed the vos inside the lamp itself (just about on top of the bulb).  After 2 or 3 hours everything was still fine.  The downside is that  after those 2 or 3 hours, the heat makes the soap dissolve into the solution and it needs to cool down again.

Solution was to get a brass circle with a hole cut out of it (I think originally used in sink drains?) to place inside the lava lamp and raise the bottle from the bulb a bit.  I've done 6 hours now with no ill effects.  i'm currently looking into making a housing for the lamp and a wooden base that looks more authentic.  Thinking of some sort of mesh or ornate brass decorative screen done up in a cylinder to slide the vos bottle into from the top.  I'll take some pics tonight and post 'em.

[Jarod20]

well done, can't wait to see 'em

[Professor_Sinclair]

I'm tempted to try a clear plastic ring...Lorenz eat your heart out!

[Amon]

Hmmm. i saw this and was thinking: Copper piping comes up to 4" diameter. Why not perhaps use copper piping? that'd eliminate the need to do any paining to make it look real metal, and you'd probably not have to worry about heat in the base, and could back the bulb off a bit from the soap bottle.

[Anaesthesius]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Here's my Aether containment unit in roughly its final form (woo, first project!).  Obviously the blue paint must go (seriously, who paints brass?), it needs polishing, and there's more duck tape involved than I'd like.  I also want to put some on some mad science touches like wire coils. 

I started this with the blue part that holds the glass jar, and got lucky at the thrift store one day months later with the rest of the lamp.  It was already shoddily electrified and had no chimney.  The rest was rather a hatchet job, for which my associate Hyde deserves credit, and a beefsteak.  The reservoir had to be opened and the central pipe sawed down to fit the bulb (small 60W).  It won't be going back to kerosene, apologies to Mr. von Slatt.  It does get hot and I wouldn't want to leave it unattended, but I've run it for about 30 min with no problem.

If anybody knows a good way to get that paint off, please tell me.  The scratches are the result of steel wool and a LOT of elbow grease.  I'm thinking solvents, or else just re-repaint it with brass paint...

[Jarod20]

what with it's construction, could you fit a small computer fan or a heat sink in the bottom chamber
Also the paint would come off with a chemical paint stripper but I don't know how the brass would take it
Great job and some excellent pieces used, I can both imagine it in my lab and my sitting room

[Wrath the Mad]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Sexiest steamlamp yet! I'd try Citrastrip or similar product to get that paint off.

[alfa1]

If anybody knows a good way to get that paint off, please tell me.  The scratches are the result of steel wool and a LOT of elbow grease.  I'm thinking solvents, or else just re-repaint it with brass paint...

Brake fluid.

[akumabito]

Why nt leave the paint on? It looks appropriately ugly, not ugly-ugly!

[Hydrargyrum]

How long does the effect last before the soap mixes into the water? Or does the nature of the soap somehow manage to keep it separate?

[Anaesthesius]

Thanks for your responses, I'll look into citrastrip and brake fluid.

Why nt leave the paint on? It looks appropriately ugly, not ugly-ugly!

I'm afraid the photo doesn't quite capture it... it looks pretty goofy, and now the brass is showing the paint looks even more out-of-place.  Free the shiny, I say!

How long does the effect last before the soap mixes into the water? Or does the nature of the soap somehow manage to keep it separate?

I've now run it for an hour and a half, and it's still swirling.  The turbulent whorls seem to get tighter, and I'm sure the wax will eventually go into solution.  However, I don't know if it will crash back out when it cools.  It seems to stay solid at room temp, even after a couple of weeks.  I'm using about 8 squirts of "Clean & Smooth Liquid Soap with Moisturizers" - glycol distearate is the 6th ingredient.

The only problem so far is that it emits a hot dust smell which of which I'm not too fond...

[Hartraft]

Forgive my ignorance, but what's a Vos bottle, and where can I get one (remember I'm in the UK)
Thanks.

[Prometheus Culier]

Voss bottled water (Voss is spelled with two esses).  It comes in 375ml, and 800ml cylindrical glass bottles, as shown.  The one in the lamp photos appears to be the 800ml bottle.  There are also 1 liter bottles, which  are approximately the same height, but wider diameter.  They also happen to be plastic, at least at my supplier (Beverages and More), so they are not likely to work for this project.

My question is about the printing on the bottle. Jarod, how did you remove it from the glass?  I tried brake fluid, but it didn't do much.  Do I need to let it sit a while?  Or is it that the brake fluid that I have is ancient and opened, and the solvents evaporated?  Do I need to use fresh brake fluid?

Or were you lucky enough to find bottles with peel-off labels, instead of printing on the glass?

Thanks in advance.

[Kogwheal]

Anaesthesius, that is awesome! I'm glad to see it at last. I also think the blue paint looks kinda cool, but if you say it's unbearable in person, I'm sure you're right.

I'm looking to make another one for a friend using a lamp like this, but so far I haven't been lucky enough to find one the right size at the right price. But I'll keep looking -- your fine work keeps me inspired.

As for the mixture staying separated, mine can run for hours and I've never had it diffuse to the point that it stops looking steamy. But then, I'm using a 40w bulb. Mine is here:

http://www.brassgoggles.co.uk/bg-forum/index.php?topic=6357.0

As for removing the printing from a Voss bottle, I just scraped it all off with a box cutter. Came right off, and I didn't have any noticeable problems with scratching.


{Edit}  That post made me a captain! Huzzah!

[Alastair Smythe]

After repeated use over a period of several weeks, the soap will reduce and coagulate, forming the consistency of snot.  At that point you'll want to refill the lamp.

[Hydrargyrum]

Alright, so not something to use in a place where you can't replace it. That's my major hope.

[Jarod20]

Removing the lettering
I had a glass bottle and it came off with sandpaper, very fine as not to leave scrapping marks

Soap
I have the bottle still the soap hasn't fully mixed or anything yet, still works over the light but I am attempting to get a metal housing for it after the plastic kept mutating under the heat

[Phineas Lamar Alexander]

Very nice. I would consider trying nail polish remover to get the paint off followed by a good dose of neverdull!

[Zapan]

Hi, I'm just coming back from a decoration shop, and i came across a LED Steam Lamp, with the cloudy effect achieved by a magnetic stirrer, just like I told on page two of this subject ! As I always say : "They stole all my best ideas before my birth !".



The cloud effect is quite different from the heat version, more like a cyclone, but not too fast. The LED lights goes trought the rainbow spectrum every 30 seconds, wich i am not too pleased with, it would be definitely better with a single tint, but I'm sure this can be modded.
The big advantage of the lamp is that it is very lightweight, not over 150 grams, you can hear the stirrer clicking only a little if you tilt the lamp horizontally, and the best feature is that it can work on the sector, or on batteries (3 AAA) !
It is the perfect base for a mobile prop !

The store just had one left for exposition, and refused to sell it to me, because of potential defect.
I will have to wait two weeks to get mine and make a video to show you the stormy effect.

The lamp is made by a german brand, Paulmann, and the reference of the lamp is : Paulmann Cloudy Led 3449.
Hope you can find a retailer near your place.

[Jarod20]

Bastards....
Does it come in copper?