Category: lamp

Oil lamps have been a part of human life since earliest times and have lit our way through most of history. Even today they are still used in many parts of the world and many have retained their simplest form. It is quite probable that the first oil lamp was nothing more than a small crude clay vessel or bowl made to hold tallow or some form of plant oil and a wick made of reed. In early times man most likely went to bed with the setting sun or made do with the glowing light from his fire but archeological finds show that prehistoric man used some form of oil lamp 20,000 years ago and in the fifteenth century Leonardo Da Vinci was the first to enclose the flame in a glass chimney which helped to protect the flame from drafts and eliminate the flicker.

The Early Oil Lamp

Before the Revolutionary War, the primitive open oil lamps and rush lights were still in use. The rush light consisted of a reed held upright in a dish containing grease. These primitive forms of oil lamps remained in use as late as the Civil War. In 1784, Ami Argand invented an oil lamp which drastically changed and improved the path of lighting forever. It had a reservoir that held oil and a flat wick that burned on both the inner and outer surfaces. As air rose up through the center, oxygen consumed most of the carbon while providing a stronger and brighter light with less smoke and little flicker. Later that same year a Frenchman added a glass chimney to Argand’s invention, creating a draft, thus greatly intensifying the amount of artificial light.
In 1879, with Thomas Edison s improvements to the light bulb, lighting the night was forever changed.

Still Lighting The Way

Today many of these early oil lamps still exist as antique collectibles or even remain in use in remote areas where no electric lines reach. Some people still keep an oil lamp handy in case of power outages and you can find modern functional versions of the oil lamp that serve as decorative accent pieces or burn scented oils.
It s easy to see that the humble oil lamp has a very long and interesting history. It may have been the invention of the wheel that started man on his journey to modern times but it was the oil lamp that lit his way.

As a means to provide safety and security while saving energy costs, the motion lamp fills many lighting voids for businesses and residential areas. Designed to turn on a light when motion is detected, a motion lamp can also be a distraction for some.

As a safety measure, a motion lamp can be installed in areas around the home where traffic is minimal and the use of constantly burning light, especially outdoors at night, would be waste of electricity and possibly an annoyance if it shines through windows. However, if you need to travel that area after dark, having a light automatically come on can prevent tripping over unseen obstacles.

Fir security purposes, a motion lamp can be a deterrent to crime as a would-be burglar sneaking into an area of your yard may be frightened off when a light suddenly comes on lighting the doorway they have been attempting to enter. Care must be taken when installing and setting up a motion lamp, however as small animals may also cause the light to activate giving you false alerts of an intruder. Most motion lamps have sensitivity adjustments to compensate for this erroneous activation.

Indoor Use Can Save Electric Costs

Another use for a motion lamp can be indoors, in rooms where some people typically forget to turn off a light when they leave the room. One such place may be the bathroom where a motion detector switch can be used to replace the normal on-off switch. The light will come on automatically when a person enters the room and shuts itself off a few moments after the person leaves the room.

Other uses could be your entry way inside your home for those times when you enter with your hands full and have to find a place in the dark to set down your load before searching in the dark for a light switch. When you enter a motion lamp will come on automatically, illuminating your way until you can free your hands of their burden.

When you install a motion lamp anywhere inside or outside of your home, it may be a good idea to have it connected to an off switch as well for the times when an automatically activated light is not desired. For example, you are trying to view outside your home at night and you do no want an interior light to come one. Being able to shut down the motion lamp switch would be necessary.