New member with questions!

[Nick D.]

Hi all! I am a new member here with plenty of experience with old light bulbs and electric fans http://www.fancollectors.org/ )

I have a pretty decent collection of old bulbs and I am very into fans as well.

The main reason I joined was because I had some questions about a 30's-40's lamp and bulb that I found in a thrift shop some time ago. I was told by a collector of vintage and antique lamps that this futuristic looking lamp might have come out of a movie theatre but that is about all I know about it. There are no markings of any kind anywhere.

The bulb that came with it is what really mystifies me. It is small, balloon shaped, with a seam running down the middle of it and it has a medium base. The bulb has silvered some, from age I guess. All I know is that it is a GE bulb, the rest of the stamp on top is worn off.

I believe the wall plate on the lamp is solid copper. Also, the two bulbs (the wierd bulb and a stardard size bulb) are wired in series. Thanks in advance for any help

[Tim]

Hi Nick - welcome to the forum.  This is a GE ozone lamp, circa 1940s/1950s.  All sorts of funky little fixtures like this were designed around this bulb to market its usefulness.  Be warned though, don't look directly at the bulb when it's on, it could damage your eyes.  For more information click here.

[Nick D.]

Thanks a lot! Had no idea that this bulb was an ozone lamp. That explains the smell it was making....
I originally thought that the bulb was some kind of ballast for a larger bulb that went in the other socket on the lamp but I see that the reverse is true. Any idea what the ballasts for these lamps were like?
Also, did GE make the fixture or did someone else?

[Tim]

I don?t know how many different manufactures made the fixtures, but GE probably wasn?t the only one.  Here?s an old picture showing two that I had many years ago.  Actually, I think I still have the double bulb fixture around someplace.  I don't recall ever seeing any names on the fixtures themselves.

[Nick D.]

Cool! Looks like my bulb is nearing the end of its useful life because it's so blackened and dim. Sure would be neat if there was ever a chandelier made for 10 or more of these!

[oz4s11]

I recall one of the "Science & Mechanics" type magazines from the 1960s featured a "Negative Ion Generator" that used one of these OZ4S11 bulbs. The bulb was placed inside a soup can, both ends being open, and the inside of the can lined with aluminum foil. The standard 40 Watt ballast incandescent bulb was used.

I used a doorbell transformer and a pot as a substitute for the 40 Watt bulb ballast in my adaption of the design.

[Nick D.]

I don?t know how many different manufactures made the fixtures, but GE probably wasn?t the only one.

Hey there! I think I found (a patent) of one the fixtures that GE made. This one is a bit more elaborate and it uses 3 bulbs plus a fan. What do you think?

http://www.google.com/patents?id=OMtVAAAAEBAJ&pg=PP1&dq=clockwork+automatic+fan&source=gbs_selected_pages&cad=0_1#PPP1,M1

[oz4s11]

"Hey there! I think I found (a patent) of one the fixtures that GE made. This one is a bit more elaborate and it uses 3 bulbs plus a fan. What do you think?"

Did GE actually market any of these Negative Ion Generators?
I recall that there was a competitor design that used a "radioactive jewel" and I think some sort of high voltage source that was connected to a metallic screen on which the jewel was mounted.

[Tim]

Hey there! I think I found (a patent) of one the fixtures that GE made. This one is a bit more elaborate and it uses 3 bulbs plus a fan. What do you think?

...also uses a pair of tubular germicidal lamps.  Looks like a design for industrial applications rather than home use.  I haven't seen one in real life but it wouldn't surprise me if GE marketed the design.