Gas lights for the Home.

EarthWindandFire · By: **EarthWindandFire** On: Fri Nov 30, 2012 10:19 am

Sometimes I don't sleep well at night and I start thinking about creative ways to heat, power and light my home.

Has anyone used or thought about using wall-hung interior Gas Lights to provide light during power outages?

These gas lights are plumbed permanently with a gas line, either propane or natural gas, and are common to the Amish (and others) and those looking to live completely off the grid. I need to hire a plumber for some other projects and I was thinking about having him install a gas line in the basement for a gas light in case of emergency or simple power outage.

A member here (NorthernIndiana) is friends with the guy who manufactures the Humphrey and Midstate brand of gas lights.

http://www.humphreygasproducts.com/
http://www.newswiretoday.com/news/60166/Midstate_Lamp_Introduces_PropanePowered_Lamp/

freetown fred · By: **freetown fred** On: Fri Nov 30, 2012 10:37 am

I used gas globular lights in my house in Vt as primary lighting source. I yanked mine out of a couple junk trailers. I suppose they are much fancier now due to costing way, way out of my league.

I loved them. One main line, T'd off to a dozen or so globes.

titleist1 · By: **titleist1** On: Fri Nov 30, 2012 12:32 pm

A friend of mine had a hunting cabin in VA and used them for light. The cabin was off grid, the lights worked very well for him.

carlherrnstein · By: **carlherrnstein** On: Fri Nov 30, 2012 12:58 pm

They also put out some heat. Iv got a couple aladdin mantle lamps they burn kerosene to heat a mantle like the colman lanterns.

NoSmoke · By: **NoSmoke** On: Sat Dec 01, 2012 6:59 am

They must work well; I am surrounded by Amish and all their houses use them.

Caution: Rant about to occur (Of course NoSmoke is thinking he can use that to my advantage. Maybe I can jerry rig them to blow up or something in case one of my three daughters tries crossing the ole rock wall and dating one of the thirteen boys that lives on the other side...there is no way this father is walking his daughter down the aisle to some guy Ezekiel who treats her one step lower then livestock!) Rant now over!

warminmn · By: **warminmn** On: Sat Dec 01, 2012 10:02 am

Ive got a 1965 Humphrey light in my home. I dont use it much anymore but used to quite a bit. You will get longer mantle life if you can start it at a low gas setting and slowly increase it, letting the mantle warm up a few minutes. And warn about everyone that sees it to keep their damned fingers away from the mantle! ha ha. I had to replace a mantle because of curiosity.

Mine works good. A fair amount of heat and a little odor but not bad. I like the looks of the older ones more than new ones but thats just me. Whatever brand you buy check the price of mantles because some are expensive.

Short Bus · By: **Short Bus** On: Sat Dec 01, 2012 2:44 pm

Power came to town in 1985, and in all the older houses you see gas lights, some are being removed but if you had some you always leave one or two. I have one left over from then, I think this room originally had three.

plumber · By: **plumber** On: Wed Feb 27, 2013 1:04 pm

You may be on your own for instalation. Here, they are a code violation, and to go any gas work they must be removed.
I would not be able to install them. If you do it yourself you may have a insurance issue.
Besides, if they were legal, I'd charge you more than you could buy a generator for!

coalnewbie · By: **coalnewbie** On: Wed Feb 27, 2013 2:01 pm

.there is no way this father is walking his daughter down the aisle to some guy Ezekiel who treats her one step lower then livestock

Yes, the Amish have more courage than I do.

lowfog01 · By: **lowfog01** On: Wed Feb 27, 2013 6:58 pm

I have wall hanging oil lamps in my house. They are up and out of the way of kids and dogs and do a decent job in an emergency. We can easily read by the light they provide. I have one hanging in each of my rooms and in the hallway at the top and bottom of the stairs. I also have table oil lamps I can carry from room to room if I wanted more light. I buy the lamp oil at the local hardware store by the gallon. I don't know how long of a burn I get but it seems a decent length to me; we don't get power outages very often and then it's restored fast. Just another option, Lisa

KLook · By: **KLook** On: Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:44 am

Funny, my hunting camp in Maine has them but we only use them for emergencies? In camp? Yeah, about 4 years ago I did some work for an electrician from Kittery Maine that worked on submarines all over the world. He invited us up for dinner and had electric lights on. I thought they were real bright so I asked about his solar panels, batteries, and inverter. His lights were all 12v RV lights, no inverter, look just like the curly florescent ones. They are pricey at 7 or 8 bucks, but put out great light. It was a hit at camp with the other guys, gas is harsh and seems to cause headaches when trying to read. Not to mention light at the flick of a switch. One car battery would go for days without recharging.

Kevin

waldo lemieux · By: **waldo lemieux** On: Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:58 am

Ive taken out a lot of old gas line used for lights in days of old,but never put any in. I think if I were installing anything for emergency lighting it would be LED driven. With a very modest solar cell and battery system you could do all your domestic lighting full time. I don't know how to figure the numbers but I use them on my boats and they give awesome light any never drain the batteries noticeably. Maybe someone could post a informal assessment of what would be required for an average 1.64 child, two parent household.

Waldo

Gas lights for the Home.

Gas lights for the Home.

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