Lamp running times on dimmers

[Reszound]

I know that running times are well documented on this site, but I'm wondering what people think about running times while they the lamps are on dimmers. I've been running all of my lamps on dimmers for a year now, and I must confess that they often get left on for 8-9 hours at a time. They get turned down to about 2/3rds power after 2-3 hours though.

I've always figured that if they run cooler then they can be left on longer without doing any overheating damage, as the wax is not being run as hard. Surely this is the case?

Sorry if this has been covered before and if I've missed it - just wanted to double check on this theory... any thoughts people...???

[Jonny Magma]

It depends what kinda wax is in your lamp. It will vary company to company. I have left our stuff running continuously for months with no problems. I have another brand that I left on for a long time and the color faded. Another that just eventually stopped flowing and looked coagulated. All ran on dimmers.

[Reszound]

All my lamps are Mathmos...hmmm... I also rotate bottles a lot and leave them to rest. They each usually run about 3 times a week on average. I hope I'm not shortening their life spans - it's just so hard to turn them off halfway through the night :-\

[Jonny Magma]

I have never had a Mathmos to test with but I hear they make quality stuff. I say run them as often as you can. These lamps are best viewed when on. If the lava burns out, we got your back :) Hopefully we will be in the UK by the end of next year.

[Reszound]

That's what I figure too - I might as well run them and enjoy them, otherwise it's like leaving good wine in the cellar for too long... a waste.

It's good to know that if they all burn out I'll have plenty of bottles to fill with Louie goo! ;-)