Time to re-vamp the lamp - a few questions

[Rob C]

Greetings from another newbie!

I've read through many of the tutorials, and I think I'm ready to try my hand at a couple of modifications with a stubborn lamp. The lamp is an older, American-made midnight  (smaller size, not the 52oz.) that flows properly for about 10-20 minutes, and then just forms a lava dome on the bottom and never moves again.

I tried the on/off cycling for several days, but it didn't help. From what I read in the Lava Library, I need to add either pickling salt or propylene glycol to the water. My first question is, does one additive work better than another? Second, I'm assuming the lava needs to be heated up and flowing (or just sitting there, as is the case here) when adding one of these ingedients, so that I can see a change in flow - is this correct? Third, how long do I need to wait to see a change (minutes, hours?) Any insider tips would be greatly appreciated.

Also, as long as I'm opening this thing up, I'd like to try to make the lava metallic, and I have a few questions about this as well. I saw a tutorial here that went into great detail on how the owner achieved the metallic effect, but I also read where another owner simply added the Sharpie ink to a running lamp and was also successful in creating metallic lava. Does this second, simpler method really work, and does it work with the older, factory-made American lava? (The existing lava is the perfect color, so I'd like to avoid completely starting over with a goo-kit.) Does anyone know roughly how many Sharpies it takes to achieve the effect? Again, I'd appreciate any words of wisdom.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can share - the knowledge base here is amazing!

[Tim Gill]

Hi Rob and welcome to Oozing Goo (OG)

About fixing your lamp - yea the lamp does have to be on and the wax melted so when you add the salt you can see it change and gauge how much to add.

I use Epson salts and it has helped with a number of lamps - the method I use is to dissolve 2 table spoons of Epsom salts in with about 1/2 a pint of de-ionised / purified water (this takes the minerals out of it so the water doesn't cloud the lamp), then add this bit by bit to the lamp until it flows right. When you add it firstly the lamp will go a bit wild and then calm down, let it settle and then decided on weather to add some more (this should only take about a minuet or so) - keep this going until the lamp is flowing right.

I don't know about adding sharpy ink directly to a running lamp - i would separate the wax and add it to this.

As for how many sharpies for that size lamp I would say about 3-4 should do it.

[Rob C]

Many thanks, Tim! I read about adding dye to a running lamp in Dr.What's tutorial for his metallic grande. I just need to know if that process applies to original lava (as opposed to a goo-kit) and also if it would work with Sharpies. Thanks again for the feedback - I think I can now tackle the first stage of this project.

[Tim Gill]

Well the process with sharpies has been tryed with goo kit lamps but i have heard that it can also be used with non goo kit lamps.

Adding dye to a running lamp should be to colour the water not the wax

[Mr MaGoo]

Anyone tried adding a yellow highlighter to their water.  There are several post on YouTube to make the water UV reactive and it looks sweet, anyone tried this?

[Keith]

Hi Rob!  I've got a couple of thoughts to share.  First, have you tried extra heat?  This is not something to do on a lamp that is working good, but if it just domes a little more heat may help.  I have a 52oz blue/white that has been ran almost daily for well over a year that I run with a 60 watt bulb instead of the 40 watt.  You could try that before opening the globe.  If it runs but runs too hot you might try using a dimmer to adjust till you get the right flow.  Just make sure to keep a watch on the globe to prevent overheating.  If the globe needs the extra heat it should be flowing after 2 hours or so.

   Now about making a red metallic with sharpies:

You might say "chocolate" or something else, but not so red.  I think I used 2 sharpies, 52oz globe.