The Infamous Cloudy Water

I found a lava lamp in a surplus office supply pile at work so I snagged it up. Its red lava and yellow/orange water. From office lore I know Its no less than 10 years old. It looked good for a few days til someone came along and shook the snot out of it when it was hot.... then it got extremely cloudy / foggy.... So...

First I tried just turning it off and leaving it a few days... no noticeable change

Next I tried cycling it for a week... no noticeable change

One day I decided to try sticking the globe in the lil dorm fridge I keep in my office... For the first few days I pulled out each day, ran it for 6 hours, let it cool, and put it back in the fridge. I was seeing no real improvement so I decided to leave it in there a few days... Today marked about 5 days in there so I popped it out and put it on the base... At first it looked the same but after it got to room temp it was noticeably better. Nowhere near crystal clear but there was noticeable improvement none the less.... so I let it run til it just started to flow then popped it back in the fridge.

I found this place a few days ago and, after reading, its starting to look like repair is impossible without replacing the water.

Being that I have nothing to lose i'll continue this cycle and let you all know how it turns out... any suggestions?

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Autumn on August 23, 2011 at 7:27pm

To remove the residue you need to open it up and wipe it away. I used a sponge brush from the hardware stores. Dont use a used sponge, it will be full of dirt.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Erin on August 23, 2011 at 8:03pm

I've wiped away interior residue with a Magic Eraser rubber-banded to a hanger.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Tim Gill on August 24, 2011 at 1:35am

To be honist the best way to deal with the lamp is to filter the water untill its clear, empty the globe of wax and compleatly clean the globe then put it back together.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Chris Johnson on August 25, 2011 at 11:37am

well... I got the thing for free. I'd rather get a new one than invest in filters... So I'll leave it off, sitting in my office, and won't touch it for a few months. If it doesn't clear up by then, I'll put it back in the surplus pile where I got it and maybe some day I'll get a new one.