Globe stained from the inside?

[Matt Tesoriero]

Has anyone had this problem before? What do you think can be done without pouring out the liquid and scrubbing from the inside? What do you think has cause this? My lamp sits in the corner of my room. I have only encountered these types of stains on grandes.

[Lamp Addict]

Anyone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I've seen this mainly in older lamps.  In older lamps a white almost "chalk" like substance separates from the lava.  If your lucky it will settle at the bottom of the lamp underneath the lava.  If not, it can turn the master fluid cloudy if mixed.  If it was me, i would try to cycle the lamp for 8-10 hours a bunch of times in hopes it either settles to the bottom or remixes with the lava.  But like i said, you don't want it to get mixed in the master fluid because it will leave your lamp cloudy. 

My main guess to why this happens mostly in Grande lamps is due to their size and amount of time your required run it each time its on.  I think i have a couple Grandes that the same thing is happening.   Please let me know if this helps and if your able to fix your issue!!

[Sentrex]

My experience has been that this is actually stained from the outside but almost impossible to remove. I have tried many cleaners and de-greasers and special scrubbers.... it was so bad on one of my Giants that I was ready to sell it as scrap but after cleaning it realized it was one of the best ones that I had.

The only thing that has worked for me is to buy a drill brush and to use perc (brake cleaner). Keep in mind that stuff can cause cancer so I also bought a ventilator mask and cleaned it outside with a fan running to blow the fumes away from me. 

If anyone else has had any luck with a different method then please chime in.

Not sure what causes this... at one point I thought it was cigarette smoke but now think that's not correct.

[Sentrex]

Check "Polishing Your Globes"  <-- LINK

[Matt Tesoriero]

You might be on to something here. I remember I turned off the lamp halfway though heating up (so the wax was raised, touching the side of the glass), and didn't turn it back on for about a week. While it was sitting there some of that chalk stuff may have rubbed off. I also spotted it at the top after i bought it from the previous owner. It may have appeared there if they turned the lamp off after the spiking phase, when there is a mass of wax at the top of the lamp. 

Jay said:

Anyone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I've seen this mainly in older lamps.  In older lamps a white almost "chalk" like substance separates from the lava.  If your lucky it will settle at the bottom of the lamp underneath the lava.  If not, it can turn the master fluid cloudy if mixed.  If it was me, i would try to cycle the lamp for 8-10 hours a bunch of times in hopes it either settles to the bottom or remixes with the lava.  But like i said, you don't want it to get mixed in the master fluid because it will leave your lamp cloudy. 

My main guess to why this happens mostly in Grande lamps is due to their size and amount of time your required run it each time its on.  I think i have a couple Grandes that the same thing is happening.   Please let me know if this helps and if your able to fix your issue!!

[The Lamp Caretaker]

I had this issue once and waited until the lava lamp wax was heated through then removed the globe from the base. I then gently leaned the lamp over to the side of the stain and let the wax ooz over the stain.  Once fully covered I held the lamp in the same position using towels and a box until the wax hardened. The next day  I removed the lamp and stood it back up.  Luckily for me the hardened wax slid back to the base taking most of the stain with it.  I did this a couple of times until the lamps globe was clear again.  I noticed during my trials that some of the crap came off when I first gently  tilted the lamps wax over the stain.  Be gentle when tilting the wax so you don't get a bunch of wax bits floating about.  They will settle but it's better when the whole glob covers the stain.