Wonderful Bubble Lights

Bubble light
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Christmas bubble light, as depicted in a patent illustration.
A bubble light is a decorative device consisting of a liquid-filled vial that is heated and lighted by an incandescent light bulb. Because of the liquid's low boiling point, the modest heat generated by the lamp causes the liquid to boil and bubble up from the vial's base. The liquid is almost always methylene chloride, but some early bubble lights used a lightweight oil. The light from the lamp illuminates the bubbles from underneath, causing them to shine. These lights can also be repaired when one burns out by taking apart the plastic base ,and then removeing the old light bulb and put a new one in.
Bubble lights for Christmas decoration were introduced to the US in 1946 by [[NOMA (company)|NOMA], one of the largest American manufacturers of Christmas lights. The other big makers are Sterling, Royal Elctric Company and Good Lite to name a few. Noma was the largest maker of these bubbling lights. These lights were made in both c-6 and c-7 bases these size lights were made mostly all the companies made these lights in both base sizes. The c-6 lights were for seris use and were 15 volts seris meaning "if one goes out they all go out".
As Christmas lights, bubble lights were very popular during the 1950s and 1960s, and into the 1970s, before miniature "fairy" lights became popular. The original design used a miniature screw base (E-10), such as those used on C-6 cone Christmas lamps. These early designs were nominally designed to operate with 8 on one string, in series, at 15 volts each. However, they were often packaged with a nine-socket string to extend the life of the bulbs. Bubble lights could also be purchased individually for use in an already-owned light string. Modern incarnations either use candelabra base (E-11) 120-volt bulbs, or push-in "midget" size miniature bulbs (most commonly ten 12-volt bulbs wired in series). Bubble lights were being manufactured by the Telsen Electric Company Ltd(1935), in Manchester, England, possibly as early as the late 1940s.

A miniature bubble light designed to operate with 12-volt "midget" bulbs.
The clear light bulb is enclosed in a plastic base made up of a "bowl" and a "cap", usually of different colors. Bubble lights are manufactured in just about any color, including the liquid in the tube. The plastics used are most commonly semi-opaque red, yellow, blue, and green. Liquids are generally amber, red, blue green ,and rarely purple and pink. Uncolored liquid is also available, being lit with colored bulbs instead.
In recent years bubble lights have gotten fancier. Glitter is sometimes added to tubes for extra sparkle. This is most common on specialty types such as those used in decorative nightlights. The bases are now often made to look like objects such as Santas or snowmen, rather than the plain ribbed plastic. Like many other Christmas decorations, they have been converted for Halloween use, usually with orange liquid and a base that looks like a jack-o-lantern, or the head of a black cat or witch, among other Halloween symbols.
Bubble lights of all kinds operate best when the top of the tube is significantly cooler than the bottom, thus increasing the pressure gradient. The tubes must be kept upright, and occasionally need to be tapped or even shaken to begin bubbling after warming up. Bulbs should not be stored in a hot (or very cold) attic, as this will cause them to not bubble as well later on [Unless the tube was leaking, why would this be the case? No vapor or liquid would escape. Citation needed for the claim that bubble lights will degrade if stored in extreme temperatures].
Modern imitations of bubble lights are made from acrylic or other clear plastic rods, with permanent bubbles deliberately manufactured into them, and lit with fixed-color or color-changing LEDs. Other bubbling lights are much larger and sit on a table or floor, occasionally with fake fish which "swim" up and down in the changing buoyancy. These tubes are filled with distilled water and have one or more airstones at the bottom, and normally a light, along with the air pump.
[edit]Patents

US PAT No. 2,031,409 : February 18, 1936
US PAT No. 2,031,416 : February 18, 1936
US PAT No. 2,162,897 : June 20, 1939
US PAT No. 2,174,446 : September 26, 1939
US PAT No. 2,353,063 : July 4, 1944
Categories: Christmas traditions

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WHEN SANTA CLAUS COMES
----------------------------------------------------

A good time is coming, I wish it were here,

The very best time in the whole of the year;

I'm counting each day on my fingers and thumbs-

The weeks that must pass before Santa Claus comes.

Then when the first snowflakes begin to come down,

And the wind whistles sharp and the branches are brown,

I'll not mind the cold, though my fingers it numbs,

For it brings the time nearer when Santa Claus comes.

~Author Unknown~

Bellaonline
Credit: graphics

Puppy Christmas - Author Unknown

On the first day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
The Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the second day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the third day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the fourth day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the fifth day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Five chewed-up stockings,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the sixth day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Six yards of soggy ribbon,
Five chewed-up stockings,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the seventh day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Seven scraps of wrapping paper,
Six yards of soggy ribbon,
Five chewed-up stockings,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the eighth day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Eight tiny reindeer fragments,
Seven scraps of wrapping paper,
Six yards of soggy ribbon,
Five chewed-up stockings,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the ninth day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
My wreath in nine pieces,
Eight tiny reindeer fragments,
Seven scraps of wrapping paper,
Six yards of soggy ribbon,
Five chewed-up stockings,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the tenth day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Ten Christmas cards I shoulda mailed,
My wreath in nine pieces,
Eight tiny reindeer fragments,
Seven scraps of wrapping paper,
Six yards of soggy ribbon,
Five chewed-up stockings,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the eleventh day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
Eleven unwrapped presents,
Ten Christmas cards I shoulda mailed,
My wreath in nine pieces,
Eight tiny reindeer fragments,
Seven scraps of wrapping paper,
Six yards of soggy ribbon,
Five chewed-up stockings,
Four broken window candles,
Three punctured ornaments,
Two leaking bubble lights,
And the Santa topper from the Christmas tree.

On the twelfth day of Christmas my puppy gave to me,
A dozen puppy kisses...
And I forgot all about the other eleven days.



CREDIT: All Creatures.Org

Merry Christmas around the world
Afrikaner (Afrikaans) ~ "Een Plesierige Kerfees"
Argentine ~ "Felices Pascuas"
Bohemian ~ "Vesele Vanoce"
Brazilian ~ "Boas Festas"
Chinese (Cantonese) ~ "Saint Dan Fai Lok"
Danish ~ "Glædelig Jul"
Dutch ~ "Vrolijk Kerstfeest"
English ~ "Merry Christmas"
Filipino ~ "Maligayang Pasko"
Finnish ~ "Hyvaa Joulua"
French ~ "Joyeux Noël"
German ~ "Froehliche Weihnachten"
Greek ~ "Kala Christouyenna"
Hawaiian ~ "Mele Kalikimaka"
Hebrew ~ "Mo'adim Lesimkha"
Icelandic ~ "Gledileg Jol"
Indonesian ~ "Selamat Hari Natal"
Irish ~ "Nollaig Shona Dhuit"
Italian ~ "Buone Feste Natalizie" - Natale italiano
Japanese ~ "Kurisumasu Omedeto"
Korean ~ "Sung Tan Chuk Ha"
Lithuanian ~ "Linksmu Kaledu"
Malay ~ "Selamat Hari Natal"
Maori ~ "Meri Kirihimete"
Norwegian ~ "God Jul" - Jul i Norge
Romanian ~ "Craciun Fericit"
Peruvian ~ "Felices Fiestas"
Portugese ~ "Boas Festas"
Slovakian ~ "Vesele Vianoce"
Spanish ~ "Feliz Navidad"
Swedish ~ "God Jul" - Jul i Sverige
Welsh ~ "Nadolig Llawen"