UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Powered By Google Custom Search Vintage Radio and TV Service Data

Go Back   UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum > Specific Vintage Equipment > Other Vintage Household Electrical or Electromechanical Items

Notices

Other Vintage Household Electrical or Electromechanical Items For discussions about other vintage (over 25 years old) electrical and electromechanical household items. See the sticky thread for details.

Closed Thread
 
Thread Tools
Old 12th Jan 2020, 10:24 am   #1
Colourstar
Octode
 
Colourstar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Ilkeston, Derbyshire, UK.
Posts: 1,397
Default Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I don't know when these horrors were introduced by I seem to remember they were still around in the early 1980s. I recently moved house and this one is in the bathroom mounted on a ceiling clad in polystyrene tiles painted gloss peach. Mmmm...

The heating element is 750w and it's wired into the lighting circuit. The operational aspect of this unit seems to me to leave much to be desired due to it's pull switch arrangement. It cycles through light on, light off/heater on, light and heater on together, then off, so a full cycle of four 'pulls' on the cord. There is a tiny indicator window on the base but it's pretty hopeless as you can't see it.

Normal switching off of the light involves pulling the cord three times to jump through the switching cycle as per above. It's so easy for the unwary to pull the cord once, which turns the light off but buts the heater on. Of course as it takes some time to warm up and glow, so unless you hang around, it's not immediately apparent, which can lead to the heater running expensively for hours!

The thing is to be replaced- and the sooner the better. In the end I disabled the heater element altogether as on more than one occasion I've set off for work and turned back just in case I'd left the dratted thing on.

I would have thought a better arrangement would have been to use two pull cord switches, one for the light and another for the heater, maybe with a red end on the cord to make it clear.


Steve
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	HandL1.jpg
Views:	880
Size:	61.9 KB
ID:	196923   Click image for larger version

Name:	HandL2.jpg
Views:	498
Size:	54.2 KB
ID:	196924  
Colourstar is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 10:38 am   #2
duncanlowe
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Stafford, Staffs. UK.
Posts: 2,529
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

My in laws had one. I replaced it with a conventional low energy lamp, and a wall mounted fan heater. Theres would date from the sixties when the bathroom extension was built. Removed in the early nineties.
duncanlowe is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 10:39 am   #3
thermionic
Heptode
 
thermionic's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Cornwall, UK.
Posts: 985
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

Hi Steve.

This type of heat & light unit first made an appearance in the 1960’s I think. Yours could well date from then, but they were made for many years and by a couple of manufacturers.

In fact, I installed one for an elderly customer only a few years ago! She had bought it on line and it was a copy of the unit that you have. This was of Far Eastern Origin and not branded by a well known ‘name’.

I’d be interested in the make of yours, maybe Sunhouse?


Cheers. SimonT.
__________________
The honesty of imperfection..........
thermionic is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 10:43 am   #4
paulsherwin
Moderator
 
paulsherwin's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,783
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

Similar things were quite common at one time.
paulsherwin is online now  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 10:45 am   #5
PaulR
Dekatron
 
PaulR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Southport Lancashire, UK.
Posts: 3,221
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

They aren't the prettiest things, although I think that one may be missing a frosted glass shade from round the bulb. However, I remember us getting one in the 1960s in a house that was heated by coal fires and a portable paraffin heater. It was bliss to be able to switch it on whenever wanted and to stand underneath it in a bathroom that was sometimes literally freezing! My father didn't approve of it being used simply for the morning wash, though!

Ours had two pull cords which made it easier to use.
__________________
Paul
PaulR is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 11:15 am   #6
Nuvistor
Dekatron
 
Nuvistor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Wigan, Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 9,425
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

We had one for years, fitted in the winter of 1970, two switches but I wired the light into to normal bathroom light switch outside the room. I wired the heater to the power circuit via a switched fused spur.
Only had a gas fire in living room and paraffin heater in kitchen, forgotten how cold houses could be before central heating.
May be horrid but they were safe and warm on cold days.
__________________
Frank
Nuvistor is online now  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 11:46 am   #7
broadgage
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: North Somerset, UK.
Posts: 2,129
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I rather like these and had one for years.
I minimised use of the rather tedious built in switch. In winter the built in switch was left in the "heat and light" position and the unit turned on/off by the existing light switch.
In warmer weather the built in switch was left at "light only" and again controlled by the existing switch.

Although marketed for bathrooms, these had other uses including sheds or external workshops and animal pens. They were more convenient than the previously used Tilley radiator for rearing piglets. It was said that in heat only mode, that the dim orange light was sufficient to prevent a sow rolling on and killing her piglets.

I think that these are still manufactured, I certainly installed a couple recently, in a cottage used only seasonally.
They were advertised in a tabloid newspaper only a few years ago.
broadgage is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 12:14 pm   #8
dave walsh
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Ramsbottom (Nr Bury) Lancs or Bexhill (Nr Hastings) Sussex.
Posts: 5,814
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

We had one in the sixties as well, in a new semi. I appreciate that the combination of heater and plastic tiles might seem horrendous now but I never heard anything about a fire risk [in that context anyway-maybe in kitchens!]. They seemed a bit futuristic then. As I recall ours was one click for the light and two to add the heater element. Most people seemed aware that it was dangerous to have electric fires in the bathroom. The builder pointed out that was the reason for the absence of sockets. It didn't explain why he'd not put any in the front room [inset electric fire only] or the boxroom

These combi heat/light units were designed to overcome the safety problem by running off the lighting circuit. Easily installed and no chance of wet hands on the switch. The 750 watt load was easily accomodated by the 5 amp wiring. I can't say that radiating the heat downwards was ideal but in an otherwise freezing bathroom, it was very welcome. My rich uncle was one of the few people we knew who had gas central heating at that time. We didn't feel jealous though as every time we visited his detached house we could hardly breath in the overheated "Kew Gardens" type atmosphere. He liked to show off" a bit.

Dave W
dave walsh is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 12:25 pm   #9
Mike Phelan
Dekatron
 
Mike Phelan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Near Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK
Posts: 4,609
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

We've had one of these for years, though there has always been central heating in the bathroom.
Good in winter. I modified it years ago - it has a 100 watt light, the only fiament bulb in the house. There's a glass surround, unlike Steve's one.
I rewired the switch to just switch the heater and use a pull cord which only uses the light.
__________________
Mike.
Mike Phelan is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 12:28 pm   #10
raditechman
Heptode
 
raditechman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: West London, UK.
Posts: 865
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I have one, among other junk, slowly rusting on my garage floor, just cannot get round to throwing it away. I have never used it apart from checking to see of it worked.
I think I contemplated installing it in the garage which I occasionally do some work in.

John
raditechman is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 12:41 pm   #11
emeritus
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Brentwood, Essex, UK.
Posts: 5,316
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I did the same as #9 for the one I got for my mother in the early 1970''s. Rewiring meant moving the heater to the contacts for the light so that the heater was switched on and off by alternate pulls. The light was then switched by the original pull switch. The unmodified arrangement was indeed a right pain.
emeritus is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 12:48 pm   #12
dglcomp
Heptode
 
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: Portland, Dorset, UK.
Posts: 870
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

Hwre is another one of these Heat + Light units in the kitchen of my Grans house, presumably fitted when the house was built (circa 1963) as the only heating originally would have been the coal fire in the living room, although later a parkray was fitted (I believe, could have been fitted when the house was built) which ran 5 radiators (which are still in use as part of the modern central heating system) via a pump in the dining room.
The proper central heating system was not fitted unit about 1998 as after my Grandfather died my Gran no longer wanted the hassle.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	WP_20200112_10_58_00_Raw.jpg
Views:	465
Size:	17.8 KB
ID:	196926   Click image for larger version

Name:	WP_20200112_10_58_07_Raw.jpg
Views:	717
Size:	29.0 KB
ID:	196927   Click image for larger version

Name:	WP_20200112_10_58_26_Raw.jpg
Views:	300
Size:	43.5 KB
ID:	196928   Click image for larger version

Name:	WP_20200112_10_58_54_Raw.jpg
Views:	360
Size:	41.1 KB
ID:	196929  
dglcomp is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 1:07 pm   #13
PaulR
Dekatron
 
PaulR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Southport Lancashire, UK.
Posts: 3,221
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

Quote:
Originally Posted by emeritus View Post
I did the same as #9 for the one I got for my mother in the early 1970''s. Rewiring meant moving the heater to the contacts for the light so that the heater was switched on and off by alternate pulls. The light was then switched by the original pull switch. The unmodified arrangement was indeed a right pain.
Maybe ours did only have one cord and I am thinking of the main pull switch as the other one. It's a long time ago!
__________________
Paul
PaulR is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 1:09 pm   #14
Robsradio
Heptode
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Isle of Wight, UK.
Posts: 546
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

That takes me back, I remember fitting one in a freezing cold bathroom in the early 90s to supplement the very poor heating in there, it used to make a buzzing sound as it warmed up!
Robsradio is online now  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 1:12 pm   #15
dominicbeesley
Octode
 
dominicbeesley's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire, UK.
Posts: 1,885
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I was disappointed to find the other half's parents had got rid of theirs this Christmas!
dominicbeesley is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 1:17 pm   #16
julie_m
Dekatron
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Derby, UK.
Posts: 7,735
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I had one of those heaters in the bathroom of a previous home. There was no central heating, although the kitchen gas fire did have a back boiler plumbed into a "Welmade" gravity-fed indirect cylinder for hot water.

There was a conventional switch in series with the light/heater, so a short visit could be taken care of with just two pulls as opposed to four!
__________________
If I have seen further than others, it is because I was standing on a pile of failed experiments.
julie_m is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 1:25 pm   #17
dglcomp
Heptode
 
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: Portland, Dorset, UK.
Posts: 870
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

As an addition to my previous post, there is a normal light switch for this unit as well as the one built in to the unit which makes operation a lot easier, esp. now as it's only used as a light.
dglcomp is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 1:29 pm   #18
Jonster
Heptode
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Eastbourne, East Sussex, UK.
Posts: 671
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I had one exactly the same in a house I moved to in the mid 1980s, the house was built in 1979 and it was presumably fitted then. There was no other heating in the bathroom so when it got thrown out around 2001 as part of a bathroom upgrade it was replaced with four sealed downlighters and an electric heated towel rail.
Jonster is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 2:24 pm   #19
Lancs Lad
Heptode
 
Lancs Lad's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Blackburn, Lancashire, UK.
Posts: 729
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

We didn't have anything as posh as that in our (arctic) bathroom!

I remember all through the 1970s we had a huge lightbulb in the batten lampholder on the bathroom ceiling.

Very like the one in this photo (except it was bayonet cap) I think it was either 250 or 300 watts.

It put out a fair bit of heat - but, thinking about it now, it wouldn't have done the old bakelite lampholder much good, would it?

No wonder it fell out one day (luckily when switched off) and the whole batten fitting had to be replaced.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	wp_ss_20200112_0002 (2).jpg
Views:	107
Size:	24.9 KB
ID:	196938  
__________________
Best Regards,

Peter.
Lancs Lad is offline  
Old 12th Jan 2020, 2:47 pm   #20
bobbyball
Octode
 
bobbyball's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Stockport, Greater Manchester
Posts: 1,208
Default Re: Horrid Ceiling Heat + Light unit

I had one of these units, branded "Thermair", for years in the bathroom of my flat. It had a cylindrical (slightly tapered) frosted glass shade. I removed the (ceramic) bayonet lampholder and fitted the sockets for two "PL" florescent tubes. mounting their chokes quite neatly in the metal base which attached to a round plate fitted to the ceiling. When I finally had central heating fitted to the flat years later I left the unit in place as well as the wall mounted fan heater that I had also fitted. It gave good light with it's 22 watts of "low energy" (for the time...) light.
__________________
Robert
bobbyball is online now  
Closed Thread

Thread Tools



All times are GMT +1. The time now is 11:14 am.


All information and advice on this forum is subject to the WARNING AND DISCLAIMER located at https://www.vintage-radio.net/rules.html.
Failure to heed this warning may result in death or serious injury to yourself and/or others.


Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2002 - 2023, Paul Stenning.