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It's been a very zappy and poppy night, but I got the thing going again.  It had a few broken solder joints and a faded vintage capacitor.

This thing really looks the part.  It's from the era just before electrically powered domestic appliances started appearing.  And at a fairly stiff £9 and 9 shillings it was equivalent to about 500 of our modern dollar-pounds.  Reasonable enough if it cures all the things it claims.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_pL9VpQyHc

Files

Scary 1920's high voltage thing (LOUD ELECTRICAL NOISES)

This is pleasingly freaky. It's a 100 year old piece of electro-medical apparatus that probably predates most electrical appliances. This thing is NOT child safe (or even adult safe). It has exposed electrical contacts that can deliver a significant electric shock. That's just how they did stuff in that early electrical era. It needed a few broken solder joints resoldered and an improvised replacement for the old capacitor, but still works. The circuitry is very typical of that era, with a coil and magnetically activated circuit interrupter causing pulses of current through a step up transformer. It's very similar to a violet ray or violet wand unit. The high voltage is used to create ozone by applying it across two pieces of metal mesh on either side of a tubular glass insulator. The resultant capacitively coupled charge causes a corona discharge as it breaks the air molecules apart. In the process of recombining they create ozone and many other exotic air molecules that have a sterilizing and deodorising effect as they revert back to more stable molecules. Ozone is an essential part of natural outdoor air at very low levels to maintain a level of sterility. It is useful to generate similarly low levels indoors, but this unit produces higher levels that are not recommended for continuous inhalation. A rough rule of thumb is that if you can smell ozone there's too much. Modern low level air cleaning units tend to use a very high airflow to mix the active air molecules into the room. I was expecting the power consumption to be quite high, but it's actually around 5W and produces a reasonable amount of ozone. I'm not sure how long it is intended to be run for continuously, with it's continually vibrating and sparking electrical contact. The name written on the bottom of the unit looks like A-Massey or Massoy written with a stylish flourish. It could be the name of the builder or the customer it was being made for. If you like high voltage stuff then you may find it interesting that Jeff Behary of The Electrotherapy Museum fame is currently trying to rehome the GE 3 million volt lightning lab (He's already got the parts from it). If you can spare a few dollars He would appreciate the support:- https://www.gofundme.com/f/Saving-GE-Lightning-Laboratory If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:- https://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm This also keeps the channel independent of YouTube's algorithm quirks, allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty. #ElectronicsCreators

Comments

Anonymous

Somebody think of the babies .....

Bill Donnelly

Nice to see the hinge screws are aligned parallel to the case. Clearly whoever assembled it too some pride in their work. At some point pater the lid hinge screws have been repaired, they are not aligned! Shoddy kids these days . . .

N. Shaun Tremayne

The voltage switch was due to no voltage standard in the UK! The last area in Cornwall to move to 240v from 120v late 1960's-1970! In some areas 180v DC I know most of UK went 240v in 1926 I think must get reg book out to check that date just out in the sticks change was much later due to cost of buying new equipment.

Lostngone

spark-gap transmitter 😂

Anonymous

At least on a D/C supply, the racket that thing made left you in no doubt about whether it was in operation or not. On an A/C supply with the switch off, it might still operate, so that indicator might lead to a false sense of security!

Aaron Nadler

why do wee new babies hair smell like ozone?

Dave Frederick

Wow Big Clive. That's some crazy stuff. It makes me scared for my deceased grandparents,

Anonymous

Very dangerous and interesting. Thanks for another great explanation of insane vintage tech

bigclive

I wasn't aware of that. I have never sniffed a baby, nor do I ever have any desire to do so.

John Harrison

I have some domestic equipment that show 2 fuses on both the live and neutral ? a bit dangerous. When my grandad in the 1930s ish bought a murex oil filled stick welder 3 phase on wheels (it was about the weight of a big motorbike) it was classed as portable. The local council made him rewire it and when it was on standby one of the the separate electric charging meters when backwards. See end of the photo link near the Black pudding and the can Big Clive beer https://photos.app.goo.gl/HNrlzJlEWwOdld0h2

Aaron Nadler

My friend always said she loved the smell of her newborns hair and sure enough it smelled like after a thunderstorm. But now you say that's not ozone so I'm not sure. Btw he could already unscrew a lightbulb before he could walk, I'm gonna say he learned from me.

Phil Collins

Pure engineering genius, working with available technology. Built by a man with a moustache, wearing a white coat, collar and tie.

bigclive

The house I was brought up in had a home made wooden distribution board with fuses on both live and neutral.

Anonymous

Back then everything plugged into the light socket, like now, nearly everything plugs into a usb socket

Jonas

My granddad had something like this, but ceramic: https://www.oogalights.com/Leviton-1403I-Single-Light-Socket-2-Outlet-Adapter-Ivory.aspx