Carbide floodlight reflectors. Circa 1930 (MK1)

Restoration

Where possible we retain the original finish of a light - it is part of its history and emphasises its heritage. However, sometimes leaving a surface as we find it just isn’t possible. Some lights made from non-ferrous metals, such as aluminium, arrive so severely degraded we need to remove their outer layers to allow any further surface treatment to be applied. We do this using an environmentally friendly technique known as ‘soda blasting’. Soda blasting works by applying bicarbonate of soda to a surface under high pressure. The crystals explode at the point of impact and this ‘blasts’ the layer of degradation away - leaving the surface clean for the next stage in restoration.