Too much light

I never thought that too much light would be a concern. I do just fine wandering around outdoors with eleven candle power from a Streamlight Stylus most of the time.

Throughout the winter, reading has been an issue, and having enough light is the most common issue. Being the cheapskate that I am, I figured that using the kerosene fueled Coleman 237, even when preheated with methanol, was cheaper to feed than the white gas 228F. We flick on the 228's like a switch, but the kerosene lanterns requires a bit more fussing to get fired up, so regular practice is good.

The big issue this evening was that I kept seeing white spots before my eyes. I couldn't avoid glancing at that 500 candlepower mantle. I needed a shield. The aluminum reflector that I have on one 228F will not allow enough light to shine out onto the book, and is best at just keeping the lantern from blinding me as I return from the woodpile.

The solution turned out to be a simple one. Just a piece of paper over the bail. Plenty far enough away from the heat to be safe, but also far enough away to allow light to illuminate my book, without blinding me when I looked up. Works great, and with the paper clips it stayed put in some heavy winds.

Definitely a First World problem, this too much light thing.

 

It just goes to show, that whatever the problem, with some careful thought, human imagination and ingenuity can usually come up with some kind of a work around or solution.

 

Heard a story on the radio some months back, about someone who belonged to an organization that was assisting a former Afghan soldier who came to the US with very little in the way of possessions.
He had a one room apartment and when this individual came to visit, the Afghan fellow had made his own window blinds from Scotch tape and index cards.

 

Congratulations on inventing the lamp shade!

 

One could also acid etch or sand blast the globe suchlike the frosted glass in a regular light bulb.
Frosting helps spread the light evenly .

 

I've found better solution lately, since using a 500CP lamp outdoors in the summer has started attracting larger and larger bugs. I've just started hanging the lanterns up and to the down wind side. Plenty of light to read by, and most of the bugs stay off my book.

I rediscovered a little old tech trick that works great for hanging stuff that sometimes needs height adjustment, like lamps. I call it long link chain, and it was common on the old Betty lamps. Making the links in a chain long requires less effort, and I'm all about saving labor. I even made my coat hanger links with diamond shaped ends, because the jaws of the pliers gave a consistent measurement as I bent the ends of the links. With each link about six inches long making rough adjustments is easy and fast. Even adding links is a snap because the ends aren't tightly closed.

 

I have done a little more light taming with the lanterns. Big hats, reflectors, and add-on shades. I thought it was time for an update on taming the light.