"Centennial Bulb" still burning after 107 years

Wed May 14, 2008 10:44AM EDT

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Hanging about 18 feet high in the engine bay of a Livermore, California firehouse, a humble, low-watt light bulb has been burning almost continuously since 1901. Take that, halogen!

The Los Angeles Times (via Boing Boing) recently ran a story on the remarkably resilient Centennial Bulb—a four-watt, curlicue carbon-filament lightbulb that, give or take a few brief interludes, has been burning for 24 hours a day, seven days a week for more than a century.

The bulb has become something of a lucky charm for Livermore firefighters, who (according to the LA Times story) won't even dust off the bulb for fear of damaging it.

Indeed, when the department moved to a new fire station in 1976, firefighters decided to cut the power cord rather than unscrew the fragile bulb from its socket. A motorcade of fire trucks then accompanied the Centennial Bulb (which, according to Wikipedia, was only off for about 10 minutes during the short journey) to its new home, where it's been burning continuously ever since.

What's the secret to the Centennial Bulb's longevity? As the LA Times story notes, there are many theories. One former firefighter thinks it's because the bulb, made by the long-defunct Shelby Electric Co., shines in a cool-burning vacuum thanks to a perfect seal. Others chalk it up to the fact that the bulb has almost never been turned off.

In any case, the Centennial Bulb has been drawing curiosity-seekers and news stories (including, of course, this one) since 1972, and the bulb even has its own Web site—which, unfortunately, appears to be down for now (probably due to a burst of traffic).

Check out the LA Times Web site for the full story, including many more details on the bulb's storied history.

So, any theories on why the Centennial Bulb has been burning for so long? 

Related:
At 107, Livermore centennial lightbulb is still a real live wire [Los Angeles Times]

 

Comments on "Centennial Bulb" still burning after 107 years

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  • 6 Posted by ajs618592@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:48PM EDT Report Abuse

    So here's what my mom (when I read this to her) and I think: "I think it burns 'cause it wants to. It's keeping its firefighters safe... It burns 'cause it needs it." (What a typical mom thing, right?)

  • 8 Posted by wrshumphries@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:51PM EDT Report Abuse

    I personally think it is still burning for ghostly reasons myself. It is a ghost manifesting its self as light from a light bulb. Purhaps it is a fallen fire fighter that has chosen this fire station to protect some of his on. I think the people in the building are right to leave it alone.

  • 9 Posted by ghvance@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:08PM EDT Report Abuse

    I REMEMBER CHARLES KUWALT DOING A STORY ON THIS BULB PROBABLY 30 PLUS YEARS AGO. I AM AMAZED IT IS STILL BURNING. GEORGE

  • 10 Posted by bobnewbie2 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:10PM EDT Report Abuse

    Hey middlenamefrank, thanks for the science lesson. Too bad it is mainly wrong. It is a nice and long explaination. If they ever remake "Cheers", you could play Cliff.

  • 11 Posted by tc_campbell@verizon.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:58PM EDT Report Abuse

    screw the new mercury light bulbs! Make more like these. Global warming is a bunch of B.S. anyway!!

  • 12 Posted by dmhardman on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:45PM EDT Report Abuse

    Just think of how much we'd be charged for a bulb that lasted a century...These major companies would certainly want enought $$$$$$$ to keep their pockets lined for a long time. Aren't we a selfish bunch :-)

  • 13 Posted by bmoydell34@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:10PM EDT Report Abuse

    It just tells me we could make light bulbs today that would last that long. I mean, come on...we can put a man on the moon but not make a light bulb that lasts more than a year? But hey, I guess it wouldn't make sense to manufacture a product that would never need replacing. Wonder if those bulbs would cost about $80.00/each...

  • 15 Posted by einargrondal@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:52PM EDT Report Abuse

    My grandma lived to 100+, the last 20 or so years her light waned steadily but she finally checked out after she broke. Her hip of course. My point being? Well, if you leave good enough alone and don't hassle the thing to much what ever it is can last along time.

  • 16 Posted by max.lupton1@att.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:12PM EDT Report Abuse

    Seems technology hasn't advance as much as some may think..the modern florescent bulbs that we are encouraged to use in place of incandescent bulbs are (or someday be a problem) due to the mercury hazard..I agree with 5..we may be creating a major cleanup problem down the road with the mercury.

  • 17 Posted by futrhse@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:04PM EDT Report Abuse

    I've got a house full of safe bulbs (incandescent) many that are still running after 22 years, since the day I installed them. the house has about 60 bulbs in it and I'd hazard a guess that 35 of them are the originals. Building the house myself I utilized all 12 ga romex cable instead of the std. 14 ga the electricians wanted to pass off on me. This ability to provide higher current seems to have really improved light bulb longevity.

  • 19 Posted by futrhse@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:04PM EDT Report Abuse

    I've got a house full of safe bulbs (incandescent) many that are still running after 22 years, since the day I installed them. the house has about 60 bulbs in it and I'd hazard a guess that 35 of them are the originals. Building the house myself I utilized all 12 ga romex cable instead of the std. 14 ga the electricians wanted to pass off on me. This ability to provide higher current seems to have really improved light bulb longevity.

  • 21 Posted by martygoodman@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:09PM EDT Report Abuse

    Yawn. There's no magic here, and the ignorance of the author of this article is something between gross and pathetic. The length of time an incandescent light bulb will last before burning out (on the average) is a function of the twelth power of the voltage applied to it (or, more precisely, the ratio of the voltage applied to it in the unknown situation to a situation of known life). Raising something to the 12th power has an immense effect! Thus, if you have a bulb that will burn for a year at 220 volts, and you run it at 110 volts (1/2 the voltage), take 2 to the 12th power (4096) and that's how many times LONGER the bulb will last. That bulb will burn for around 4000 years at that voltage. Thus, you can have an "immortal" light using ANY incandescent light. Just run it at half its voltage. And don't shock it by turning it on and off. As they are doing in that firehouse. Obviously this bulb was originally designed to run at a higher voltage. That's confirmed by the very dull red glow it's putting out, characteristic of a bulb running at a lower than design voltage. NOTE that at such voltages, the bulb becomes VERY MUCH MORE inefficient, putting out (even more so than ordinary incandesant bulbs) very little light, and LOTS of heat, for the amount of electricity put into it. This is all a simple consequence of the basic characteristics of the (soon to be totally obsolete, replaced by flourescent lights and soon thereafter by LED light sources) incandescent light bulb. [Note: Halogen light bulbs are incandescent light bulbs with a minor variation... filaments run at higher temperatures, but able to survive because the small amounts of halogen in them help boiled off filament atoms to be re-deposited on the filamants... yielding perhaps 30% greater efficiency and somewhat whiter light, but they basically still are cumby, iinefficient incandescent light garbage technology.] [By the way, I'm NOT an engineer... electrical or other... by training. But this is fundamtental background defining how devices we use every day work... something I made a point of learning.] ---marty

  • 23 Posted by midimagic@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:19PM EDT Report Abuse

    I would say it is because the filament is carbon, and has a higher resistance than it should have. We have new LED light bulbs coming that should last a very long time. And they fit our screw bases. If Microsoft had anything to do with it, that bulb would no longer be lit, because Microsoft would have changed everything to a different lamp base and a different line voltage.

  • 24 Posted by didedo@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:43PM EDT Report Abuse

    I've actually seen it.. Pretty cool...: ) Livermore is a tight nit community with good families, fun and wine. From, A true Liveright

  • 25 Posted by veryspoiled1@att.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:33PM EDT Report Abuse

    I know its the old way of making them. Light bulbs, cars, ya know old-timey stuff lasts better. They probably used real metal, real glass, real quality back then, not like cheap imported stuff from now.

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