Everyone loves neon signs for many reasons, but not many know the way they operate. Signmakers use blowtorches and heat to bend the glass tubes into a variety of designs. We’ve updated our knowledge to make the process interesting and entertaining. Here are the most important five facts.
1. Neon is French
Georges Claude was a French engineer who invented neon lighting in 1902. He was the owner of an air liquefaction firm and was first to pass an electric current through a neon gas in a sealed tube. This set off a chain reaction that produced a reddish-orange light. With some tweaks and further advances in science, neon discharge tubes were available for sale to the public at large and it was the beginning of the end,, as they say.
2. Handcrafted Neon Signs
Most of the neon signs you see are hand-made. In reality, it takes an enormous amount of experience, precision, and eye-hand coordination in order to make the glass tubes bend to the pattern. Glass is susceptible to breaking and cracking if handled correctly. While neon signs are different in color and shape but the process for creating them has remained the same since its inception.
3. Neon light bulbs can cut through the fog
What happens if you’re at an airport and you’re experiencing fog? The neon signs can be utilized for advertising or fun however they can also be efficient in fog. They are utilized to illuminate areas that may be risky or unreliable at airports. While you might not require them to guide you, neon signs can be an advantage if you happen to encounter a situation where you are thousands of feet up in the air.
4. Neon signs are made of sculpted
Each neon sign is designed as straight lines. However, through the magic of high temperatures and a container full of four-foot neon tubes, the process is brought to life. Armed with a series of meticulous movements and an incredibly accurate timing sense the neon sign maker bends each section of glass tubing according to specification. Since neon sign making is about experimenting and experimentation, you can try creating something original and distinctive.
5. Neon signs are bright
A majority of neon signs can be easily identified at night or even in the daytime. This is because of an energy transfer process that occurs during the process of production. Like a game of bowling, electric currents strike the gas atoms that are inert with electrons, knocking the atoms off their orbits. The electrons collide with free electrons, releasing them back to the atoms. As electrons begin to absorb into the atom, energy gets released as light!