Neon Signs: Their Origin, Use, and Maintenance Author(S): Michael F

Neon Signs: Their Origin, Use, and Maintenance Author(s): Michael F. Crowe Source: APT Bulletin, Vol. 23, No. 2, Preserving What's New (1991), pp. 30-37 Published by: Association for Preservation Technology International (APT) Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1504382 Accessed: 04-01-2017 02:35 UTC

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This content downloaded from 132.174.254.12 on Wed, 04 Jan 2017 02:35:56 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms Neon Signs: Their Origin, Use, and Maintenance

MICHAEL F. CROWE

Historic neon signs are an History and Development rately called, is simply a vacuum important element on many glass tube fitted at each end with a From the moment neon was first metal in- terminal or electrode. Inside thoroughfares. This article troduced into the United States the in tube the is a small amount of rare outlines their special early 1920s, it was a hit. People gas. Connected to the two electrodes preservation needs often drove for miles to observe is a sourcethe of high-voltage electrical and opportunities. new phenomenon on Main Street. power. This is a neon sign reduced to By the 1930s virtually every itscity essential and elements. In this ideal town could boast of at least one condition, neon a neon sign can have a life sign, more often than not on span the of about thirty to forty years community movie theater. (Fig.Nowa- 1). days, we are all familiar with theThe idea of lighting a tube of glass many manifestations of neon is innot newour to the twentieth century. lives. It can have many uses: In 1709educa- Francis Hawksbee, an tional (crosswalk signs), inspirational Englishman, produced light from (churches), and even outrageous shaking a vacuum tube filled with (think of Las Vegas). But first, mercury. let's Another Englishman, look at the history, terminology, D. McFarland and Moore, was one of the developments of this twentieth- first to successfully experiment with century medium. luminous tube lighting. In the late Neon gas was discovered by nineteenth Sir century, he conceived the William Ramsey in 1898. Luminous idea of using an electromagnetic tube lighting, as neon is more valve accu- for mixing carbon dioxide or

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Fig. 1. Schematic layout of a box type neon sign, showing relative location of transformer, mounting parts, cable and tubing. From Neon Techniques and Handling.

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nitrogen with a current to provide a Paris. By 1914 there was a neon form of light. These Moore tubes, plant in operation. Claude was which were large diameter nitrogen- granted a patent on January 19, filled tubes, were in use in England N...... 1915, for the electrode attachment from 1893 to 1910. The first Moore process. In 1919 the main entrance tube sign in the United States was of the Paris Opera was lit with a

erected in 1904 in Newark, New Jer- ~lj~~:S~i::ill~iI~~iiiiii~::::f~ Claude Neon construction in orange Wk...... and blue to create an effect that came sey. However, these tubes were very N: 34 ii: short lived, both in practicality and i rr i+:+i to be known as "les couleurs popularity. Opera." Rare gases, of which neon is one, The first neon sign in the United .M.l~ were discovered in the nineteenth i~.:X. X Ae, ~i States was erected in Los Angeles. In N.Miu A. ...MIS.. century. In 1868, helium was discov- 1923 Earle C. Anthony imported two N N N ered by spectroscopic analysis of the ...... :0. %dr~"~d~~ signs from Paris made of Claude :,A.N.S-Mi .. .I ...... Ntl~La sun and discovered on earth in 1885; 10' ~ j Neon, at a cost of $1,250. They were Lord Rayleigh and Sir William simple signs of orange letters spelling Ramsey discovered argon in 1893; "Packard" surrounded by a blue bor- Sir William went on to discover kryp- der. Thus the popularity of "les ton and xenon in 1898. There is couleurs Opera" was established in more gold dissolved in sea water America with the first sign. than there is xenon in the air, hence Claude began franchising the the name rare gas. Rare gases are method of making his long-life elec- leter ar N. blc stylNditv in a channiiel etia inonig n aque h inert and therefore do not combine lettrs ae bock tyl in chanelmouniXY trode in 1924. Franchises were sold All phtograhs by ::,A;r among each other or with any other in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, substance. Thus they are ideal for San Francisco, Detroit, Pittsburgh, luminous tubes because they can take Boston, Casablanca, and Shanghai. an electrical charge and continue to Franchisees agreed to pay $100,000 maintain their integrity. plus royalties. However, Americans In rainy weather, maximum light were quite enterprising once they transmission occurs at a wavelength learned the technology and quickly of 635 millimicrons, the wavelength set up their own schools, ignoring at which neon has its greatest out- Claude's patent rights. Nationwide, put. Neon, therefore, is ideal for the list of early neon customers in- signage because its natural red color cluded Remington typewriters, Loft shows up even in the poorest weather, candies, American Radiator Com- and it is for this reason especially pany, Eveready batteries, Packard, suited for beacons for aviation and Willys-Knight, Scientific American, marine service. A neon light has five Standard Oil, Burroughs adding times greater visibility but requires machines, and Lucky Strike cigar- less wattage than an incandescent neon and bombarding it with elec- ettes. These customers had their lamp; thus its economical operation tricity he was able to produce a clear standardized signs erected in towns is an added feature. intense red; with argon he produced from coast to coast. Georges Claude, a Frenchman, a grayish blue. The two leading American design- and Karl von Linde, a German, inde- Claude showed the first commer- ers of neon were O.J. Gude and pendently discovered the process for cial luminous tube sign at the Grande Douglas Leigh. Leigh is credited making pure oxygen in response to Palais in Paris in 1910. However, it with the look of Times Square in the need for oxygen by hospitals and was his associate, Jacques Fonseque, New York, the most spectacular dis- for oxyacetylene welding. A side ef- who saw the advertising potential play of neon in the 1930s. Large fect of this process is the production and sold the world's first neon sign to scale neon displays did not come to of rare gases. Claude developed a a barber shop, Palais Coiffeur, on Las Vegas, currently the most in- cheap extraction process but had no Boulevard Montmartre in 1912. The spired display of neon, until 1944, use for the leftover rare gases, until following year the first rooftop sign, when mobster Bugsy Siegal con- he came across a Moore tube. He a three and one-half foot, white-letter structed the Flamingo Hotel, which discovered that by filling a tube with Cinzano sign, was erected, also in featured neon designs eight stories

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high. In addition to these expected advertising uses, movie set designers were often innovative in using this new medium decorations. One of the most unusual uses occurred in Busby Berkeley's "Shadow Waltz" sequence from "The Gold Diggers of (b) 1933," which featured a hundred platinum blondes playing violins out- lined in neon! At first, neon signs were added to already existing buildings. By the early thirties neon signage and tubing were being used as an integral part of building design, especially for movie theaters and sometimes on commer- cial buildings. Movie theater mar- quees and vertical signs often were integrated creatively with the facade (Fig. 2). (c) / i \

Types of Signs and Letters

There are several kinds of exterior signs: swing or projecting, vertical, fascia, outline skeleton, rooftop, pole, and marquee. A sign with tubing on both sides is called a double-face sign. A swing sign was hung from a bracket so that it could move freely. Probably because of building codes, I - ir== -- ,-- __,- -- , ,._ these signs are extremely rare in their (e)\ original form; some have been mod- ified with bracing to prevent the swing. A projecting sign has guy (t) wire bracing and therefore does not swing. Vertical signs have several ( brackets, attached to one edge of the box so that they can be mounted at the corner or along the facade of a building. Fascia signs are designed to lie flat against a building. Outline skeleton signs are long lengths of Fig. 3. Types of mountings: a. flat painted letter, b. raised letter, c. raised letter with shallow tubing used to outline buildings, channel, d. channel letter, e. channel letter with multirow tubing, f. cutout letter. From Neon canopies, faces of buildings, or other Techniques and Handling. permanent installations. Rooftop signs can be either freestanding letters, each with its own transformer, or be billboard type. A pole sign is a ground pole or special construction attached to a building supporting

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There are several kinds of letters Recessed differs from cut out in that or mountings: flat, raised, channel, the neon is visible and located in the cut out, recessed, back-lit, and same plane with the sign base. Back- overlay (Fig. 3). A flat letter is the lit letters have the neon mounted on simplest form of letter and consists the back side of the letter. Overlay of letters painted on the metal box letters consist of one set of letters with the tube in front. The channel spelling a word overlaying or sur- letter is similar to the raised letter mounting another set of letters spell- except that instead of a flat surface ing a different word. Overlays usu- the letter has a channel in which allythe light in an alternating sequence. OW1[uN tube is placed. Cut-out letters areThe cut letter types can be script, block, in the box with the tube mounted outline, double outline or infilled O L behind so that it is not visible. (Fig. 4).

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Fig. 4. Types of letter forms: a. script, Bracesjx 2' b. block, c. outline, d. double outline. From Neon Techniques and Handling.

Transformer Transformer - a sign on one or more vertical poles. A marquee sign is a structure that projects over a sidewalk and is most often found over theater or hotel entrances. There are several kinds of interior signs: skeleton, box, window outline, interior outline, and display. The skeleton is a continuous tube without a solid metal background. Current signs of this kind are often backed 64 - with plexiglass for protection and Housings--,,S j usually are displayed in windows. The box is a self-contained unit sus- AWVaCreih deats - seLow volA? w irhmf between onsformers pended or displayed on a counter, rnbmern 1

Fig. 5. Top: Complete sign layout, showing position of tubing, transformers, and details of metal drilling, etc. Bottom: Wiring diagram of sign layout in upper figure, showing one face of sign removed. From Neon Techniques and Handling.

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Basically, there must be a continuous unobstructed line of tubing from one electrode to the other. The transformer is usually contained within ::; W;n t:E et ...... K: ::? the sign or box. High-voltage transformers are being replaced with new solid-state transformers adapted ..M : N - from European designs, which allow ...... the transformer to be more compact, quieter, and emit less heat. Thus they require less insulation and ventilation and save up to 40 percent of the energy cost. Another improvement is the introduction of a Transformer Overload Protection Switch, or TOPS, which senses any imbalance in the voltage surge produced by the transformer due to problems in the secondary current and disconnects the primary circuit to the transformer. The equipment is Fig. automati- 6. This sign shows the many problems which can affect a sign. The glass tubing has broken cally shut off until the repairs and there iscan water penetrationbe evidenced by the streaking below the letters. made. This greatly reduces the risk of electrical shock or fire in the event of grounding or arcing. A third development has been the introduction of the solid-state dimmers adapted Initially, rare gases were used The glass tubing is bent by a from fluorescent lighting. alone This or in combination to produce craftsman working as a bender and allows for a softer, more pleasingthe desired colors: neon for orange- without gloves, who must determine interior use, without glare. red, mercuryDimmers and argon for blue, the pliability by training and experi- also increase the life span argonof the for lavender,light- krypton for ence. No corrections can be made ing. Another improvement silver-white, is the xenon for pale blue/pur- once a bend is made. The craft is still introduction of computer-signalled ple, and helium for pink. Color can being passed on by the first genera- systems for flashing neon, also which be produced had by using tubes that tion of benders. Some art schools been previously controlled areby coated time- or tinted, or both. The have also initiated courses in neon clock or trip hammer mechanism. juxtaposition of the gas color with bending. This further reduces mechanical the color of the glass and the color of After the tube is formed in the de- problems and maintenance the problemstube coating yields some forty sired shape, it is attached to the vac- with the trip hammer mechanism. known combinations. The best gas uum pump, monitored by a vacuum The maximum feasible length mixture, of known as No. 50 or B-10, gauge, and the air pressure reduced. tubing is limited by the structural contains approximately 80 to 90 per The high-voltage bombarding trans- strength of the glass used centand argon the and 10 to 20 per cent former is used to clear the tube of im- capability of a shop's vacuum neon. pump purities which will cause the glass to and bombarder or high-voltage To begintrans- the manufacturing discolor pro- or lose its charge. After this, former. The amount of footage cess, a thatfull-size sketch is first the tubetrans- is filled with a small amount each vacuum pump can handle ferred deter- to an asbestos sheet markedof rare gas. The tube should now be mines how much glass can with be usedthe image in in reverse. Thefree of sheetimpurities, have low internal a given unit, usually four-foot may lengths.show the specifications: pressure, tube contain rare gas, and be Splices can be made using diameter several (in millimeters), color, perfectly typesealed. In this state it electrodes. Tinted and coated tubes of coating, gas to be used, should any last special thirty years or more be- add flexibility in designs. mounting instructions, etc. fore disintegration of the electrodes

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requires that new ones be spliced on Glass strength is important be- (Fig. 5). cause the glass tubing must be vac- The tube must now be "aged" by uum tight and therefore mechanically being attached to a transformer that strong. This requires care in the orig- delivers the correct current or one of inal glass blowing, cooling and bend- slightly higher amperage in order to ing. Strength is crucial for outdoor stabilize the gas. This may take any- signs, which are exposed to the ele- where from fifteen minutes to several ments. The connecting wires must be hours. This is also a quality control copper or copper-coated so they will step; if there is a "wiggle" or the bind to the glass and thus provide the .:...u : .: . .... tube burns hot then the tube must be reconstructio of te iisss 1, proper connection for the flow of re-pumped to eliminate impurities. current through the tube. The glass ...... Mercury may be added to the gas, and wire must also have the same usually to the pale, cool colors to in- coefficient of expansion to maintain tensify their brightness; it must be the integrity of the connection. rolled from electrode to electrode until it attaches to one of the elec- Preservation trodes to prevent staining of the glass tubing. Xi. 7.- Th ubn howe heeecrd Water, of course, is the chief culprit in most deterioration, so a sign Maintenance Problems reconstruction of the missing tubing. should be visually inspected on a reg- ular cycle for evidence of this prob- Neon signs can exhibit various tech- lem. Often this can be detected in nical or physical problems, which rust stains either on the face or on can be remedied. Sputtering occurs the bottom of the box (Fig. 6). Signs when the electrode, under the action should be professionally inspected of the heat to which it is subjected for indications of damage or deterio- and the electrical forces which act ration of the tubing, integrity of the upon it, begins to disintegrate. This electrode connections, and trans- causes the electrode ends to blacken former performance. This inspection and the tube to lose its brightness or should also include the structural ele- flicker. Eventually, the entire elec- ments of the sign itself. The bracing, trode will be destroyed, but because guy wires, and electrical connections the action is very slow, it will last for should also be checked. Signs that almost the normal life of the sign. were poorly attached originally However, sputtering can be the first should be carefully evaluated to sign that there is deterioration. ensure that the attachments do not The remedy for sputtering is to re- cause further deterioration to the move the tube, open it up, clean it, building or cause destruction of the re-pump it and refill it. In some cases sign. If the attachment is faulty, specially treated electrodes can and causing architectural deterioration, should be used. These tubes are usu- reattachment in a less damaging ally chemically treated to withstand manner should be considered. intense heat either through ventila- Signs should be protected from tion or special patented processes. other damaging elements such as tree This is e~pecially required for rare limbs, overhead wires, traffic signal helium-filled tubes. Extremely old posts, etc. Other building treatments signs may sometimes be filled with should be carefully considered for helium. their impact on the sign. This is

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Fig. 8. This double face projecting sign was recently removed. It was a particularly fine example with five colors and flat mountings for the double outline and script style letters.

especially true for coatings, such as is sometimes difficult to know the Drawings made from rubbings pigeon roosting prevention remedies, exact form of the decorative elements taken from the electrode placement which can liquefy in the sun and drip especially on a marquee. When the can serve as design guides. This is over the face of a sign. only evidence is the electrode open- especially important because the Restoration of signs is possible ings, it can be tricky trying to replace length of the replacement tubing and should be encouraged. Often re- the lost tubing in an accurate man- must match the spacing of the pairs can be completed in a sequence ner. In addition, the color of the electrode openings exactly. Exact so that the cost can be spread over tubing may be speculative, unless measurements from center point to time. For instance, in the case of a color photos exist. However, clues to center point of the electrode opening vertical sign and marquee, the sign the original color scheme may be are also essential (Fig. 7). can be repaired first and the marquee found in the color scheme of the box, Patching of the sheet metal box later. Historic photographs and the which often had the same colors as should be made with in-kind metal physical evidence of the electrode the neon tubing. Sometimes the with expansion joints if necessary. It outlets can provide important clues color of the neon was part of the is sometimes difficult to repair nicked about the shape of the neon tubing overall color scheme found in other or damaged porcelain coatings; care- but not necessarily the color scheme areas of the building such as the ful matching of the color with glossy if all of the tubing is lost. Lost tubing terrazzo entry flooring or the interior, enamel can often provide an accepta- can be manufactured; however, it especially in theaters. ble repair. Any replacement materials

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should match the original in Along compo- with identification comes Bibliography sition, design, color, texture, public and education. Owners must be other visual qualities. This madeis impor- aware of the treasures they pos- Albright, Thomas. "The Revival of Neon Artistry." San Francisco Chronicle, tant in any repainting of the sess sign and be provided with assistance September 11, 1983. where the color scheme is as in signifi-restoration to ensure that the sign Donohue, Marlena. "LA Museum Offers cant as the tubing and its color. is properly cared for. As a part of this Electric Attractions." The Sunday The cost of repairing a sign movement can in education, Lili Lakich Oregonian, May 28, 1989. vary according to size, location, founded thede- Museum of Neon Art in De Forest, Ann. "The Neon Nights of Philadelphia." The Philadelphia In- terioration cause, length of Lostubing Angeles in 1982. The Neon quirer, October 8, 1989. to be replaced, complexity of Museum design, of Philadelphia was McDonald, Timothy B. "Signage: Neon and rarity of colors. However, founded it isby Len Davidson in 1985. and Other Technologies." Architecture, possible to gauge the total cost The publicby can be educated through Vol. 77 (April, 1988), pp. 126-128. the length of tubing to be replaced.the inclusion of significant signs in Miller, Samuel C. Neon Techniques and On the West Coast the cost is Handling. C. 1930s, Edwards R. walking tours. I have been conduct- Samuels, ed. Cincinnati, Ohio: Signs between six and ten dollars ing per nighttime bus tours of neon of the Times Publishing Co., c. 1977. foot. signage in San Francisco since 1988. Pattee, Sarah. "Neon Lights," USAir Historic neon signs form an im-- Recognition should be given for magazine, December, 1988, pp. 42-48. portant part of our visual heritage. individual private preservation Petrillo, Lisa. "Dragon, Elf to Stay as City Bends Rules to Reflect Signs of They can contribute to the quality of efforts. The Art Deco Society of Times," San Diego Union, September a street and can be a significant California has recently given preser- 10, 1989. character defining feature of a build- vation awards for the retention and Stern, Rudi. Let There Be Neon. New ing. For these reasons, it is impor- refurbishing of historic neon signs in York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1979. tant to identify and include them in San Francisco and San Carlos. And surveys of historic resources. The as a final recourse, if signs become National Park Service has funded a redundant they should be retained as survey of historic neon signage in a recyclable resource which can con- Nevada. The Park Service has also tinue to give visual pleasure and encouraged the rehabilitation of delight. There is a new generation of historic signs in tax act projects. benders who are producing signs that The city of Pasadena has protected are new in both color and complex- its historic neon signs through the ity. These signs should take their historic designation process. Los place with the many historic signs Angeles has encouraged the restora- so that the night life of our cities tion of neon signs atop the historic continues to burn bright with what apartment buildings along Wilshire Georges Claude called "the living Boulevard. However, San Diego flame." requires neon signs to be removed unless they are designated historic. San Jose allows repairs to made only to MICHAEL E CROWE is an architectural signs in place; if a sign is taken down historian with the National Park Service, it cannot be put back. A Midwest Western Region Office, specializing in city that recently legalized gambling project review for the income tax on Mississippi riverboats docked at rehabilitation credits program. He currently serves as president of the San its port has expressly forbidden the Francisco Landmarks Preservation Advis- erection of neon signs advertising this ory Board. He is also the founder of the new local attraction. Art Deco Society of California.

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