Salt Lamps - Purify your air naturally!
Posted: Tuesday, March 08, 2005
by lorien1973
Online Discount Mart Home & Garden Decor
Air quality has become a major health concern for many people, especially homeowners with families. But instead of paying out money for yet another machine, why not purchase a natural creation that can both purify your air and add some beauty to your home? Enter the salt lamp!
First, let's find out why and how a salt lamp can clean the air around you. A salt lamp is a natural ionic air purifier that gives off negative ions. But what are these ions and how do they work?
Scientists have discovered that negative ions can help purify the air by simply attaching themselves to positive ions and dragging them down to the ground where you can see them as dirt and dust. Negative ions have also been found to help a person's mental state and encourage a sense of empowerment and general well being. These ions rush out into the air and fall to the ground quickly, with a life span of only thirty seconds, but a very busy thirty seconds!
But these natural air purifiers aren't a new invention - they have been documented back as far as the time of Alexander the Great who used salt lamps made of Himalayan salt crystals to help maintain his health and that of his men. While artificial ionic air purifiers can replicate the effect, many still prefer the natural look of a salt lamp.
A salt lamp is made of pieces of naturally harvested salt lit from inside by either candles or electric bulbs creating an orange glow - the natural color of pure salt. The sizes can vary from small spherical designs to naturally conical sculptures, but all of them will have a solid base (either wooden or metal) to give the lamp a firm platform for support. As well, for those using electric lighting a small wire will be run into the base and up into the core of the salt sculpture, allowing power to run to the electric bulb. The bulbs are fairly standard and easily obtained at your local hardware store and changed much like you would any regular lamp.
For those lamps requiring a candle to illuminate them from inside a small hollow will be seen, allowing you to put in a votive candle or some other small candle. You will have to monitor it carefully, as you would with any other open flame in your home, of course.
These beautiful natural ionizers create the same affect as an artificial ionic air purifier but have some restrictions. First, the salt lamp cannot be washed for obvious reasons or used in humid climates. The salt would simply melt away, leaving nothing but a salty puddle of water. This would also become a major safety risk for those salt lamps using electricity, since dampness can create an unsafe environment and you would be risking physical damage.
Many people prefer the natural beauty of a salt lamp to the intrusive design of many ionic air purifiers, working the lamp into the room's décor as part of the setting instead of trying to work around a blocky piece of metal. Depending on your home and your circumstances, you may prefer a salt lamp to any other source of negative ions to create a healthier and happier environment for you and your family.
Discovered hundreds of years ago salt lamps helped thousands to deal with health problems, from migraines to respiratory diseases to high blood pressure. While many might prefer their metallic cousins the salt lamp can provide a natural healthy addition to any home, providing benefits to you and your family at the cost of a single candle.
By Sheryl Nantus
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