How to Convert an Oil or Kerosene Lamp to Electric

If you like the looks of an Oil or Kerosene lamp, but not the mess with a burner and fuel, electrifying the lamp is easier that you might think. With specialty lamp adapters, a lamp can be changed over to an electric burner in minutes. In 5 simple steps the lamp can be converted.

Step 1: Identify the type of lamp you have.

There are many types of oil lamps out there: #2 burners, duplex, Aladdin, Central Draft. After you have identified your oil lamp burner, you are able to pick an adapter to fit.

Step 2: Decide on type of shade or no shade.

These electric adapters can be simple and hold a chimney, or they have other options with shade rings and harps for fabric shade. Before you convert to electric, you need to decide what the final product will look like and get the right adapter for that style.

Step 3: Unscrew and clean the oil lamp

An antique kerosene lamp might have months, years, or decades of kerosene on the lamp. This is a good time to clean the lamp. Wash it out with some clean water and let it completely dry.

Step 4: Install the new adapter

Installing the new adapter is as easy as replacing a light bulb. It literally screws in the lamp collar. If you followed step 1, this step is a breeze.

Step 5: Complete the look

Add the shade or chimney to the lamp. Screw in a bulb and enjoy the 21st century.


Looking for a more visual approach? Try this video.

Electrified Oil Lamp Repair

We've been around antiques for a long time and started in the kerosene lamp market. When customers come in the shop they are surprised by the vast selection of oil lamp parts we still offer. Most people with access to electricity are not interested in the hassle of kerosene. The option to have an electric socket on an oil lamp is a nice alternative. Like any lamp they need repair from time to time.

A customer brought us this lamp the other day and complained it was crooked and loose at the socket. A quick inspection of the usual items: polarized plug, socket interior, and socket insulator were all good. Although we will not need any lamp parts for this repair, we will still need to tighten everything up. 

First we remove the socket and shade holder from the lamp body. This lamp is using a #2 adapter for electric conversion. It unscrews from the collar on the lamp body. 

Next we pry the socket shell from the socket cap. The socket interior is removed from the lamp cord and set aside. 

This lamp has been loose for a while and been spinning and spinning on the cord. 

We cut the spun cord off and discard it. The 6-8 inches of cord will not be missed. Next we pull the cord down and out of the adapter. Then the adapter and the socket cap are tightened. 

With the problem fixed, the lamp starts to be reassembled. First we thread the lamp cord back in the adapter and up the socket cap. 

Then we tie a UL knot in the cord and reattach the socket interior. 

The socket key is attached to the interior and the socket shell is slipped on the interior. The socket shell snaps back into the socket cap. Any cord slack is pulled back through the adapter. 

Now the electric burner and #2 adapter are screwed back on the lamp body. 

Be careful not to over tighten the adapter in the lamp collar. Brass is a soft metal and the threads can easily be damaged. A bulb is added and the lamp is tested. 

Great! Total cost $0 Total time < 20 minutes.

Early Oil and Kerosene Lamp Patterns

In the mid to late 19th century, the Industrial Revolution was coming to an end. In oil lighting, the revolution was just beginning. Hand made items were being replaced with machine made items and consumers began demanding choices: patterns and colors. These demands were extended in the home to the everyday tools and appliances. A vastly growing line was the kerosene lamp. It was reusable and provided better light than wax candles.

Mass production was now possible and iron molds were used to make consistent patterns in various colors. The popular patterns were given names and often had slight variations of the pattern to broaden the appeal. We will take a look at some of these patterns and their names.

Early Sandwich (circa 1830) 

This lamp was originally a whale oil lamp and the original production is from about 1830. It has a #2 collar and is 10 1/2 inches tall. 

Heart and Star (circa 1860)

This Heart and Star patter kerosene lamp was probably first produced by Atterbury and Company in the mid 1860's. It had a #2 collar and measure 8 1/2 inches tall.

Shield and Star (circa 1860)

This Shield and Star pattern oil lamp was believed to have been a patriotic motif inspired by the Civil War and manufactured about 1860. They had a #1 size collar and measured 7 inches tall. 

Prince Edward (circa 1890)

This Prince Edward pattern kerosene oil lamp was a borrowed pattern from the Victorian era. It was first manufactured in the 1890's and measured 10 1/2 inches tall. 

Daisy (circa 1890)

The Daisy pattern kerosene lamp was first manufactured by the Westmoreland Specialty Company around 1890. The pattern features daisy flowers in circles around the font and the base of the lamp. It was made with a #2 collar and measured 10 1/2 inches tall. 

Coolidge Drape (circa 1900)

This Coolidge Drape pattern oil lamp was originally manufactured in the early 1900's. It did not officially receive its name or popularity until it appeared in a photo with Calvin Coolidge being sworn into office in 1923. It had a #2 collar and measured 9 1/2 inches tall. 

Sweetheart (circa 1890)

The Sweetheart pattern kerosene lamp was also known as the Beaded Heart pattern. The pattern has heart shapes with beaded edges around the font and upside down hearts with beaded edges on the column of the base.  It was first manufactured by the Dalzell, Gilmore, and Leighton Company in the 1890's. There were variations of this pattern including the miniature sweetheart that only measured 5 inches tall. 

Bullseye Fine Detail (circa 1890)

The Bullseye Fine Detail pattern was manufactured in the 1890's by the Diamond Glass Company of Montreal. This pattern was also used in table wear (bowls and plates) and other glass home furnishings. This lamp had a #2 collar and measured 11 inches tall.

This Miniature Bullseye Fine Detail kerosene lamp has the same general pattern as the taller Bullseye Fine Detail lamp, but only measured 8 1/2 inches tall. 

The Miniature Bullseye lamp has the classic eye pattern on the font but none of the details on the base. It measures only 5 1/2 inches tall and has a nutmeg burner. 

The Bullseye Heart and Diamond kerosene lamp is a variation of the Bullseye Fine Detail with a heart shape outline on the font and alternating diamond and bullseye patterns inside the hearts. It has a #1 collar and measures 9 inches tall. 

Princess Feather (circa 1890's)

The Princess Feather pattern kerosene lamp was first manufactured by the Consolidated Lamp Company in the 1890's. This lamp had a #2 collar and was 9 1/2 inches tall. It was a popular style with a larger font to hold more kerosene and wide base to make it more sturdy. Like the Bullseye Fine Detail and the Sweetheart patterns, there were many variations of the Princess Feather pattern. 

The Tall Princess Feather kerosene lamp had the same collar and pattern as the original, but measured 10 1/2 inches tall. 

The Miniature Princess Feather kerosene lamp had a #1 collar and measured only 8 1/2 inches tall. 

Electricity

In the early 1900's electricity began to reach peoples homes. Many rural areas did not have electricity until the 1940's and 50's. Many kerosene lamp owners did not want to replace their lamp with an electric lamp so they were converted to electric with electrified burners. The lamp maintained its look with chimney and shade and now had a new light source. 

Note: This discussion is not an exhaustive list of kerosene lamp patterns. There were many more patterns of varying popularity. This list only discussed flat wick lamps and does not include any mantle lamps or central draft lamps. While oil and kerosene lamps were originally manufactured in the mid to late 1800's they are still being reproduced today. Reproductions are meant to celebrate the originals and are never meant to be mistaken or represented as an original. If you hare looking at an oil or kerosene lamp to buy, do your homework. Don't just know the name of the pattern and the size of the collar. Know what to look for between old oil lamps and new ones. Ruby Lane offers some good guidance on old versus new kerosene lamps.

Other Recommended References: 

Catherine M Thuro has authored 3 books on oil lamps and they are highly recommended: 

They are available on Amazon: Oil Lamps, Oil Lamps II, Oil Lamps 3

Converting an Old Duplex Burner Oil Lamp into Electric Table Lamp

When my great grand father started this business in 1952, electricity was finally making it's way into rural homes. He was an antique dealer and truck driver by trade. People in his antique circles would ask "How can we use electricity in our lamps?" They were not interested in buying new lamps, they just wanted the nice old lamps to work with the new electrical parts. He started converting old oil lamps from the kerosene burners to the electric sockets. That is how we got started.

A customer brought in this lamp the other day and wanted it to be converted from an oil or kerosene burner to an electric lamp with a socket and bulb. The important thing is this lamp is dry; no kerosene or lamp oil residue is left in the lamp. The key in this type of conversion is to keep the burner shell intact for the conversion so it still looks original when you are complete.

We start by unscrewing the burner from the lamp body. We remove the wicks from the burner and the shade ring from the burner.

Now we are going to cut a hole in the bottom of the lamp so we can thread a lamp cord to the socket. There is going to be a hole in the bottom of the lamp and a hole in the side of the lamp.

Now for the hole in the side of the lamp. We use a plastic bushing so the cord will not rub on the cut metal of the lamp.

We will need to drill a hole in the bottom of the tank on the lamp for the cord to reach the top.

Next we work on the burner. The interior of the burner is removed and the base is cut out for the socket.

For this conversion we chose an antique brass turn knob socket with an extended brass key.

The socket cap clamps to the burner base with a few washers and a nut.

Next we thread the wire through the lamp body.

We thread the wire through the burner with the socket cap and tie a UL knot in the lamp cord.

The socket interior is attached with the smooth wire connecting to the brass screw terminal and the ribbed wire connecting to the nickel screw terminal.

The socket shell snaps in the socket cap. We add a bulb and test the lamp.

For the complete effect, we add a chimney and ruby swirl optic glass shade with 4 inch fitter and crimped top to the shade holder.

Now that new found electricity works with that nice old lamp. Total time < 1 hour, total cost < $25.00

Bonus Video: