3 ms·

Local Neon

52 points by andyjohnson0 4y ago

nathell 4y ago
There’s a neon museum in Warsaw, Poland. Worth a visit if you’re in town, especially after sunset.
- parker_mountain 4y ago
  The one in Vegas is also fantastic, although less of a museum and more of a large dirt lot. Certainly better to spend an evening there than on the strip, in my opinion.
- eneumann 4y ago
  Can confirm. It's so cool. It's a shame neon signage has gone out of fashion.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
itronitron 4y ago
Most commercial neon production is hidden as it's installed within 'channel' letters (shaped aluminum sheet metal) that comprise signage for stores outside strip malls. I would be surprised if store owners willingly replace those with LEDs due to the longevity of well made neon, which is easily 10 to 20 years.
- parker_mountain 4y ago
  > I would be surprised if store owners willingly replace those with LEDs due to the longevity of well made neon, which is easily 10 to 20 years. Commercial LEDs need to be replaced about every 7-10 years - closer to 10-20 if only run at night. Their power usage is about 1/10th that of neon. Their failure mode is also a lot more graceful - they tend to slowly dim. Replacing LED modules is also quite a bit easier than replacing neon - instead of charging up a glass tube (or worse, patching broken glass), you show up with a box of inexpensive modules - an afternoon's work for any electrician. Replacing neon tubing with LEDs is also quite easy. Unfortunately, neon requires specialized skills. The TCO of LEDs for signage is significantly lower than neon, the installation cost is significantly lower, it's much easier to find someone who can install LED lighting than it is neon, and you have a much wider array of options of color for LEDs. Which is a huge shame, because I really like the way bare neon tubes look - even with dense LED packages, you can't get anything close to the ephemeral glow of classic, glass tube neon.
  - squarefoot 4y ago
    > even with dense LED packages, you can't get anything close to the ephemeral glow of classic, glass tube neon. You can obtain results close to the real thing by using a good light diffuser. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9bSzE9ir1Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9bSzE9ir1Q Those strips are cheap. https://www.ebay.com/itm/274148208415 https://www.ebay.com/itm/274148208415 They however don't emit light in all direction like a real neon; if that's the goal, a light pipe might be more suitable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CQnRARsk4E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CQnRARsk4E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rsi1jHEuarI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rsi1jHEuarI
highpost 4y ago
Los Angeles (Glendale really) also has the Museum of Neon Art: https://www.neonmona.org/ https://www.neonmona.org/
- imperialdrive 4y ago
  Lol, I just got back from there a few minutes ago!

Local Neon

52 points by andyjohnson0 4y ago

nathell 4y ago

There’s a neon museum in Warsaw, Poland. Worth a visit if you’re in town, especially after sunset.

parker_mountain 4y ago
The one in Vegas is also fantastic, although less of a museum and more of a large dirt lot. Certainly better to spend an evening there than on the strip, in my opinion.
eneumann 4y ago
Can confirm. It's so cool. It's a shame neon signage has gone out of fashion.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

itronitron 4y ago

Most commercial neon production is hidden as it's installed within 'channel' letters (shaped aluminum sheet metal) that comprise signage for stores outside strip malls. I would be surprised if store owners willingly replace those with LEDs due to the longevity of well made neon, which is easily 10 to 20 years.

parker_mountain 4y ago
> I would be surprised if store owners willingly replace those with LEDs due to the longevity of well made neon, which is easily 10 to 20 years. Commercial LEDs need to be replaced about every 7-10 years - closer to 10-20 if only run at night. Their power usage is about 1/10th that of neon. Their failure mode is also a lot more graceful - they tend to slowly dim. Replacing LED modules is also quite a bit easier than replacing neon - instead of charging up a glass tube (or worse, patching broken glass), you show up with a box of inexpensive modules - an afternoon's work for any electrician. Replacing neon tubing with LEDs is also quite easy. Unfortunately, neon requires specialized skills. The TCO of LEDs for signage is significantly lower than neon, the installation cost is significantly lower, it's much easier to find someone who can install LED lighting than it is neon, and you have a much wider array of options of color for LEDs. Which is a huge shame, because I really like the way bare neon tubes look - even with dense LED packages, you can't get anything close to the ephemeral glow of classic, glass tube neon.
- squarefoot 4y ago
  > even with dense LED packages, you can't get anything close to the ephemeral glow of classic, glass tube neon. You can obtain results close to the real thing by using a good light diffuser. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9bSzE9ir1Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9bSzE9ir1Q Those strips are cheap. https://www.ebay.com/itm/274148208415 https://www.ebay.com/itm/274148208415 They however don't emit light in all direction like a real neon; if that's the goal, a light pipe might be more suitable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CQnRARsk4E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CQnRARsk4E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rsi1jHEuarI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rsi1jHEuarI

highpost 4y ago

Los Angeles (Glendale really) also has the Museum of Neon Art: https://www.neonmona.org/ https://www.neonmona.org/

imperialdrive 4y ago
Lol, I just got back from there a few minutes ago!