From Paul Hickley
As a former Trinity House lighthouse keeper, I was interested to read the
article about Michael Faraday and his connection with Trinity House
(26 May, p 54).
I joined the lighthouse service in February 1979, and after a week at Nash
Point near Bridgend in south Wales I was ordered to spend a
month on the Smalls lighthouse, from 14 February to 14 March.
At approximately 18 miles offshore, the Smalls is the most remote Trinity
House lighthouse in the service.
Condensation in the cramped living quarters was a problem even in the late
20th century, but not due to burning whale oil. When I was there, the domestic
light inside the lighthouse was produced by a metal halide bulb powered by
electrical generators. These engines had to be very compact, because the rooms
in the tower were only about 10 feet in diameter, so the generators could not
deliver enough power for cooking and heat as well. This was done with Calor gas,
which produces a great deal of condensation on the cold masonry walls of the
lighthouse.
To give the reader an idea of the thickness of the wall, a person could sit
in the space between the outer storm shutters and the inside window. So, during
the severe weather that occurs in February and March, it was quite usual for us
to sit with our feet tucked up to keep them out of the pools of water that had
run down the walls, even though we used to mop up the water every half an hour
or so.
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The problem was finally solved by a lucky find. One of the principal keepers
at the time discovered a 750-watt electric fire in his attic. The engines were
just capable of supporting this extra load, provided we were careful about other
loads put on the domestic circuit.
Finally, any readers who are interested in pharology, should visit the
Association of Lighthouse Keepers’ website at www.lighthouse.fsnet.co.uk
Flordon, Norfolk
