Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums Showcase and Stories, Petroliana Lighting Globes on an Existing Shelf

This is an option for lighting your gas globes if you don't want to modify the shelf you are using. I had some "floating" shelves from Lowe's that have a welded inner structure and no visible brackets. I added a 1 x 8 on top of the shelf with modifications to accommodate wiring boxes, lamp sockets and hidden wiring.

The boards are over an inch narrower than the shelf to hide the wire that lays behind it. You'll need for each globe:
A metal "pancake" ceiling wiring box that is only 1/2" or 5/8" tall
A 1/8 pipe thread nipple that is made for household lamps
A strap that screws to the box and is threaded for the nipple
A lamp socket that has a base for the nipple
These are all standard hardware store items. See picture.
A globe ring. I used the polished aluminum ones.

The length of the shelf and spacing of the holes are dependent on your situation and globe sizes. After figuring your spacing, use a sabre saw to cut round holes, using the electrical boxes as a marking guide. I used my circular saw with the blade set at 3/8" to route a trough for the wires to go under the globe ring to the back of the shelf. I flared out the trough to allow the wires to more easily bend at the wall.

The boards can be stained or painted to suit your taste. I painted mine to match the wall to kind of blend in. I bought a new black extension cord with a nice molded plug instead of making up wiring. I cut the cord at each globe box to make the connections. You should have a working knowledge of wiring to hook these up.

The globe rings needed to be redrilled and countersunk to screw them to the board because the wiring box was about as wide as the original factory holes.

I experimented with various lengths of the lamp pipe nipple to set the bulb higher or lower for different sizes and design globes. There is no one optimum length that works for every globe. LED bulbs tend to "project" light straight up more than incandescent, so they need a built in diffuser and can sit lower in the globe.

I experimented with bulbs and found that an LED bulb with a clear diffuser above the LED element worked very well. A 25 watt equivalent LED puts out 240 lumens, runs at only 4.5 watts and does not get hot.

The finished shelf board add-on. Note the LED bulb and the wiring running behind the board.


The parts you need.


Cutting the hole below each globe for the pancake ceiling box.


Electrical box sitting in the hole. Note the routed trough for the wiring to exit the globe and run along the back of the board.

A couple more pictures of this globe shelf lighting option.

Wiring into the box before the globe ring is installed.


Everything set up before the paint or stain is applied.

Great job and Idea Jim, thanks for posting!

That is a great idea ! LED is a lot better than incandescent or fluorescent. Thanks,I am going to try this.

I have outfitted nearly all the lighting in the new room with LED bulbs. (17 bulbs on three switch circuits, not including globes & signs) They are a whole new world with lots of variables. A big issue is color temperature measured in degrees. Incandescent is typically around 2700 as are many LED, but LEDs are available in other temperatures, some near 5000 which is daylight blue. Experimentation needs to be done to see if a bluer light or a yellower (2700) light would be more appealing in an application. For the most part, go with a 2700 if you like what you had with incandescent. LED light tends to project like a reflector spot light. Most bulbs counteract that with a diffuser of some kind, but some don't. Some have specs on the package showing the angle of light projection, like 180 degrees, but some don't. I would buy one bulb and try it out before buying a bunch. I like the lower wattage bulbs where I could see the clear diffuser above the LED element and ones that are marked "dimmable." What works in one globe might not in another with a different shape or dark lens.

If you can light your globes with less cost, longer bulb life and little or no heat, why not go for it? The higher bulb cost is paid for in lower electric usage and long bulb life.

Looks good Jim... Now let's see the whole package. LOL