To think salt lamps are a liability

[Sera1989]

Sitting working and I hear a bang from the other room. The salt lamp has presumably short-circuited, set off the breaker and left a big brown burn mark on the shelf.
In the winter it's cold and the lamp gets damp, in the summer it's humid and the lamp gets damp. Every now and then I put it in the oven on low to dry it out, which seems like a lot of work for a lamp. It doesn't stay completely dry unless I have it on all day every day.

AIBU to think it's dangerous to have an electrical object which gets damp unless it's on and hot all the time? I don't think I'll be getting a new fitting for it, the pretty glow isn't worth getting electrocuted

I have a dehumidifier but I don't heat the house very high in winter so the air probably is a bit damp (thankfully I don't have actual damp). In this current climate I don't feel I can justify turning the heating up so my lamp doesn't melt. Interesting that some people have never had the salt puddle problem though!

They are only salt and consequently deliquescent.

If they start to dissolve and form puddles, the risk is that animals may drink the water. It would taste so horrible that I doubt any would drink it unless they were desperate and had no access to fresh water.

Even the occasional lick of a lamp is unlikely to cause problems unless they do it constantly.

If it's out of your pets reach and any liquid isn't dripping on the floor there is no risk to them.

My house tends to be damp in places and I hated the mess the lamp made so it went.

I've had three of them for donkeys years, they are turned on permanently. I've never had an issue with them.
The dogs have never licked them as far as I know, despite them being in reach.

Who knew! I’ve had one for years with no problem. Modernish warm house with central heating and double glazing, heating on everyday, no damp, if those are the factors that make a difference?

Yes they are toxic as the animals like to lick them and they get salt poisoning. My husband bought a massive one and we immediately got rid of it when we found out.

I had this problem in my bedroom because I turned it off at night and it did have high humidity overnight. The ones downstairs have never puddled but I leave them on as a night light.

Ours dissolved. Never again - or at least until I move to a dry house.

I threw mine out this week. It did puddle which was annoying as it's ruined the table it was on. More alarming though was when it stopped working I went to change the bulb and found it had been wrapped in bubble wrap and had completely melted over the bulb and fitting. It was a gift and I'd never checked the bulb before. The fitting was covered in melted plastic and a fire risk.

I don't understand them. They are so ugly.

Wow I didn't know there were electric ones, I have the type you put a candle in. Our house is really damp and we get some salt residue under it but I have it sat on a mat. Might be a different thing as our house is so damp it sounds like ours would have dissolved by now if it was one if these lol

We only have ours on for a few hours each evening - never had puddles! Didn’t even know that was possible. I’m stingy with the heating and our house is uninsulated.

I do actually think they’re ugly as objects but I love the cosy warm glow it gives off and it genuinely helps me to feel calm.

*edited to say might be worth getting it PAT tested OP?

I was given a candle one for my birthday recently. It is extremely hideous but I've kept it to be polite. I'm going to move it off my lovely shelf now and stick it in a bathroom where the cat can't reach it.

Can I ask what the purpose of them is? Is it just the lump of salt look that people enjoy seeing, or does it have some sort of air cleansing/healthy property?

Don’t “in Salt” the poor lamp !

We have a salt lamp and I've never known it get damp or anything like that. It is on for several hours every evening though (and in a position inaccessible to pets).

Yeah what is the actual point of them?

Ive got one it makes the room all cosy

I had to get rid of mine for this exact reason lol I loved the glowy light too. Wtf goes on in a toddlers brain !

My teens had one in their room (in a dampish Edinburgh flat) and never had any issues. It emitted a lovely cosy glow. The only niggle is that it takes an awkward bulb, which I've never bothered to replace.

They purify the air by attracting water molecules, so if you’ve a damp property they will basically melt.

WTF is a salt lamp?

Holy shit, I had no idea they were so much trouble

It’s a lump of salt, usually Himalayan, with a bulb in the middle.

they are supposed to remove pollutants from the air, like dust and mildew, but they attract water, so if you have a damp house, you shouldn’t have one.

like this. Personally I find them really ugly.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Straame-Lighting-100-Himalayan-Crystal/dp/B0B5S28P83/ref=sr_1_6?crid=386VH43NNMQC3&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.a1aE_FnruuAqHfEEwuNE2RcIO6HKAqydePliWSHuMpH5o8fPEgJgWmgNBDf-15QetiuHPeVDKbs_B2-jAdmeS7eIX8ahr29eCfpm2ej3dJGRGgbEdI4RBeYtcfWqh2CDUsRYTvSsqctyXFBXtQF7uvp51UWlEpORRj__fxl1_QZVzEI6jkdCADXGQs9vslZ5jJtuizk-dPBX11SLM7sPdfBiNPqTeY671B8DNjCrYi-QCgwEYa7TYZiuyE7pKr3Z4dOWx00R0ABWGz8pvlOSG_chVd2aRf37thj90GRRgVk.yXkxbZbv2Fe8AalLs7TauroOdgKMe9BjSsluF0-SCKQ&dib_tag=se&keywords=salt%2Blamp&qid=1709394331&sprefix=Salt%2Blam%2Caps%2C84&sr=8-6&th=1

I've had three of them for donkeys

On my phone this was the top line of your post @MyLastRoloIsMine and I went off on a muse about cow salt licks & did our horses have some when I was little and are donkeys in need of lamps, or salt licks, or nice cosy glowing warm salt licks

then I read the second line

<exits thread chased by donkeys high on salt>

@WellOwlBeDamned I read it the same thinking it was a donkey salt lick! 😂