All the pieces of the puzzle were there...
The Frankenstein Switch
Dad used this heavy-duty double-pole, double-throw switch in the basement to switch between two banks of NiCad battery banks. He wired the house with both 110VAC and 12VDC outlets, and lights. The batteries could be charged from the solar panels on the roof or a water-powered generator down at the creek. He also had a water ram he could place down there and pump water from the creek to two 55-gallon drums in the upper garden for watering. He had a constant supply of batteries as he was in charge of testing a large uninterruptible power system (UPS). He would rotate the batteries out of that system - through our basement - to recycling. The wood stove stayed but all of this other stuff was removed from the home to prepare it for the sale.
An Enormous Meter
This is one HUGE milliammeter! I think Dad said it came from a PECO power station. I had two of these and I had gifted one to the owner of a manufacturing plant. I loved the incongruity of the immensity of the meter and the sensitivity of it. You could pin the needle with a half-dead watch battery. Well, I know, you're not supposed to apply voltage to a current-measuring device but it was fun. This meter didn't work - all it took was reattaching a loose wire to put it back in operation.
It really added a lot to both the look of the project.
A Plasma Globe
A plasma globe or plasma lamp is a clear glass container filled with a mixture of various noble gases with a high-voltage electrode in the center of the container.
I contributed this piece to the project because it just 'belonged'. After scoring this freaky toy in the eighties, it has somehow survived decades of storage and migrations.
Rigging it Up!
You know those little 5V USB chargers that you plug into the wall? Use a dremel with a cut-off wheel to cut them open for a low-cost 5V power supply. Wire the AC side to supply wires in a wall switch with wire nuts. So the huge switch just switches 5V - through the meter - to a 5V relay! And the 5V relay switches AC to power the Plasma Globe.
The neighbor plans to do his downstairs powder room in steam-punk with black pipe paper and towel holders. I think this project should control the exhaust fan. Throw the knife switch and the meter needle swings 3/4 to about 75ma, the plasma light fires up and the exhaust fan kicks in - sweet!
