ELECTRIC BOWL FIRE, 1930's

Electric fire used between the Wars and afterwards, operating from 240-250 volt AC mains.

Bruce Hammond Collection

Your comments:

• We acquired a fire of this type from my London Grandparents. As we never threw anything away it was kept with all the other stuff which "might be useful one day" in the garage. In the 60's when Doctor Who was the latest fascination I set about making a dalek for my younger brother. It was on castors and he used to move it about by walking inside. The copper reflector from the fire made the perfect top to the dalek's head and was my inspiration for the build.
  It used to virtually stop the traffic passing our house in Pencoed, S. Wales. My little brother sent some photos of it to Blue Peter and HE! was sent a blue peter badge.
  .......... Robin Paine, Waddington, Lincs., 29th of January 2018
  
  
• When my husband and I and three children moved into this house in 1964 we couldn't afford to keep more than one coal fire going in our first winter and there was no central heating until we put one in ourselves. Someone gave us a fire like this and it was beautiful, one felt warm just in the glow from the copper bowl.But it cost so much to run, I discovered that when the first electricity bill came in. So we went back to being cold and wearing more and more clothes (we do that now from choice.Sadly, we took the fire apart and weighed it in for scrap,that went towards the bill.
  .......... Mary Fisher, Leeds Yorkshire, 5th of September 2015
  
  
• I grew up in the UK (Surrey) during the 1940s and early 1950s. I remember very well my parents having a ray bowl heater which was used during cold weather to provide localized heat wherever it was needed in the house. We did not have central heating or double glazing in those days, and instead of carpets on the floor we had linoleum and rugs. A coal fire in the living room was the main source of heating, and in the bedrooms there were fixed gas fires. However, the ray bowl was used as a regular additional source of heat and was particularly useful for warming toes, or toasting bread on the end of an extendible toasting fork!
  .......... Charles Thompson, Rochester, Kent, UK, 24th of March 2013
  
  

A1240