Neon Sign Repair & Restoration

How neon signs fail

A neon sign fails in a small number of ways. A tube cracks or takes a knock and loses its gas. A section goes dim or flickers because the electrodes are worn out. A transformer dies. GTO cable perishes inside the housing, or a socket corrodes. Any one of those leaves the whole sign dark, and none of them mean the sign is finished.

Why we re-bend the glass

We repair the glass rather than replace it with LED. A broken tube is re-bent to match the original, then pumped down and refilled on our own bombarder here in the Englewood shop — the same equipment we use to make new signs. Very few shops in Denver still process their own glass, which is why a repair quote from somewhere else so often turns into a quote for an LED replacement.

That distinction matters most on older signs. A common shortcut is to paint a tube to change its colour instead of using glass that is the right colour to begin with, and it never looks the same. We have taken signs with painted units and put original neon glass back in. The difference in colour is immediate.

Full restoration

Full restoration goes further than the tubes. Cabinets are stripped and repainted, wiring is replaced end to end, and the sign goes back up working the way it did when it was new.

Accidents count too. One customer's sign took a tumble at an event and came back to them fixed and glowing again in time for their holiday season.

What to send us for a quote

Send us photographs of the sign, lit and unlit if you can manage both, plus a shot of the transformer or wiring if you can reach it. We can usually tell from photos whether a sign is worth repairing before you go to the trouble of moving it.

We have been repairing neon in Denver and along the Front Range for 23 years. Some of the signs that come back through the shop are ones we built ourselves.

Related work: new custom neon, LED retrofits and sign maintenance.