Just this evening, my son informed me that a bulb was out in his bedroom light fixture. Indeed, he was right, so I set about going to change it. The fixture is a large globe type, with three bulbs inside. I couldn’t remember how the globe was removed (as the original bulbs surprisingly have lasted the 9 years since I installed the fixture), so I tried twisting it. In fact, it was just held in place by spring clips. The problem is, when I twisted the globe, the fixture itself rotated enough to slip off of the mounting screws in the ceiling box.
When I finally removed the globe from the fixture and went to re-install the base, I noticed that the foil-faced insulation that covered the entire surface of the base was fairly severely burnt above each of the three bulbs. I decided to replace the whole fixture, and hastily ran off to HD to pick up something to put in its place.
My question is, is there some better type of insulation that I could put into this fixture? The reason I ask is that it is otherwise a very nice fixture. The globe is of much higher quality than the cheapo replacement that I picked up at the home center. If I could come up with some replacement insulation that I thought would be safe, I would reinstall this fixture and toss out the new one, or save it for some other emergency.
Any thoughts would be most appreciated, but safety is my primary concern. The ceiling in my son’s room is clad in paint-grade 3/8″ beaded T&G, and I am very leery of heat buildup.
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Replies
If you think you would be satisfied with the level of illumination from a two bulb fixture, that might be a good place to start. Look for a fixture (two or three bulb) with two layers of insulation, one directly above the bulbs (between the bulbs and the bottom of the fixture housing) and one above the housing (between the fixture housing and the ceiling). You may be able to retrofit insulation into the old fixture, something with foil skin, but you may not have the space. Modern fixtures are designed to accomodate the insulation. The safe choice is probably to replace the fixture with one you like which has two layers of insulation. If you go to HD take the fixtures out of the box and inspect them for insulation. Though it seems a radical idea to some, you may want to go somewhere other than HD, say a specialty lighting store, where you will pay more but get what you pay for.
Thanks for the response. The original fixture is the type that had insulation on the top side (about 1/2" thick dense fiberglass) and foil-faced insulation on the underside (about 1-1/8 fiberglass, and the foil was reinforced with some sort of filament). As I mentioned, when I went to reinstall it, I found that the foil was scorched (and the bulbs were the recommended 60w incandescent) and the fiberglass under the foil had started turning black at each location of the three bulbs. This was a fixture from a lighting studio, clearly of higher quality than anything they have at the home center. The only reason I went to HD was that it was 7 pm on a Sunday night, and I didn't want to leave the little guy in a room with just a trouble light for the night!
I guess I'm back to the same question regarding what would be a source for a good (safe) insulating material to retrofit to the original fixture. It is worth noting that there was no indication that the fixture itself or the insulation on the topside were subjected to too much heat.
You might check to see that the lamp holders are not too close to the insulation. I have seen some that are bent a little. Another option is to use the candle shaped bulbs that are smaller diameter but same wattage. A little airspace is a pretty good insulator.
Bob
Bob is spot on that a little air space is a good insulator. Do you have room in the fixture to move the bulbs down a bit, twords the glass and away from the ceiling? Are the housings adjustable, or manuverable? Also, foil bubble wrap may be a good product for this application. It's about a quarter of an inch thick, two-ply aluminum foil with air bubbles similar to bubble wrap for shipping. They carry it at my local Lowes... I've been boycotting the HD lately, but not sure how much longer I can hold out.
irreguardless of the issue, why not try a compact flourescent lamp? always cool to the touch, cheaper to burn and lasts longer.....
I have gone to using the twisted compact fluorescent bulbs in ceiling fixtures, DW complains a little about the color and the warm-up time, so I put in one regular bulb and the rest are fluorescents. I usually put in 60w fluorescents and a 40w incandescent.
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
CFLs are a good idea in most cases. However, standard compact fluorescents don't work with a dimmer, and the (expen$ive) dimmable ones won't fit in a standard fixture.
If ignorance is bliss why aren't more people
happy?
Thanks for the responses. I would have used CFLs if the light in question wasn't on a dimmer. I use them wherever I can, and have had nothing but good experiences with them.
When I retrofit the fixture with new insulation, I'm sure I can reposition the lamp holders to leave a little airspace. I'll look for that bubble wrap foil listed above, but am still open to other suggestions for adequate insulation.
It's not unusual to find the foil reflectors a bit scorched. Virtually all lighting fixtures are built to the same (minimal) standards, and most will show some scorching after several years of use.
If ignorance is bliss why aren't more people
happy?
Bubble wrap is plastic. Dont think it will hold up. You can try a piece by laying it on an exposed light bulb. Try some plain aluminum foil backed by fiberglass. If the glass globe is shaped like a bowl dont tighten the nut up all the way so you have some air venting.
I have seen dimmable CFL's.
> I have seen dimmable CFL's.Yeah, try fitting one into a standard bedroom overhead fixture.
If ignorance is bliss why aren't more people
happy?
Interesting solution (mixing the two types). Do you know if they make any CFL's with a quick warm up time. I am considering swapping out alot of my bulbs to the CFL's. And are there any CFL's that are better for exterior use, or does it not make a difference.
Most current CFLs come on essentially instantly, and the warm-up time (they start out "brown", to my color-blind eyes) is only 30 seconds or so (vs 3-5 minutes 15 years ago).For exterior use there are now a few that are rated to come on at zero -- for folks in the Frozen North. Check the package to see which ones are OKed for exterior use (implying a modest degree of "weather resistance").
If ignorance is bliss why aren't more people
happy?
Thanks Dan. I didn't realize there was an issue regarding the fit of the dimmable, just saw them on the shelf of my light bulb store. I'm not kidding either, there is a lightbulbs-r-us like store around the corner.
Yeah, I keep waiting for a reasonable sized dimmable. There are still a few fixtures in our house that the regular CFLs won't fit into, much less the dimmables.
If ignorance is bliss why aren't more people
happy?
Most dimmable CFLs are not rated to operate in enclosed fixtures. I guess the electronics in the base that allow them to be dimmable overheat. I just went through trying to find some that would work in this application, but I had no luck...
Billy
To add to the issue of brightness/color on startup: I **try** to replace 60W incandescents with "75W equivalent" CFLs, since I don't really find the "60W equivalent" CFLs to be equivalent. Unfortunately, it's hard to find the 75W units in the same compact form factors as the 60Ws -- they seem to "jump" to a larger package, more than is justified by the increased wattage.
If ignorance is bliss why aren't more people
happy?
You're right, the warm-up time is only about 30 sec, but DW complains everytime. Especially in the laundry room ("I need bright light so I can sort the clothes properly" <who sorts clothes?>) and in the kitchen ("I need bright light so I can cook" <is that what you do in there>) and she senses that the dimmer light is defective. So I compromise.
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt