Quick Halogen question.

[La Poste]

Halogen bulbs are electrical products so I thought I would ask here.

People say that 12V Halogen downlighters give off a better light but the hassles of replacing faulty transformers gives 230V Halogen downlighters the edge.

I have just read the Wiki page on Halogen bulbs and found this:
"A bulb operated at 5% higher than its design voltage would produce about 15% more light, and the luminous efficacy would be about 6.5% higher, but would be expected to have only half the rated life."
Halogen lamp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Now we run at 240V in the UK although we are supposed to be running at 230V and I am guessing these lamps are designed to run at 230V .

So when people talk about lamps blowing could this be the reason and could this mean that 12V Halogen downlighters running off of a good stable 12V supply would last longer than their mains voltage brothers?

What do you think, am I barking up the wrong tree?

 

[RyanCheetham]

I replace less 12v lamps than i do 230v lamps so your theory could be correct

 

[Fin170]

The answer is.......you can get a LED lamp with a 10 year warranty for £20 :lol:


And a lot of the GU10s I see are often rated 220volts or 220-240 volts, personally I think the quality of the lamp and more specifically the reflector are bigger factors than applied voltage

 

[La Poste]

The answer is.......you can get a LED lamp with a 10 year warranty for £20 :lol:

Try telling that to a pub landlord who has over 50 downlighters.

Also I read in the article that Halogens need to operate at the correct temperature in order for the Tungsten/Halogen reaction to work properly and if they operate at a lower temperature than the ideal the Tungsten will not be replaced/rebuilt on the filament as effectively so I am guessing that dimming must also reduce the lifespan quite considerably.

 

[Fin170]

Try telling that to a pub landlord who has over 50 downlighters.

In that case I'm sure pointing to the burning electricity meter would do all the talking for me :detective:

 

[a-z electrics]

Try telling that to a pub landlord who has over 50 downlighters.

Also I read in the article that Halogens need to operate at the correct temperature in order for the Tungsten/Halogen reaction to work properly and if they operate at a lower temperature than the ideal the Tungsten will not be replaced/rebuilt on the filament as effectively so I am guessing that dimming must also reduce the lifespan quite considerably.

Does that mean mains voltage reducers eg V-phase are not as cost-effective as they claim, and therefore not worth fitting?

 

[tigerpaul]

V phase? Tell me more about this...

 

[a-z electrics]

V phase? Tell me more about this...

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rc...4QKyRQMmWWeYBfHLw&sig2=D10HPKD-9jre2M9Er7M2Ig

 

[tigerpaul]

That link doesn't work!

 

[SPARTYKUS]

Know nowt about V phase, but my gut tells me....not to bother either

 

[stef]

I think he means a voltage drop unit which reduces the mains voltage to 220 V. Kettle needs longer to boil, lamps are dimmer, tubes start to flicker, don't know how effective these units are, one was used in a DIY SOS programme on BBC. Another thing which can go kaput:sad_smile:

 

[a-z electrics]

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&ved=0CDEQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.vphase.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fvphase-vx1-world-premier&ei=JiKEUOLpBrOY1AXk_IHgCg&usg=AFQjCNEYI2fKdFmy54QKyRQMmWWeYBfHLw&sig2=D10HPKD-9jre2M9Er7M2Ig

oh, does for me - anyway, just google "v phase"

 

[tigerpaul]

Link still don't work. I'll google it when i get to a PC.

 

[cobrauk]

Had my 240volt GU10's for years in my house had one popped this weekend so no problem or complaints with them for me, mind I always install making sure they have no insulation around them to make sure they have air flowing correctly for cooling keeping them cool is the only way.