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LED bulb question

R

Rich'sToys

Well-known Member
Location
Southern MN
The light in my bathroom vent fan takes a 100 watt bulb. But the bulb generates so much heat that it discolors the plastic lens cover. I want to replace it with a 100 w equivalent LED bulb. The box the LED bulb came in says they are not for use in recessed fixtures. Does my bathroom fan count as a recessed fixture, and can I put a LED bulb in there? If not, why not? Why don't they want those used in recessed fixtures?
 
It is a recessed fixture. You can buy LED bulbs that will work in recessed fixtures.
I suspect the reason yours is not recommended is that some LED bulbs give off directional lighting.
 
The 100W equivalent LED bulbs generate a lot of heat too. Notice the large heat sink with cooling fins on the base of those types of bulbs. It's not as much as your typical 100W incandescent bulb, but the sensitive electronics in the bulb don't like heat.
 
I think the main reason that most LEDs aren't supposed to be installed in recessed fixtures is the heat. The LEDs themselves give off
virtually no heat, but the electronics in the bulb housing do give off some heat (less than CFL and MUCH less than incandescent, in my
experience). If the excess heat can't escape, the bulb will fail prematurely.

That being said, I would think that a typical vent fan would allow enough heat dissipation for an LED bulb.
 
LED's will dissipate about 1/5 the amount of heat.

Incandescents are about 4% efficient, LED's 20%,
 
Are you sure it takes a 100 Watt bulb ? That's what an easy bake oven takes !
Most of my house fixtures say 75 watt max. IIRC. I run 60 watt in them.
 
I've used them in recessed light cans and had no problem.

Like others said, it might shorten the life of the lamp, but I don't see it as a safety issue.
 
I already had the bulb put in before I read the box. I'll probably leave it in and see how it works out.

The light is a Nutone fan/light combination. In the light part it is stamped that the maximum bulb size is 100 watts.
 
Since it's a bath fan, air will be moving through it vs. a simple recessed fixture. Even if the air doesn't pass directly over the bulb, the whole unit is bound to be kept cool from the air drawn through it vs. a recessed fixture.
 
That picture of the big fancy house burning down posted on here awhile back . Talked to a guy that knew owner. Said he was putting LED bulbs in. Guy I talked to does home electronics, lighting and sound systems. He said LED's get way too hot at the base , not the light itself . I guess I'd look into it more before I switch .
 
I've installed 26 watt compact fluorescent bulbs in bathroom fan/light fixtures and they work well for years. Those bulbs are supposed to be good for around 3000+ ON/OFF cycles, so they may not be the best bulb for the most frequently used bathroom fixture in a large household (20 to 40 ON/OFF cycles per day). 72 Watt halogen bulbs are another alternative to 100 watt incandescent bulbs.
 
Here is what is in my bathroom exhaust fan-heater unit. 60 watt equivalent LED 1600 lumens 5000K. It is only slightly warm to the touch and the sheet metal above it is cool. It gives off all the light we need in our small bathroom. 5000K means a cool white light. Physically it as about as big as I can go in the space available.

35461.jpg
35462.jpg
 
I put some in recessed fixtures and had problems. The driver would get hot and shut off. After a short period they would cool and come back on. Then the regular on / off cycles would begin. Gave up on them and put the old incandescent bulbs back in.
When I was working for Cooper Lighting we built recessed LED lighting and in some cases we had to add small fans to the cans keep them cool as they would get really hot and fail.

Greg
 
I have one of those vent and folks did to and they had 60 watts max on fixture and are now using LED bulbs with no problems. That plastic will turn yellow with age.
 
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