What is a Halogen Bulb?
Halogen light bulbs are a special type of incandescent light bulb. They are filled with halogen gas, have a tungsten filament, and are enclosed in quartz glass
What is a Halogen?
Halogens are five non-metallic elements found in group 7 of the periodic table. "Halogen" means "salt-former" and compounds containing halogens are identified as "salts". The five halogens are: Fluorine (F), Chlorine (Cl), Bromine (Br), Iodine (I), Astatine (At).
Benefits of Halogen Lamps
Bright, White Light
* Crisp, white light.
* Greater quantity of light than standard incandescent.
* Versatile - great for general, task, and accent lighting.
Color Temperature & Rendering
* Halogens are incandescent lamps - CRI of 100 render colors accurately.
* Matches light sources in 3000K range.
Long Life
* Uses tungsten filaments.
* Gasses inside halogen lamps allow the evaporated tungsten to redeposit to the filament.
* Long life - 2,000 hours or more.
Variety of Shapes
* Normally small and compact - good for accent lighting.
* Also available in standard shapes to fit existing light fixtures
G bulb
Halogen bulbs are available with a standard fitting, but also come
with a pin base, with two contacts on the underside of the bulb.
These are given a G or GY designation, with the number being the centre-to-centre distance in millimeters. For example, a 4 mm pin base would be indicated as G4 (or GY4). Some common sizes include G4 (4 mm), G6.35 (6.35 mm), G8 (8 mm), GY8.6 (8.6 mm), G9 (9 mm), and GY9.5 (9.5 mm). The second letter (or lack thereof) indicates pin diameter. Some spotlights or floodlights have pins that are broader at the tips, in order to lock into a socket with a twist. Other halogen bulbs come in a tube, with blades or dimples at either end.
E bulb
The E stands for Edison, who created the screw-base lamp, and the number is the diameter in millimeters. There are four standard sizes of screw-in sockets used for line-voltage lamps:
candelabra: E12 North America, E10 & E11 in Europe
intermediate: E17 North America, E14 (SmallES) in Europe
medium or standard: E26 (MES) in North America, E27 (ES) in Europe
mogul: E39 North America, E40 (GoliathES) in Europe).
There is also a rare "admedium" size (E29), incompatible with standard and used to frustrate thieves of bulbs used in public places; and a very miniature size (E5) generally used only for low-voltage applications such as with a battery.
Halogen light bulbs are a special type of incandescent light bulb. They are filled with halogen gas, have a tungsten filament, and are enclosed in quartz glass
What is a Halogen?
Halogens are five non-metallic elements found in group 7 of the periodic table. "Halogen" means "salt-former" and compounds containing halogens are identified as "salts". The five halogens are: Fluorine (F), Chlorine (Cl), Bromine (Br), Iodine (I), Astatine (At).
Benefits of Halogen Lamps
Bright, White Light
* Crisp, white light.
* Greater quantity of light than standard incandescent.
* Versatile - great for general, task, and accent lighting.
Color Temperature & Rendering
* Halogens are incandescent lamps - CRI of 100 render colors accurately.
* Matches light sources in 3000K range.
Long Life
* Uses tungsten filaments.
* Gasses inside halogen lamps allow the evaporated tungsten to redeposit to the filament.
* Long life - 2,000 hours or more.
Variety of Shapes
* Normally small and compact - good for accent lighting.
* Also available in standard shapes to fit existing light fixtures
G bulb
Halogen bulbs are available with a standard fitting, but also come
with a pin base, with two contacts on the underside of the bulb.
These are given a G or GY designation, with the number being the centre-to-centre distance in millimeters. For example, a 4 mm pin base would be indicated as G4 (or GY4). Some common sizes include G4 (4 mm), G6.35 (6.35 mm), G8 (8 mm), GY8.6 (8.6 mm), G9 (9 mm), and GY9.5 (9.5 mm). The second letter (or lack thereof) indicates pin diameter. Some spotlights or floodlights have pins that are broader at the tips, in order to lock into a socket with a twist. Other halogen bulbs come in a tube, with blades or dimples at either end.
E bulb
The E stands for Edison, who created the screw-base lamp, and the number is the diameter in millimeters. There are four standard sizes of screw-in sockets used for line-voltage lamps:
candelabra: E12 North America, E10 & E11 in Europe
intermediate: E17 North America, E14 (SmallES) in Europe
medium or standard: E26 (MES) in North America, E27 (ES) in Europe
mogul: E39 North America, E40 (GoliathES) in Europe).
There is also a rare "admedium" size (E29), incompatible with standard and used to frustrate thieves of bulbs used in public places; and a very miniature size (E5) generally used only for low-voltage applications such as with a battery.
Guide created: 04/21/09 (updated 11/16/09)
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