What is the difference between 120v incandescent bulbs and 130v incandescent bulb?
I am looking on Amazon for 120v, g25, 40 watt light bulbs.
I noticed a 6 pack (130v) for the same price as a 4 pack (120v).

On the 130v pack it says, This product is designed for 130v. When used on the normal line voltage of 120v, bulb life is noticeably increased but the efficiency and light output are reduced.

So is it a good idea to use them on a fixture to replace a burnt out bulb (120v) or should I change all the bulbs to 130v.

Thanks

Yes, it will likely last a little longer and burn slightly dimmer than the 120V bulb

^^^^ agree
But why not get a screw-in LED replacement with a good CRI number?

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
^^^^ agree
But why not get a screw-in LED replacement?

The fixture has four bulbs and only one is burnt out. We also have a few different fixtures in the house that take the same bulb.
I guess I am still old school, and also I am not ready to spend a lot of money to convert fixtures just yet when there are still incandescent bulbs available.
I guess more than anything else I am just cheep.

Being as your line voltage is probably 125VAC, anyway, 4% either way will probably not make a noticeable difference in either brightness or longevity. Buy whichever ones suits your fancy, flip a coin, whatever.

120V here in NH according to my Fluke 179 True RMS Multimeter

In my experience 130V bulbs are generally intended for commercial/industrial use, and per an Electrician friend of mine they usually last longer as well.

That said, you'll probably be able to tell the difference if you replace only one, so plan on changing them all if that's gonna bother you...Just sayin'

Almost 20 ago, a kind fellow suggested to me that I buy 130V bulbs for my garage door opener, as they're "more durable and will last longer."

I bought a 10-pack. I still have seven.

quote:

Originally posted by 71 TRUCK:

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
^^^^ agree
But why not get a screw-in LED replacement?

The fixture has four bulbs and only one is burnt out. We also have a few different fixtures in the house that take the same bulb.
I guess I am still old school, and also I am not ready to spend a lot of money to convert fixtures just yet when there are still incandescent bulbs available.
I guess more than anything else I am just cheep.

You don’t have to convert fixtures. Just screw that LED bulb into your existing fixture to replace the dead bulb. The remaining incandescent bulbs will happily co-exist with it.

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:

quote:

Originally posted by 71 TRUCK:

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
^^^^ agree
But why not get a screw-in LED replacement?

The fixture has four bulbs and only one is burnt out. We also have a few different fixtures in the house that take the same bulb.
I guess I am still old school, and also I am not ready to spend a lot of money to convert fixtures just yet when there are still incandescent bulbs available.
I guess more than anything else I am just cheep.

You don’t have to convert fixtures. Just screw that LED bulb into your existing fixture to replace the dead bulb. The remaining incandescent bulbs will happily co-exist with it.

unless the incandescents produce heat which the LED bulbs don't like. Especially in closed fixtures.

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:

quote:

Originally posted by 71 TRUCK:

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
^^^^ agree
But why not get a screw-in LED replacement?

The fixture has four bulbs and only one is burnt out. We also have a few different fixtures in the house that take the same bulb.
I guess I am still old school, and also I am not ready to spend a lot of money to convert fixtures just yet when there are still incandescent bulbs available.
I guess more than anything else I am just cheep.

You don’t have to convert fixtures. Just screw that LED bulb into your existing fixture to replace the dead bulb. The remaining incandescent bulbs will happily co-exist with it.

Thanks.
After I typed it out I actually thought the same thing
I know at some point there will not be anymore incandescent bulbs left in the US I am just trying to hold out as long as I can

I've replaced nearly everything with LED's .

LED bulbs can be inexpensive, you can also get them with wifi capability, now why is that good, well, Costco sell FEIT wifi LED bulbs that not only color change, but have the ability to be setup on a schedule. You get 4 bulbs for $29, yeah it's more than a 40 watt incandescent but it does more.



We have them outside in the fixtures, I can set the on off times, dusk dawn etc, we just leave the switch on and the innerweb app thing does the rest, ANd on Halloween we can put up orange lights, red green and blue for christmas for grandkids.

Inside we run them in bedroom, family and living room, so I can have them on just before Dusk and off at midnight every day, or whatever schedule, with time changes its nice to come home to a lit home when it's dark.

Don't do it...Stick w/ the Incandescent Bulbs! Here's why...

40W Incandescent: 2850K and CRI (Color Rendering Index) of 100
40W LED: 2700K and a CRI of 80

The G25 Bulbs are decorative and typically, (though not always) used in vanity fixtures where you (and especially you wife!) would usually expect really good light! 2700K means a dimmer duller, more yellowish light and a CRI of 80 will look like shit! Crappier light for at least twice the price, and likely no increased life either!

Unfortunately those selling Incandescent Light Bulbs are kinda price gouging now because supply is very low. You're typically paying double what you used to be able to get the for which means the Incandescent Bulbs should cost about 1/4 of the LED Bulb price.

quote:

Originally posted by 71 TRUCK:

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
^^^^ agree
But why not get a screw-in LED replacement?

The fixture has four bulbs and only one is burnt out. We also have a few different fixtures in the house that take the same bulb.
I guess I am still old school, and also I am not ready to spend a lot of money to convert fixtures just yet when there are still incandescent bulbs available.
I guess more than anything else I am just cheep.

Don't get 130v lamps then. They will be slightly warmer and noticably dimmer.

Their use was for harsher conditions or for eliminating dimmer noise.

It won't hurt anything at all and the bulbs will last much longer.

If you do do it. Replace all lamps with same voltage lamps, then take the used removed working lamps and reserve for use in the other fixtures that already have matching lamps.

I was ultra-anti LED bulbs at first (because they were hideous rubbish), so I get your feelings. I've changed my tune with the newest ones. They are very nice now. In fact, they are so tunable, they will be whatever you ask of them. Any color, hue, brightness.

They are more expensive, yes, but in my house, I run lights day and night (dark house, I live in the woods). Given that, I run through incandescent bulbs multiple times per year. So I think the longevity will make up for it.

I seem to recall the higher voltage bulbs being used in traffic lights and railroad signals that are used in flashing type warnings which are considered severe duty due to the on/off cycles. In the factory we did sometimes use them in places that were very difficult to reach to extend lifetime between replacement.

Question. When replacing incandescent bulbs with LED's, do you need to pay attention to heat? Or just stay within the wattage rating of your fixture and not worry about the heat?

LED's do get hot, not the "bulb" part, but the plastic base gets hot.

So, if I have a 60 watt rated fixture (LED equivalent is about 8 watts), can I put in a 13 watt LED bulb (equivalent to a 100 watt incandescent) without worrying about excess heat?

It's basically a piece of wire that glows from the current flowing through it. Saying it's a 40 watt bulb at 130 V tells me they didn't have enough space to put in enough wire to draw 40 watts of power at 120V or that they intentionally did not put enough wire to draw 40 watts of power of 120 V in order to lessen costs. Yes, some companies are thrilled to get one cent or two cent savings per unit.

They give the rating of 40 watts at 130 V because it's easier to market the standard 40 watt rating than 37.6 Watt or whatever the value should be at 120 V.

quote:

Originally posted by ranger312:
Question. When replacing incandescent bulbs with LED's, do you need to pay attention to heat? Or just stay within the wattage rating of your fixture and not worry about the heat?

LED's do get hot, not the "bulb" part, but the plastic base gets hot.

So, if I have a 60 watt rated fixture (LED equivalent is about 8 watts), can I put in a 13 watt LED bulb (equivalent to a 100 watt incandescent) without worrying about excess heat?

Same question I had and I claim no expertise on this point.

I figure the wattage temperature on the fixture was actual wattage. So I went with the actual wattage of the LED and not it's equivalent wattage which is given for the amount of light you can expect from it.

Old school over one of our public pools we had 40 400W incandescent bulbs. We graduated to 14 400W HP Sodium lamps. Then 12 T5 florescent fixtures. Finally Led tubes, by far the best.
Ballasts were a major pain too
In rooms the incandescent lasted months at best. T12 lamps somewhat better. T8 better yet. LED best ever.