Hi Tony,

Good news. There's no problem dimming any type of 120 volt halogen
lamp with standard dimmers.

As you say, halogen bulbs offer much better light than their
incandescent alternatives. And as much as I recommend CFLs for their
superior energy performance, I still prefer halogen over all else.
CFLs have improved greatly over the years but, frankly, the "look and
feel" they provide just isn't the same (that not to say they wouldn't
be acceptable to the majority of us).

There is a much broader range of wattages available in the PAR38
format and, as you have discovered, they are typically less expensive
because they are more widely used than their PAR20 and PAR30
counterparts.

Personally, I would opt for halogen down lighting and table or floor
lamps equipped with good quality CFLs for general room illumination.
That way, you can use the CFLs for economical, everyday, lighting and
the halogens whenever you feel appropriate.

Cheers,
Paul

On 25 Mar 2006 07:54:11 -0800, wrote:

Thanks for the input.. I have the Sylvania PAR38 Capsylite floods in
my kitchen and like them alot... very bright and no yellowish cast
like incandescant. I'm thinking I'll go with the PAR38's based on
the recommendations here... The PAR38 halogens are actually less
expensive than the PAR30's at my local hardware store... odd.. cheaper
by a few bucks each... $4.98 vs $6.98.

I have the spacing worked out to three rows of three cans starting 2.5
feet from the perimeter walls and spaced just over 5 feet apart. This
should give sufficient light with 75W PAR38's I think... One side of
the room has the cans about 4-5 feet from the wall due to an
obstructing heating vent soffit, but if things get too dim under the
soffit, I'll supliment with table lamps or something... the main area
of the room should be covered well with the floods I think.

I plan to put each row on a seperate dimmer since this will double as a
theater room. Can these PAR38 halogens be put on a dimmer?

Thanks agian,

Tony B.