Paul M. Eldridge wrote:
On Mon, 4 Feb 2008 05:51:28 -0800 (PST), John Ross
wrote:

In my home bathroom, one of the light fixtures is on the ceiling. One
incandescent bulb screws in and hangs straight down and the cover is a
glass "bowl" that completely encases the bulb and fixture.

I have never seen a wattage rating on any of the bult in fixtures in
this house. I had been using a 100 watt bulb in this for the last few
years. However, I seem to recall someone posted in here that if the
bulb was completely encased, then it should never be more than a 60
watt bulb. Is that true?

I assume this is a heat issue? But is it more of a bulb life issue or
a safety issue?

Hi John,

Most enclosed fixtures are rated for a maximum of 60-watts and in
absence of any label, I would avoid using a 100-watt lamp. If you
require the light output of a 100-watt lamp and would prefer to stick
to an incandescent source, I might recommend one of the new
high-efficiency incandescents from Philips. The one that provides the
same amount of light as a standard 100-watt incandescent uses just
70-watts; granted, a little more than the 60-watt maximum, but pretty
darn close. In addition to the 30-per cent reduction in energy use
(and corresponding reduction in heat), these lamps last up to four
times longer than a regular A19 incandescent. They're available at
Home Depot.

For more information, see:
http://www.nam.lighting.philips.com/...lay.php?mode=1

Thanks, I never heard of those. Might be useful for other locations.
Have you used these? If so, can you tell the difference in the light
from the regular ones?

--
John