Following on from our discussions in the thread "If B&Q had a brain, they'd
be dangerous ...", I'm getting more and more confused about this light bulb
thing. Presumably, pearls have been banned in the EU because a small amount
extra of the consumed power, results in heat rather than light. All pearl
types seem to be available on line, due to the fact that the UK government
did not enact this ban - apparently -, so it's actually still legal to sell
them. Which then causes me to ask why no one in the 'real' rather than
virtual world, still appears to be selling them. Is it just that they
already closed off their supply chains, and are reluctant to restock, in
case the ban suddenly comes into force ? There's money to be made for sure,
as so many people still hate CFLs. So is it a case of making hay whilst the
sun shines, for the online sellers ?

Which then brings me onto low voltage halogen downlighters. I'm talking here
of the ones that are recessed into ceilings and that were very popular a few
years back. Small reflector bulbs shaped like an Apollo Command Module, with
two straight thin pins. I have a lot of these scattered throughout my house,
and all, barring the one in the shower lighting/ extractor fan assembly, are
rated at 20 watts per lamp. When bought in a set of three, these almost
always came with a conventional iron cored transformer to power them, and
when as a set of five, the 'transformer' was normally a small switchmode
power supply. Absolutely everywhere sold the replacement lamps. You could
buy them on a card of five for a quid at the pound shop. For sure, they
didn't last as long as a branded type, but they were pretty fair. Now, you
don't seem to be able to get 20s anywhere. 50 watters, yes. But 20s ? No ...

For anyone that understands electrics, fitting a 50 in place of a 20 isn't
an option. We're talking two and a half times the current draw of a 20 watt.
I dare say that the switchmode power supplies would probably fall over if
presented with this additional load, but the iron cored transformers will do
their level best to supply the extra current, resulting in both the
transformer and potentially the wiring to the lampholders, both overheating.
The fact that these downlights are fitted into the ceiling board, means that
replacement with an alternative type (if there even was one) is not an
option, so Joe Average is going to start fitting 50 watt lamps where he's
taking blown 20s out from. Physically, they are identical, and of course,
when trading power ratings of conventional mains bulbs, the currents
involved are so low that there's no issue, so why should the average Joe
believe that the situation is any different with low voltage bulbs ?

Are we potentially looking at a fire hazard here, or am I just being
paranoid ? And if 20 watt bulbs of this type have also been quietly removed
from the shelves of all the sheds and supermarkets, what are we going to do
with all the downlighters, fitted by their millions, to houses all over the
country ? Bigger pictures. Joined up thinking and all that ...

Arfa