Are Halogen Puck Lights Safe???

[RickO]

I've never been a big fan of halogen lights for interior lighting because of how hot they get but I just did a partial kitchen remodel and replaced the florescent fixture above the sink with two recessed halogen puck lights from CW. I certainly like the light provided but want to check in with others on how safe they really are.

The lights are recessed into a dead air space between the finished bottom of the cabinet and the interior "floor" of the cabinet. My thermal gun gets readings of only about 120*f on the wood surrounding the pucks and 104*f on the interior floor of the cabinet. The light itself reads 180*f.

It doesn't appear to be dangerous and I have never read of anyone actually having a fire started by them but I'm kind of a nut about preventing fire and thought I'd post to see if others have heard of problems I may have missed.

This is also important to me because I plan to replace the five florescent ceiling fixtures in my coach with recessed puck lights and those will be mounted into the headliner which might not be as heat resistant as the wood cabinet.

I know there are LED replacement bulbs available and this may well be the route I take but I'd like to understand the actual risks of the halogen pucks before I decide to go further.

Many thanks in advance for any insights.

Rick

[brucemcdou]

Hi, Rick - I think the short answer is that there is no fire danger absent a short in the wiring, the temperatures you found won't ignite wood, and those fixtures are routinely used in the locations you've mentioned.

That said, it would probably give you peace of mind to switch to LED puck bulbs. We did that over a year ago to reduce battery drain (we boondock a lot) and have been very satisfied. the puck LEDs are a direct replacement, they give off just as much light as the halogens, and they use one-tenth of the amp draw as the halogens. And the temperature is just barely warm to the touch. If you go that route make sure you buy "warm white" LED bulbs if you want a close color match to the halogen.

Happy Camping!

[Route 66]

I have halogen lights in the bottom of my cabinets.

After 4 years, still no problem.

["007"]

The Pucks should have slots where base hits surface of cabinet for ventilation.
A headliner maybe vinyl or cloth that may interfere with ventilation of light.
If you mount a piece of thin plywood over headliner surface you maybe OK.

[RickO]

Thanks guys!

Rick

[phays]

brucemcdou did you replace the whole fixture or just the bulbs? And, what did you use for the replacement?

[SpursMVP]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phays brucemcdou did you replace the whole fixture or just the bulbs? And, what did you use for the replacement?

I'm interested in this thread too! I'd like to get rid of the plastic under cabinet fixtures (12v) and replace with nicer looking fixtures. All suggestions are welcome.

[RickO]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpursMVP I'm interested in this thread too! I'd like to get rid of the plastic under cabinet fixtures (12v) and replace with nicer looking fixtures. All suggestions are welcome.

These are the ones I replaced my under cabinet florescent (ugly) fixture with arehttp://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/halogen-light-brass/34665. The florescent fixture was recessed so I also recessed the two of these which i used and they are well out of sight in my application.

As I mentioned earlier, they do get warm but they were cheap and the installation was very simple. LEDs would have been nice but I think they're about twice as much and the installation is just a bit more complex.

I'll soon be replacing all of my florescent ceiling fixtures with recessed puck lights on dimmers and I'm pretty sure I'll bite the bullet and go all LED because I just don't like how hot the halogens get.

Good luck...

Rick

[steelheadbluesman]

RickO - I'm of the same mind. Everyone says they are safe, but I don't like them getting so hot, so I'm looking to replace the halogens with LEDs. Are you saying there are LED bulbs out there that will fit into the same fixtures that came originally fitted with halogen bulbs? That would be simple....

[SpursMVP]

Here are some I found on a Marine store. Seem a bit pricey but they have all kinds of LED fixtures that look better than the white plastic 12v lights we have.

http://www.sailorsams.com/mall/nova_8777_LED.asp#Order Here

[RickO]

Quote:

Originally Posted by steelheadbluesman . Are you saying there are LED bulbs out there that will fit into the same fixtures that came originally fitted with halogen bulbs? That would be simple....

You bet. Check out this thread Halogen Puck Light Bulb Replacement

Rick

[steelheadbluesman]

Thanks Rick!

[brucemcdou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phays brucemcdou did you replace the whole fixture or just the bulbs? And, what did you use for the replacement?

Phays: I just replaced each of the bulbs with like-for-like; I didn't want to try to replace any fixtures. Our Monarch came with the round halogen puck light fixtures throughout and the LED pucks slip right into the same outlet. Also used LED wedge base bulbs for the sconces, and LED directional lights for the reading lights. The bathroom fixtures and all the storage compartment lights and the porch light took bayonet base LED bulbs. This was a year and a half ago; the options are even better now but we had no trouble finding good replacements for each that are still working great!