Erratic bi-pin halogen lamps
March 20, 2018 10:32 AM Subscribe
We have kitchen shelving with these lamps built into the underside of them. They take halogen bulbs with two little pins. The problem is that the contact between the pins and the inside of the two-pin socket is terrible--some only work if you move the bulb around with your finger, and then stop working if you release that pressure. Is there any fix for this, short of replacing the lamps?
There is a lot of play between the pins and the holes, even in lamps that work pretty steadily. I thought of contact cleaner, but I'm not sure how to usefully get it into those tiny socket holes.
There is a lot of play between the pins and the holes, even in lamps that work pretty steadily. I thought of contact cleaner, but I'm not sure how to usefully get it into those tiny socket holes.
I'd strip it all out and start again with an LED strip from Ikea. Halogen bulbs are the worst.
posted by w0mbat at 10:42 AM on March 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by w0mbat at 10:42 AM on March 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
What W0mbat wrote. It's the best answer. The sockets are likely heat damaged. Halogens run really hot, are a fire hazard and are obnoxiously power hungry for the light they emit.
That said, if these puck lights use a G4 halogen bulb, you can try an LED replacement lamp, and see if the lower heat output of the LED allows for better contact with the (probably) warped or heat-degraded sockets.
posted by bz at 10:55 AM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
That said, if these puck lights use a G4 halogen bulb, you can try an LED replacement lamp, and see if the lower heat output of the LED allows for better contact with the (probably) warped or heat-degraded sockets.
posted by bz at 10:55 AM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
I recently gave up fussing with a reading lamp that used similar bulbs. Halogen runs really hot, which I suspect degrades the socket bodies that the contacts are mounted in. LED is a better long-term solution if you can get used to the color of the light.
BTW, skin oils can cause premature failure of halogen bulbs. If you touch them with bare skin, you should clean them off before use.
posted by jon1270 at 10:55 AM on March 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
BTW, skin oils can cause premature failure of halogen bulbs. If you touch them with bare skin, you should clean them off before use.
posted by jon1270 at 10:55 AM on March 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
Jinx, bz.
At least halogen is more efficient than standard old-school incandescents.
posted by jon1270 at 10:57 AM on March 20, 2018
At least halogen is more efficient than standard old-school incandescents.
posted by jon1270 at 10:57 AM on March 20, 2018
There is a lot of play between the pins and the holes, even in lamps that work pretty steadily.
I don't see any kind of retaining lens in those pictures, and if the bulbs really are naked to the shelves, you should replace those fixtures because there's a danger a loose but lit -- and still hot! -- bulb will simply fall out of one of them onto something flammable.
posted by jamjam at 11:30 AM on March 20, 2018
I don't see any kind of retaining lens in those pictures, and if the bulbs really are naked to the shelves, you should replace those fixtures because there's a danger a loose but lit -- and still hot! -- bulb will simply fall out of one of them onto something flammable.
posted by jamjam at 11:30 AM on March 20, 2018
Response by poster: Ok, ugh. I am now resigned to getting the fixtures replaced entirely--thanks, all, for your input.
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 11:56 AM on March 20, 2018
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 11:56 AM on March 20, 2018
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posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 10:34 AM on March 20, 2018