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There are some LED bulbs that are explicitly rated for use in enclosures with no ventilation. The other thing to pay attention to is whether the light dispers

by tytso 13y ago

There are some LED bulbs that are explicitly rated for use in enclosures with no ventilation. The other thing to pay attention to is whether the light dispersal pattern is pointed mostly straight down (i.e., for a recessed ceiling lighting fixure) or omni-directional (i.e., for a sconce or a table lamp). Reputable stores will make this clear --- and yes, it's a bit more complicated than just grabbing a random 100W incandescent bulb. For example: http://store.earthled.com/collections/led-light-bulbs-suitable-for-enclosed-fixtures-fully-enclosed-fixture-rated-led-light-bulbs http://store.earthled.com/collections/led-light-bulbs-suitab...

cjensen 13y ago
The point of the linked article is the bulb will not last very long when hot. The article never said it wouldn't work.
- adestefan 13y ago
  No bulb will last very long when hot. This isn't something new.
  - ars_technician 13y ago
    Incandescents will. They get very hot in normal operation and last the amount of time you would expect from an incandescent.
    - Filligree 13y ago
      Which is not, by any stretch of the imagination, "very long".
      - DanBC 13y ago
        Incandescents die from thermal shock, not from being hot.
        neltnerb 13y ago
        They die because over time the filament sinters causing grain growth and necking at the edges. The individual grains shift until due to the 1D constraint they each have grain boundaries with each other that stretch from the radial edges of the cylinder across. Once the grain boundary looks like that, you see increased surface diffusion at the grain boundary near the surface that forms a pit which weakens the filament. Perhaps you could argue that it requires cycling because the cooling causes increased axial stress and gradually pulls the filament apart, but it is most certainly more complicated than just thermal shock. I believe that so long as you're not shattering glass, it's more about how long it's been hot so far and how many times it's been completely cooled.
    - jotm 13y ago
      But they do last longer in lower ambient temps.

by tytso 13y ago

cjensen 13y ago

The point of the linked article is the bulb will not last very long when hot. The article never said it wouldn't work.

adestefan 13y ago
No bulb will last very long when hot. This isn't something new.
- ars_technician 13y ago
  Incandescents will. They get very hot in normal operation and last the amount of time you would expect from an incandescent.
  - Filligree 13y ago
    Which is not, by any stretch of the imagination, "very long".
    - DanBC 13y ago
      Incandescents die from thermal shock, not from being hot.
      - neltnerb 13y ago
        They die because over time the filament sinters causing grain growth and necking at the edges. The individual grains shift until due to the 1D constraint they each have grain boundaries with each other that stretch from the radial edges of the cylinder across. Once the grain boundary looks like that, you see increased surface diffusion at the grain boundary near the surface that forms a pit which weakens the filament. Perhaps you could argue that it requires cycling because the cooling causes increased axial stress and gradually pulls the filament apart, but it is most certainly more complicated than just thermal shock. I believe that so long as you're not shattering glass, it's more about how long it's been hot so far and how many times it's been completely cooled.
  - jotm 13y ago
    But they do last longer in lower ambient temps.