Quote (skyeye @ Jun 12 2013 04:51am)

I have a reptile tank,  with two light housings in it.  On currently has a 150w  bulb in it, and the other a ceramic 100 w .  I bought the one that  is 150 ( I think it's 150 anyway....) from a guy who sold me the tank.

My question is  the 150 is in a light housing that says 250v 660w on the side, and the other says 120v 250w max.  It has been a while since I studied anything electrical, and google only talks about putting a bulb rated HIGHER than the socket itself.  I want to put a 40w red bulb  in the 660w at night, provided it is safe/won;t blow the bulb. Going by the 250w MAX I am assuming it is safe to go lower, just not higher lol!

Quote (NatureNames @ 12 Jun 2013 18:00)

Yes it is safe to put a lower wattage bulb in a fixture (light housing) that is rated for a higher wattage. The reason the fixture says a certain wattage is because that is the safety limit for that fixture, due to heat/fire risk.
40 watts is pretty low and not very bright if using incandescent bulbs, 40 watt bulbs typically go in 120v light fixtures. A light fixture(housing) that is rated for 250v is a really heavy duty fixture that is normally used for things like an outdoor spotlight on a building, to light up dark areas at night time. The normal voltage that comes out of household electrical outlets is 120v (and 110v) and runs virtually everything. Some things run on 220v or 250v are like clothes dryers, large air compressors, large ovens or refrigerators, electrical heaters, or big spotlights. 220v and 250v devices come with a uniquely shaped plugs. They do not plug into normal outlets. You need to plug them into outlets that are running 220v or 250v. Check your 250v light fixture plug and see if it has a normal looking end on it.
As long as you are plugging into a normal 120v outlet, using the 40w red bulb should work fine. If you are plugged into a 250v outlet, the 40w bulb would burn out immediately because 40w bulbs are always designed to use 120v or lower. I don't think a 40w bulb would even fit into a 250v fixture. you could try it with it unplugged to see. Look on the top or side(the threads) of the 40w bulb and it should say the voltage on it.
I'm not sure what type of lights you are using or what type of fixture. Check the plug and if its normal looking and the red bulb fits in the socket it should be fine. Its possible that the 250v 660w fixture is designed for up to 250v 660w bulbs but has been wired to used 120v devices.

Quote (russian @ Jun 12 2013 02:17pm)

Yes, it is perfectly safe to put a lower wattage bulb into a socket. Higher wattage is bad because the socket is not designed to handle the higher current and could potentially cause a fire or at least damage the socket.

Quote (jimmy123 @ Jun 12 2013 07:38pm)

you obv dont know what youre talking about..

current = amps..

watts has nothing to do with it

Quote (NatureNames @ Jun 12 2013 07:00pm)

Yes it is safe to put a lower wattage bulb in a fixture (light housing) that is rated for a higher wattage. The reason the fixture says a certain wattage is because that is the safety limit for that fixture, due to heat/fire risk.
40 watts is pretty low and not very bright if using incandescent bulbs, 40 watt bulbs typically go in 120v light fixtures. A light fixture(housing) that is rated for 250v is a really heavy duty fixture that is normally used for things like an outdoor spotlight on a building, to light up dark areas at night time. The normal voltage that comes out of household electrical outlets is 120v (and 110v) and runs virtually everything. Some things run on 220v or 250v are like clothes dryers, air compressors, ovens, refrigerators, electrical heaters, or big spotlights. 220v and 250v devices come with a uniquely shaped plugs. They do not plug into normal outlets. You need to plug them into outlets that are running 220v or 250v. Check your 250v light fixture plug and see if it has a normal looking end on it.
As long as you are plugging into a normal 120v outlet, using the 40w red bulb should work fine. If you are plugged into a 250v outlet, the 40w bulb would burn out immediately because 40w bulbs are always designed to use 120v or lower. I don't think a 40w bulb would even fit into a 250v fixture. you could try it with it unplugged to see. Look on the top or side(the threads) of the 40w bulb and it should say the voltage on it.
I'm not sure what type of lights you are using or what type of fixture. Check the plug and if its normal looking and the red bulb fits in the socket it should be fine. Its possible that the 250v 660w fixture is designed for up to 250v 660w bulbs but has been wired to used 120v devices.

Quote (jimmy123 @ Jun 12 2013 05:38pm)

you obv dont know what youre talking about..

current = amps..

watts has nothing to do with it

Quote (skyeye @ 12 Jun 2013 11:51)

I have a reptile tank,  with two light housings in it.  On currently has a 150w  bulb in it, and the other a ceramic 100 w .  I bought the one that  is 150 ( I think it's 150 anyway....) from a guy who sold me the tank.
My question is  the 150 is in a light housing that says 250v 660w on the side, and the other says 120v 250w max.  It has been a while since I studied anything electrical, and google only talks about putting a bulb rated HIGHER than the socket itself.  I want to put a 40w red bulb  in the 660w at night, provided it is safe/won;t blow the bulb. Going by the 250w MAX I am assuming it is safe to go lower, just not higher lol!