Source for Halogen Interior Bulbs?

[Dave S]

I had one bulb burn out in a cabin light on my 260DA so I would like to get a few replacements as spares. I tried my local auto parts store and they don't carry it. They are the two pin 12 volt 10 watt bulbs.

Does anyone have any suggestions on where to find them?

 

[Scappare]

I just replaced mine in the galley. I bought them at Lowe's, they were in the lightbulb section, where all the weird halogen bulbs are. I think they had both 10 and 25 watt bulbs.

 

[Sea Gull]

I needed the 24volt version of these and found the best price on line at 1000bulbs dot com. The only hitch was that their minimum order is $20.

 

[STIHLBOLTS]

Lowe's has a good selection, just the price sucks. But at a $20.00 minimum and a average price of almost $4.00 per bulb it won't take long to spend $20 to have a few extras. :grin:

 

[goblue]

I got mine at the parts department of a local marina. The price was competitive with the online stores which surprised me. Make sure you wipe the base with a little WD 40 so they can be easily removed and clean the glass with a little vodka to remove any finger prints from the bulb. Use a Kleenex to hold the bulb while it's inserted. This way the bulb will stay clean and burn longer. Finger prints cause them to fail prematurely.

 

[Dave S]

I was able to pick mine up at Lowes (thanks for the tip Scappare) . I got four of them for $12.80 including tax.

 

[Lady Renee]

The halogen reading light (6 ea) on our 280 DA rank as my #2 small gripe. (the position of the Engine Start/stop switches rank #1 small gripe)

The halogens are power consumers and the bulb type/size (the base is designated G6.35) is rather rare as are the lower wattages. I found 35 & 50 watt are most common but way to "hot". Online has by far the best prices for 10 to 25 watt.

My preference is some LED retrofits, however there are really none available in the correct base configuration.

Ed

 

[downeast320]

lady renee, how did you determine what the base is? i am looking for led retrofits for the halogen bulbs in my 320. I have found a few bi prongs that look like they will work.

 

[Lady Renee]

Re: bulb type. Apologies for the slow response. I took an OEM bulb out and compared it to the available bi-pin halogens.

The most common available is the G4 (4mm pin spread) they didn't fit so I found the G6.35 (mm pin spread and the pins are slightly larger in diameter) as a perfect fit

Still looking for a direct LED replacement.

As for LEDs, the color temp (degrees kelvin) is much cooler - like moonlight but they work well for reading - 20 watt equivalent does the trick ... just need to find a source.

As for using WD-40 on the pins .... well I use a very SMALL amount of hi temp silicone on the pins .. then I drink the vodka and use rubbing alcohol on the halogen bulb glass. (The halogens are sensitive to oils on the glass and will fail prematurely with the slightest finger print oil.) See previous post on same subject.

Ed :smt001

 

[Gervie]

I replaced a galley light the other day with a Halogen G4 I bought at Home Depot. When I got back home I looked at the parts list and it says I should have used a Xenon lamp. I looked up the difference and read that the Xenon are a little brighter and less heat but higher cost.

Does anyone know what the difference in heat is between Xenon and Halogen?

I ordered some Xenon bulbs on the internet.

 

[Lady Renee]

As far as I know both types of bulbs are filled with a gas. Halogen and Xenon gases function by suspending the burning filament particles during the "on" cycle and allow the suspended metal particles to re-attach to the filament as they cool in the "off" cycle .

Standard Edison bulb filaments are in a vacuum. The tungsten filament particles in Edison bulbs attach to the inside of the glass ... ergo they yellow with age/use. Remember yellow headlights on older cars? Gas bulbs don't yellow and the filaments resist breakage due to vibration.

Perhaps Xenon operates with less heat.

Ed :smt017