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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DUPXJLI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 - bulb example

Fixture is just a single overhead ceiling light with plenty of air flow and cover. I have about 20 of these exact same fixtures across rentals and people love them. All exact same setup, same bulbs, all on a dimmer.

This particular one was installed about 10 years ago. I replaced the bulb for the 3rd time over 10 years about 3 months ago. When these bulbs go out there is usually heavy black marking. So after I replaced it, boom out in 3 days. No marking, filament blasted. Went through this process 4 more times...

Things I have tried...

  • took cover off to reduce heat
  • brought in new bulbs
  • brought in a bulb from working light
  • used bulbs from same pack in a different fixture at house
  • checked voltage to light and checked connection at switch

So I am either buying new fixture or trying an LED or fixing. I am being stubborn about this so I would like to fix it but really have no reason that this thing is burning out so quick. It seems to be heat related as you can sit there and test the thing out put the dimmer up and down for a half hour and it works fine.

To add on: The tenants love these lights. Looks great. Really warm and bright on dimmer all the way up and almost like a night light all the way down. This is the first light out of the 20 I have had any issues with. Honestly I don't think I have ever replaced any bulbs within a year and some in sparsely used rooms have last a good 5 years.

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  • what is above the light fixture?
    – jsotola
    Nov 15, 2020 at 8:44
  • Is the base of the bulb look like it is arcing? Sometimes with incandescent lamps the tab that connects the hot to the lamp gets loose. With the power off pull the tab away from the back of the fixture (bend it so it will make better contact) this is fairly common with older fixtures.
    – Ed Beal
    Nov 15, 2020 at 16:59
  • #1 halogens need clean-room-tier handling, you could be repeatedly contaminating the bulbs with gunk from your hands. #2 the insane heat from halogens is notorious for playing havoc with socket contacts and wiring. #3 unbelievably energy wasteful, they wouldn't love it if they knew the impact on their power bill! You can find LEDs that are lovely and even better in all respects, but you have to be a picky shopper and buy quality. (in other words no Amazon, and especially, no Amazon Marketplace, which is basically eBay!)
    – Harper - Reinstate Monica
    Nov 15, 2020 at 18:25
  • @EdBeal - I have checked and the tabs are tight. The bulbs have no indications other than the broken filament. Never any appearance of burn marks.
    – DMoore
    Nov 15, 2020 at 19:42
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    @FreeMan - I think I did but that was last week and wanted to give it another week before putting it out there as some bulbs were lasting almost a week.
    – DMoore
    Dec 15, 2020 at 18:33

2 Answers 2

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First ever... I don't know.

I had two different lamps fail bulbs after 3-4 days. Not 1 day or 4-5 hours buy 3-4 days. I think the lamps are fine. I never put my fingers or anything else on any contacts. I never put my fingers on the end of the bulbs.

So....

  • crappy bulbs... guessing so
  • tried several variations of LEDs and finally hit one that worked well plus didn't look "white".

So... I should have switched to LEDs sooner. I have no idea why my bulbs burnt out so quick. I rather have the halogen but the LEDs I have are in the same range has them and it is "good enough". The tenants are happy, dimmers working, bulbs lasting.

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I had this happen with a ceiling light and it turned out to be caused by an occasional short in the ceiling box resulting from a partially exposed hot that every once in a great while either arced to or touched the metal part of the light housing.

It went on for years - lightbulbs lasting less than a year and having black burned marks when they went out - before I finally found out what was going on and got it fixed.

Have an electrician check out what's going on in that ceiling box.

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  • I have checked the ceiling box and the voltage and all OK. This thing was working and hadn't been touched in 10 years until I checked.
    – DMoore
    Nov 15, 2020 at 19:47

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