Higher Wattage Light Bulb Than Recommended

More lumens equal brighter light.

Higher wattage light bulb than recommended.

Fewer lumens equal dimmer light. Can i put in a higher watt light bulb than what is recommended. There is potential danger here however because light fixtures carry a maximum wattage rating and if bulbs are installed that exceed this rating there is the potential for overheating the fixture. So is it safe to put a higher watt light bulb.

I don t think so. Overheating of a desk or table lamp you see with half an eye. Compact fluorescent lights cfls and leds have a lower wattage than incandescent bulbs but emit the same light output. The recommended wattage is usually listed on a label or included in the instructions.

When you see a label say 100 watt led equivalent that does not mean that the bulb actually uses 100 watts it means that it produces an amount of light equivalent to a 100 watt incandescent bulb. The lower the light bulb wattage the lower the electric bill. They are not so easy to extinguish a fire. Meanwhile most incandescent bulbs produce an orange like glow.

The simple answer is yes as long as the led bulb uses less wattage than your fixture. When a bulb burns out most people simply grab whatever spare lightbulb is available. If the old lightbulb was a little too dim they might opt for a higher wattage bulb to improve the illumination. Wiring problems of ceiling fixtures are difficult to distinguish.

Standard 100 watt bulbs produce about 1600 lumens. So to go back to our original example to brighten up a room it would be dangerous to place a 100 watt incandescent into a lamp rated only for 60 watts. Even if the package says it s equivalent to 100 watts a 14 watt bulb is only using up 14 watts at a time meaning it s safe to place in a fixture with a rating higher than 14w. We highly recommend that you check the maximum recommended wattage before installing a light bulb.