“The Lighting Basics: Halogen Bulbs. NO TOUCHY!”

This is a notice to all who have replaceable halogen bulbs in their headlight assemblies:

DO NOT TOUCH the glass of the replaceable burner. EVER.
This applies not only to truckers, but also anyone who has a car, truck, or SUV with replaceable burners.

Most bulb manufacturers have a warning label on the product packaging disclosing this fact. However, that doesn’t stop the natural curiosity to find out what happens when one does touch the glass lens of the halogen bulb. After all, we touched the hot stove when we were children. So what happens when you touch the glass lens of a replaceable halogen burner? Three things happen.

The first thing that happens when you touch the bulb is all the natural oil from your skin is transferred to the glass. This also doesn’t include the dirt, grease, and grime you have on your hands from working on the truck or car. Therefore, even with clean hands you can still transfer some oil.

The second thing that happens is all the oil that is now on the bulb starts to heat up like a fryer when the lights are turned on. This oil begins to cook the burner and raises the temperature of the halogen bulb.

The third thing that happens is the glass on the halogen bulb becomes weak and will give way and blow out or explode. This results in the chrome on the inside of the bulb blackening with burnt oil and glass shards, rendering the entire piece useless. All of this can be avoided if you do not touch the glass burner of a replaceable halogen bulb. Fry the burgers, not the bulbs this Independence Day.

Now that we have touched the hot stove for you, we hope that you have learned something from our experience. If you have any other lighting questions, please feel free to visit our website www.slclighting.com or you can give us a call at 800-938-0120 to see what we can do to help you. If you need any lighting products for your truck, visit our online shop or call in. Online, use the code MOVINOUT2016 or call in and mention that you saw our ad in Movin’ Out for a 10% discount.

Next month, we will be discussing all about light legality.