have you tried some CFL;s instead…Quite possibly the vibration is causing the filament to vibrate and burn out…we see it alot of front doors when people slam the doors…they change to CFL’s and it solves their problem…
“Ceiling fan bulbs” work well in areas that go through lamps quickly. They have better filament support so they handle vibration much better.
Also as Paul said, CFLs are great. They have only gotten better and the variety is amazing these days.
I have heard of the problems with OTR micros going through lamps. Aren’t most of them proprietary, or specialty, lamps though?
Paul, I found this article that may help some too, if I may;
What the “Big Three” (better) Lightbulb Makers Are
By the “Big Three” light bulb manufacturers, I mean General Electric, Osram/Sylvania, and Philips. They are the main producers of good lightbulbs in the USA.
Please note that store brand lightbulbs with lumen light output figures and hour life expectancy figures like those of “Big Three” actually are “Big Three” lightbulbs.
“Big Three” “regular” (A19) lightbulbs will usually be:
100 watt ones with 750 hour average life and 1670-1750 lumens average output
75 watt ones with 750 hour average life and 1150-1210 lumens average output
60 watt ones with 1000 hour average life and 840-890 lumens average output
40 watt ones with 1000-1500 hours and 440-505 lumens average light output
Lightbulbs other than “big three” ones usually produce less light than “big three” ones.
Troubleshooting incandescent lightbulb problems
Lightbulbs Burn Out Too Quickly (See the more specific entries below also):
a) Check the line voltage for excessive voltage. Call your power company if you determine for sure that your line voltage is excessive. Use longer life or 130 volt bulbs if the power company cannot or will not correct excessive line voltage.
b) Check for excessive expectations. If you have 12 750-hour bulbs each operated 6 hours a day, it is normal to burn out three of them a month.
c) Lightbulbs are junk such as “dollar store” bulbs. Get ones made by one of the “Big Three” lamp makers.
Lightbulbs in Recessed Ceiling Fixture Burn Out Too Quickly:
Check that the bulbs are of a type and wattage recommended by the fixture manufacturer. Heat builds up in these fixtures.
Lightbulbs in Small Enclosed Fixture Burn Out Too Quickly:
a) Check that you are not exceeding the maximum wattage recommended by the fixture manufacturer. Many fixtures are rated only for bulbs 60 watts or less.
b) Off-brand bulbs, especialy dollar store bulbs, may not be up to the job.
Lightbulbs in Ceiling Fixtures and Desk Lamps Burn Out Too Quickly:
a) Many of these fixtures are rated to use bulbs no more than 60 watts.
b) Off-brand bulbs such as dollar store bulbs may not be up to the job.
Lightbulbs Burn Out Prematurely and Have a White Smoky Appearance:
This means the bulb cracked and air got in and oxidized the filament.
a) This usually means the bulb was an off-brand piece of junk.
b) Water dripped on a hot bulb.
c) The bulb overheated by being the wrong kind/wattage for the fixture.
d) Something hits the bulbs and breaks them.
e) Bulbs heat up and then cold drafts hit the bulbs (unlikely)
f) Condensation on a bulb causes thermal stress when dry parts of the bulb get hot (not especially likely).
Lightbulbs Break During Use:
a) See just above.
Longlife Bulbs Don’t Last as Long as Expected:
a) Bulb is a junkier off-brand one. Use longlife versions of “Big Three” bulbs, use traffic light bulbs especialy if made by the “Big Three”, or use ones made in Poland (available in some hardware stores, less available in the USA nowadays).
Lightbulbs Sometimes Get Dim and/or Flicker and then Go Out:
a) Check for corroded contacts on the bulbs or in the socket.
b) Check for poor fit or mashed-down socket contact. You may be able to pry up the center contact in the socket (with power off!). Do not overtighten the bulbs.
c) Check for poor contact or wires screwed down too loosely in the fixture or in the house wiring, especially if changing the bulb does not change the behavior much.
d) Replace the socket or the fixture if necessary.
NOTE - Flickering with dimming must be fixed or avoided. There could be major heat production at the site of resistance due to poor contact. This is a possible fire hazard.
e) If the bulb starts doing this and then never works again after the next time it is turned off, then chances are it burned out with a “stable burnout arc” that bridged the gap in the filament. This does not happen often and when it does the filament usually broke after it warmed up, as opposed to during a cold start. A bulb with a “stable burnout arc” often, maybe usually produces a soft buzzing sound if operating on AC. This is not a fault of the socket nor the fixture. If the bulb has a visible break in the filament, whether or not the newly-broken ends of the filament show any signs of melting, then this explanation is even more likely.
Lightbulbs Sometimes Bet Brighter When Something Else is Turned On and also Burn Out at an Excessive Rate:
a)This usually means that you have a broken or poor neutral connection, usually in the main panel, or sometimes in a subpanel if you have any subpanels. Be sure that screws holding down wires in your fuseboxes / breaker boxes / panels are adequately tight. If you are not up to this fix or it fails to correct this situation, call an electrician. This is a dangerous condition that must be fixed urgently.
Lightbulbs Break or Pop Off Their Bases when they Burn Out:
a) Some offbrand bulbs and a few production runs of “Big Three” bulbs have been known to lack internal fuse wires. The current surge due to a “burnout arc” reaches hundreds of amps and makes the wiring in the bulb explode.
Lightbulbs Damage Dimmers or Electronic Switching Devices when they Burn Out:
a) This usually means marginal quality dimmer or switch that cannot withstand the current surge drawn by a burnout arc. Get a sturdier dimmer or switching device.
b) The lightbulbs lack internal fuse wires - change brand.
c) For adventurous hacking homebrewers, replace the triac or (or SCR, less likely) in the dimmer circuit with one having much higher current capability and trigger current no higher than that of the original. Use a triac or SCR with slightly higher trigger current requirement at your own risk, although this usually works.
Lightbulbs Burn Out Too Quickly Only In Certain Rooms/Fixtures:
a) Check for wrong kind or overwattage bulb in the fixture.
b) Check if you are putting junky off-brand lightbulbs such as dollar store bulbs in the fixtures in question.
c) Check for vibration from slamming doors, people dancing nearby, children jumping or bouncing balls, etc. Vibration-resistant bulbs may be the solution.
d) This can happen with the “open neutral” problem discussed above.
Lightbulbs Seem Dim:
a) Check line voltage - if necessary, shift loads or upgrade the wiring. Call an electrician if you need a wiring upgrade that you can’t do yourself. Call your utility if the problem is upstream from your electric meter.
b) Longlife bulbs are dimmer than standard-life, “Big Three” bulbs.
c) 130 volt bulbs are dimmer than 120 volt bulbs - typically by 22-25 percent, more if the life at 130 volts is longer than “standard” or the bulbs are also vibration-resistant or off-brand. Good ones are available at Lowes.
d) Lightbulbs with vibration resistant or shock resistant or rough service filament design are normally less efficient than standard lightbulbs.
e) Junky off-brand bulbs such as most dollar store bulbs are dimmer than “big three” lightbulbs.
Projector Bulb or Photoflood Bulb Burns Out Quickly:
a) Note that these usually have short lifetimes anywhere from 2 to 60 hours.
b) Bulb is misused - use only the proper bulb and only in equipment designed for the bulb and use the bulb/equipment only as directed. Some of these bulbs have mounting position requirements and/or cooling requirements.
Don’t explain the explosion, but informative.
A little bit of info. ha. ha.
Marcel :)
The stair bulbs are standard Edison base with 15 watt small diameter1-1/2 bulb.
The Microwave bulbs are picture frame type 40-60 watt and there is a dimmer mode.
CFLs would be great for the stair but unavailable in this small format and of course wouldn’t work in the microwave. I have had GE and Sylvania.
The ceilng fan bulbs may be a good idea for the stair until teh LED get cheap enough. I’ll check that out. Thanks.
I think the ultimate would be LED for the stair and an 130 VAC bulbs for the microwave.
I see these stair light fixtures on a lot of newer homes and it’s hard to believe they all burn out so fast.
Most Excellent…
I don’t know if this is mentioned or not but with tubear halogen luminaires if you get the bulb off postion it will really have good chace to burn out early { 300 and 500 watts T3 are prone to this }
but otherwise most of other guys pretty much sum it up with the bulb life and situation of burnout or breakage.
Merci,Marc
{ I Did leave the HID part out for now that for diffrent time }
Just found this site because I was researching an “exploding light bulb”. My wife and I just had a regular GE 40w 600 lumens explode on us. In our case the light first appeared to burn out. Before I could get up and change the bulb, bam!!! glass everywhere. Really not sure what happened here.
I was a sparky at one time and have had a couple of crazy service calls.
One time the homeowner complained about bulbs blowing a lot in certain can fixtures, after a little investigation…I found that she had been using bulbs made by “bulbs or defects” that were returned to Big Lots. Changed to a quality bulb problem solved.
One time the homeowner called complaining about exploding bulbs with glass flying and I found a poor neutral connection and the guys who wired the house had it tied in with the Microwave. Turn on lights and then turn on Microwave, Boom!
And last one was a can light in downstairs living room…This one was a tough one…I just happen to be in the right place at the right time, lights are on, daughter upstairs and fires up the shower and drip, drip, Boom! Tiny little drip, about 3 or 4 drips per shower. Called the plumber to fix the light problem.
P.S. These were all new or almost new builds.
Water dripping on a lit bulb may also cause it to explode.
There are light bulbs made called Rough service bulbs , Cost a little more .
https://www.1000bulbs.com/category/rough-service-light-bulbs/
Loose neutral - twice
water on bulb - once
Seen the lights in the house get really, really bright once and no bulbs exploded or went out.