[SML] Ratings of household lighting fixtures

[James D Smith, RC4 Wireless]

I have put a few products through UL, CSA, TUV, etc.,, and I would 
expect they (a) determined the safe temperatures of materials near the 
bulb and any other sources of heat, and (b) put thermal sensors all over 
a test unit and operated it until all measurements stabilized. The 
primary objective is to ensure nothing burns or off-gasses, and that no 
easily touched surfaces could cause burns.

For electrical components, everything will be rated for the maximum 
current a household circuit could provide, i.e. 15A or perhaps 20A.

In my opinion, the lumen output is not a factor, the only issues are 
heat (for fire safety and avoiding burns) and current draw (for 
electrical and fire safety). The max is 60W of power draw, determined 
under the assumption that an incandescent lamp is used and almost all of 
that energy becomes heat.  Thus, there is really a lot of safe headroom 
when using a light source that does not generate as much heat.

Jim
RC4 Wireless



------ Original Message ------
From: "Jon Ares via Stagecraft" <stagecraft at theatrical.net>
To: "Stagecraft Mailing List" <stagecraft at theatrical.net>
Cc: "Jon Ares" <jonares at arescreative.com>
Sent: 22-Sep-15 10:35:53 AM
Subject: [SML] Ratings of household lighting fixtures

>This can be considered 'on-topic,' I believe.... does anyone know
>(more or less definitively) how manufacturers come up with the
>"ratings" for table lamps, desk lamps, pendant lights, etc... when
>they say "Max. 60w" and such....?  Are these based on presumed heat
>dissipation, or on any sort of amperage tolerance of the socket,
>or....?
>
>I was wondering about this, as we have several different choices
>beyond incandescent lamps now... each with different power draws, heat
>management systems, etc.... I wast thinking it would be nice to know
>how these ratings came about, when determining if it's OK to put a
>lamp with greater lumens than that A-style 60w bulb, but may only draw
>13 watts or such....
>
>--
>Jon Ares
>www.arescreative.com
>http://backstagethreads.com
>
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