Baffle Question
#1
07-10-03, 10:23 AM
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: New Jersey
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Baffle Question
Okay - I've figured out my bulb "problem". The H7ICT housing says you can use a BR40 bulb, but Halo doesn't make any trims for the H7ICT that say they are for a BR40 bulb. So I'm going to ditch the BR40 bulbs and use either PAR30 or BR30s. I picked up a white baffle trim, a black baffle trim, and an open trim today as well as the bulbs so I can see what I like best.
Under what circumstances would I want a black baffle vs. a white one or vise versa? How about just an open housing (no baffle)? Seems to me like the open housing would throw the most light, which I'd need in some rooms but not others.
TIA,
Jim
Under what circumstances would I want a black baffle vs. a white one or vise versa? How about just an open housing (no baffle)? Seems to me like the open housing would throw the most light, which I'd need in some rooms but not others.
TIA,
Jim
#2
07-11-03, 04:53 AM
Join Date: Feb 2003
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Okay, I'm replying to my own thread in case anyone is interested.
I went to Home Depot and picked up the following:
HALO 310P (black) baffle trim
HALO 310W (black) baffle trim
HALO 300P open trim
PAR30L bulb
BR30 bulb
According to the sticker inside the H7RICT housing, I need to use a PAR30L (long neck) 75W max with the 310 trims. A regular 65W (or 75 if you can find them) BR30 bulb can be used with both the 310 and 300 trims.
I went home and installed all the trims in a couple of different places and tried both bulbs in all trims. My drywall guy thinks I've totally lost my mind. I think it's important, though, to get trims that look the best and bulbs that conform to HALO's recommendations.
Anyhow, I wound up ordering the black baffle trims for all 20 lights. When combined with the PAR30L bulb I think they looked the best and had the best lighting. The black baffle almost completely eliminates glare from the recessed housing so unless you're looking directly up at the recessed light, it's almost invisible - just the area beneath and around it is illuminated.
With the white baffle, you get a really bright light at the light itself. Since the lights are installed in a rec room and TV area, I didn't want glare on the TV screen nor my pinball machine glass top.
The light from the PAR30 is great and the cone is as wide as the BR30 (probably because the cone is dictated by the baffle and the ceiling height rather than the bulb itself). The cool thing about the PAR30s (that some people might not like) is that the halogen bulb casts a really bright center in the cone on the floor about 3-4 feet in diameter. So there's really 2 cones cast on the floor - a cone in a cone - one cast by the diameter of the housing and the other by the bulb itself. If the lights are spaced right and evenly, it will look really cool. I'm not sure that mine are, but we'll see soon.
The BR30 bulbs cast a single, even cone but the light is more mellow. I might use those in the play room rather than the comparably harsh halogens. Dunno yet
The open trim, which has a 4" hole in the center to accomodate the 3.75" reflector of the BR30 and PAR30 bulbs, looked cheap to me. I don't like seeing the bulb protruding from the housing - it's not really "recessed" then. Of course they *are* cheap compared to the baffles, but for an extra $2-3 per light it's worth it.
So, sorry for the long post but I figured people confronted with the same decisions may benefit from it.
Jim
I went to Home Depot and picked up the following:
HALO 310P (black) baffle trim
HALO 310W (black) baffle trim
HALO 300P open trim
PAR30L bulb
BR30 bulb
According to the sticker inside the H7RICT housing, I need to use a PAR30L (long neck) 75W max with the 310 trims. A regular 65W (or 75 if you can find them) BR30 bulb can be used with both the 310 and 300 trims.
I went home and installed all the trims in a couple of different places and tried both bulbs in all trims. My drywall guy thinks I've totally lost my mind. I think it's important, though, to get trims that look the best and bulbs that conform to HALO's recommendations.
Anyhow, I wound up ordering the black baffle trims for all 20 lights. When combined with the PAR30L bulb I think they looked the best and had the best lighting. The black baffle almost completely eliminates glare from the recessed housing so unless you're looking directly up at the recessed light, it's almost invisible - just the area beneath and around it is illuminated.
With the white baffle, you get a really bright light at the light itself. Since the lights are installed in a rec room and TV area, I didn't want glare on the TV screen nor my pinball machine glass top.
The light from the PAR30 is great and the cone is as wide as the BR30 (probably because the cone is dictated by the baffle and the ceiling height rather than the bulb itself). The cool thing about the PAR30s (that some people might not like) is that the halogen bulb casts a really bright center in the cone on the floor about 3-4 feet in diameter. So there's really 2 cones cast on the floor - a cone in a cone - one cast by the diameter of the housing and the other by the bulb itself. If the lights are spaced right and evenly, it will look really cool. I'm not sure that mine are, but we'll see soon.
The BR30 bulbs cast a single, even cone but the light is more mellow. I might use those in the play room rather than the comparably harsh halogens. Dunno yet
The open trim, which has a 4" hole in the center to accomodate the 3.75" reflector of the BR30 and PAR30 bulbs, looked cheap to me. I don't like seeing the bulb protruding from the housing - it's not really "recessed" then. Of course they *are* cheap compared to the baffles, but for an extra $2-3 per light it's worth it.
So, sorry for the long post but I figured people confronted with the same decisions may benefit from it.
Jim
