Spotlight replacement bulb...

[Azure]

Alright, I have a halogen spotlight...where the bulb doesn't work anymore.

The bulb is an H3 6 volt, 10 watt halogen bulb, and I can't seem to find it anywhere.

I found this one..

http://www.bulbs.com/eSpec.aspx?ID=1...+Vehicle+Bulbs

But, would the 55 watt bulb wear down my battery?

I was also looking at the PIAA bulbs...something like this..

http://www.nextag.com/Piaa-H3-Xtreme...25/prices-html

But I assume most of them will be 12 volts. What are the consequences for using a 12 volt bulb with a 6 volt battery?

And does my replacement bulb even exist? I got the spotlight this past Christmas...it was bought at Costco. Of course Costco doesn't carry it anymore.

Help?

[Morozee]

Originally Posted by Azure

Alright, I have a halogen spotlight...where the bulb doesn't work anymore.

The bulb is an H3 6 volt, 10 watt halogen bulb, and I can't seem to find it anywhere.

I found this one..

http://www.bulbs.com/eSpec.aspx?ID=1...+Vehicle+Bulbs

But, would the 55 watt bulb wear down my battery?

I was also looking at the PIAA bulbs...something like this..

http://www.nextag.com/Piaa-H3-Xtreme...25/prices-html

But I assume most of them will be 12 volts. What are the consequences for using a 12 volt bulb with a 6 volt battery?

And does my replacement bulb even exist? I got the spotlight this past Christmas...it was bought at Costco. Of course Costco doesn't carry it anymore.

Help?

What is the make/model of this spotlight? We're talking about a hand held spotlight, correct? I'm not sure about these automotive bulbs working. For sure the PIAA ones wont work as I'm fairly certain those particular bulbs are 12V. If your spotlight draws 10 watts, 55watts will kill your battery very fast.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by Morozee

What is the make/model of this spotlight? We're talking about a hand held spotlight, correct? I'm not sure about these automotive bulbs working. For sure the PIAA ones wont work as I'm fairly certain those particular bulbs are 12V. If your spotlight draws 10 watts, 55watts will kill your battery very fast.

Yes we are talking about a handheld, rechargeable spotlight.

The bulb is 10 watts...spotlight has a 6 volt battery...does that then mean a 55 watt bulb won't work?

Because the 55 watt bulb I found in the link above is rated at 6 volts.

Its kinda of a bummer...since I can't find the exact spotlight online...and Costco has already removed it from their stores.

[Morozee]

Originally Posted by Azure

Yes we are talking about a handheld, rechargeable spotlight.

The bulb is 10 watts...spotlight has a 6 volt battery...does that then mean a 55 watt bulb won't work?

Because the 55 watt bulb I found in the link above is rated at 6 volts.

Its kinda of a bummer...since I can't find the exact spotlight online...and Costco has already removed it from their stores.

I think it would probably work, but like you said your battery will likely die that much faster. Also the 55 watt bulb will probably get a lot hotter than a 10 watt bulb which may or may not be an issue.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by Morozee

I think it would probably work, but like you said your battery will likely die that much faster. Also the 55 watt bulb will probably get a lot hotter than a 10 watt bulb which may or may not be an issue.

I think the only issue might be with the prongs becoming too hot...maybe causing a disconnection.

I'll order it and see...the bulb is only 2 bucks.

Thanks.

[sclitheroe]

Going from a 10W to a 55W bulb at 6 volts is going to absolutely kill battery life, and may actually damage your battery and/or wiring. You are going from drawing 1.6 amps to 9 amps.

Assuming your spotlight is handheld, I'm going to guess it's got a small sealed lead acid battery in it, probably rated at 4 amp hours or so, giving you two hours of battery life. Switching to the bulb you linked to is going to give you less than half an hour, assuming you don't melt something before that.

-Scott

[Azure]

Handheld...and the bulb life is 80 min before it needs recharging.

I did find a 10 watt bulb at our local NAPA store...so its all good.

Thanks anyways!