I'm sure this is a silly question, but as a complete newbie, I'll ask for your patience.
I am preparing to build my first projector, and have been considering the question of cost. I was wondering if it's possible to take apart a halogen floor lamp and use the pieces as my light source for my projector. I'm not sure if these pieces differ somehow from the halogens in OHPs, but it seems like a nice, cheap way to go (which probably means it is useless.) 🙂
Has anyone ever tried this? Will it get too hot, and could that just be solved with more fans?
I am preparing to build my first projector, and have been considering the question of cost. I was wondering if it's possible to take apart a halogen floor lamp and use the pieces as my light source for my projector. I'm not sure if these pieces differ somehow from the halogens in OHPs, but it seems like a nice, cheap way to go (which probably means it is useless.) 🙂
Has anyone ever tried this? Will it get too hot, and could that just be solved with more fans?
Yes, yes, and yes. Halogen will work, although they will a yield picture with a yellowish tint. They are VERY hot, but the metal halides are close to just as hot (except comparable MH are 400W as opposed to 150W or 300W). Yes they can be cooled with fans. Just need to place them properly and make sure you have good air flow.
tungsten halogen lamps
There is no reason to sacrifice a perfectly good floor lamp, just to get the halogen lamp out if it. You can buy those 300 Watt 120 VAC halogen replacement lamps for $1 from Harbor Freight (harborfreight.com), when they have them on sale. Otherwise, they might charge you $2!
Or go look at the various halogen lamps at Home Depot. They have a 250 Watt lamp that has a much shorter filament than those long 300 Watt lamps. Much better.
There is nothing special that goes with a 120 VAC halogen lamp: No ballast, etc. You just connect it directly to 120 volt AC and it lights up. You can even use a standard dimmer switch, if you want to control the brightness. But DO be careful: They get very hot. So hot, they can set stuff on fire. So hot, that if you leave your fingerprints on the lamp surface, it will absorb more heat at that spot and crack the tube.
There is no reason to sacrifice a perfectly good floor lamp, just to get the halogen lamp out if it. You can buy those 300 Watt 120 VAC halogen replacement lamps for $1 from Harbor Freight (harborfreight.com), when they have them on sale. Otherwise, they might charge you $2!
Or go look at the various halogen lamps at Home Depot. They have a 250 Watt lamp that has a much shorter filament than those long 300 Watt lamps. Much better.
There is nothing special that goes with a 120 VAC halogen lamp: No ballast, etc. You just connect it directly to 120 volt AC and it lights up. You can even use a standard dimmer switch, if you want to control the brightness. But DO be careful: They get very hot. So hot, they can set stuff on fire. So hot, that if you leave your fingerprints on the lamp surface, it will absorb more heat at that spot and crack the tube.
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