Bulb "extension" for can lights??

[64merc]

I'm looking for some recommendations please. A few years back I installed a few 4" can lights in my bathroom. It is an old house with wood boards running along the ceiling and walls, plus it has 1/4" drywall. The problem was that, due to the thickness of the ceiling, the halogen bulbs I am using sit too far up in the housing, and the drop down height of the fixture inside is not adjustable IIRC. I had a lot of trouble changing bulbs.

Ok, what I have used up until now are those plastic adapters that let you plug into them and also allow you to use a light bulb. They give me a drop down of a few inches. I hope this makes sense. Anyway, one of them has already gone bad, so I know that this is not a good long term solution. Is there a product out there designed specifically for this purpose?

Thanks! (I hope this hasn't been asked before, but I wouldn't even know what to search under)

 

[mrb]

here you go http://www.swivelier.com/id20.htm scroll down about 3/4 the way and you will see socket extenders for medium base lamps

 

[64merc]

here you go http://www.swivelier.com/id20.htm scroll down about 3/4 the way and you will see socket extenders for medium base lamps

Thanks, I appreciate it.

 

[Torque1st]

You can usually find the ceramic bulb extenders in better hardware stores. I used some when I installed some CFL's into can lights. I purchased them at an ACE hardware store.

 

[ddawg16]

Have you verified that you can't drop the inside of your can down?
I have 6" cans in my garage....they have about 2" of travel on the part that holds the bulb.....that is unless you have a fixed trim up inside of it.

 

[wbrian63]

Most can lights are designed to use PAR (Parabolic Reflector) bulbs. Most of the larger size bulbs come in "long neck" and "short neck" versions. If the bulb you currently use has very little "neck" on it from where the cone for the reflector ends and the threads for the socket begin, you've got a short neck bulb.

Of course, if you're using a standard bulb, then an extension is your only option.

 

[64merc]

Yes, I have verified that there is not adjustment on them. I know what you mean though because I put in some 6" can lights in my dining room and they are adjustable. I should have looked for that feature when I bought the 4" lights.

I didn't know that bulbs came in different lengths, so that's something I need to look at. Who knows, maybe I'll try something other than the halogen bulbs I'm currently using.

 

[wbrian63]

I've attached a couple of pictures of PAR30 bulbs in the long and short versions. PAR30 is most likely the bulb size you'd use in a 4" can light - the lens diameter is about 3.8"

The long version is 4.75" overall, and the short version is 3.62" overall.

Hope this helps.