Practice Tips #82: A Bit About Light Bulbs

We are celebrating our 7 year anniversary with Practice Tips #82!

Thank you so much for being with us!

American Dental Accessories has been proud to offer technical content that can help your practice become more independent for the past seven years. We look forward to many more years of empowering you! Visit our archive to catch up on past issues!

LED Bulb (#20-902), Curing Light Bulb (#20-140), & Fiberoptic Bulb (#20-202)

Bulbs may seem insignificant in the scheme of things but you realize how important they are when a bulb goes out and you have an operatory that is out of commission. Bulbs are used in your operating lights, for your fiber optic handpieces, in x-ray viewers, your curing lights, and a host of other dental equipment. Suddenly, they don’t seem so insignificant.

Here are a few tips for your practice, so you will always be able to “see the light!"

1. Always keep spare bulbs on hand:  We’ve said it before with so many items in the dental office and bulbs are no different. Keeping spare bulbs available will allow you to reduce downtime in the operatory and will save you money as you won’t need to call in an expensive technician to get the operatory up and running again.
2. Never touch bulbs with your fingers:  This is especially true with high intensity bulbs, such as the overhead patient light or curing light bulbs. The oils in your fingers can create a “hot spot” on the bulb or even create a fracture in the bulb housing, which will cause the bulb to fail prematurely. We suggest changing your bulb when the light is cool and while wearing gloves or some kind of barrier when installing it. If you do touch the bulb, you can clean the surface with isopropyl or ethyl alcohol and a cotton swab.
3. ANSI code numbers printed on bulbs are helpful :  ANSI (American National Standards Institute) coded light bulbs meet specific industry standards for output, shape of bulb, base type, and spread of light beam. In many cases, these codes are printed directly onto the bulb.
   

   Close-up of the ANSI code on a curing light bulb (#20-125)

   If you are having difficulty figuring out which bulb you need to replace, referring to these codes on the old bulb will assist you in finding the correct match for the bulb you need. American Dental includes the ANSI code in our catalog and in our online product descriptions. We can also cross-reference bulbs using the ANSI code.

4. Wattage and voltage:  Be mindful of the bulb’s wattage and voltage as well. ANSI codes sometimes are just an indicator of the bulb type, rather than a specific bulb. For example, there are several models of the Belmont operatory lights which use bulbs that are similar in shape and size (designated H-3), but they all have different wattage and voltage.
5. What is it being used with?  If all else fails, knowing the make and model of the equipment that needs a replacement bulb is always helpful. We can usually locate the correct bulb for you with this information as we have access to the make and model cross references as well.

As always, feel free to contact us at 1-800-331-7993 with any questions regarding bulbs or you can even hit us up on our live chat system by clicking on the "Live Chat" icon at the top of the page and we will be more than happy to help.