eLightBulbs Lighting Blog > Red vs Clear Heat Lamp Light Bulbs

Heat lamps are a great example of how light bulbs can be used in special applications to fill a specific need through their infrared (IR) properties.  They are referred to as "infrared" because the heat is invisible and "below" the red that the human eye can see.

Many people ask us if there is really a difference between red and clear lenses?

First, lets highlight on the three main uses for these heat lamps:

• Bathrooms / Showers - nothing is worse than coming out of a warm shower and stepping into a frigid bathroom.  Absolutely miserable.  =)  Heat lamps work great to keep the room warm while you are in the shower; by the time you come out, the room is nice and toasty
• Brooding Chickens - heat lamps work great for giving a warm and necessary environment to baby chicks, as they are hatching and even early on in their life.  Many other smaller animals also required increased warm living areas.  This makes it easy to provide a solution without heating up a larger area.
• Food Service - Many buffets and commercial kitchens require the use of heat lamps to maintain heat inside of meals and specifically, various kinds of meats.  Heat lamps accomplish this very well.

So how do you know to choose between the red and clear?  Actually, it is simple.  Pick whatever color you like best!  The one true difference between the two is simply the color.  Red casts a warm glow on its subject and the clear is just there, heating up the area.  Red is chosen many times in food service, as it can make the food look more warm and inviting.

On top of the color choices available, they come many different wattages and styles.  The wattage will serve specific fixture requirements, but the bulb types can also provide varied options.

• Standard Incandescent - this is referred to "soft glass" many times; standard incandescent flood heat lamps are quite affordable and for the most part need to be in an indoor environment, in some sort of enclosure or soffit
• Halogen Incandescent - PAR halogen flood heat lamps provide a "hard glass" scenario as a two-piece flood, and are very heavy-duty.  They can also be used outdoor and be exposed to the elements.

To get started on choosing your heat lamps, head on over to our Heat Lamp category and use the QuickFilter to narrow down your light bulbs.