Clear and Red Heat Lamps

[cakerookie]

Currently in my pulled,blown sugar work I use a clear 250 watt heat lamp bulb. I was wondering if anyone could tell me what the difference is between the clear and red bulb for sugar work? Appreciate any help or advice. Thanks.

[chrose]

None as far as I know. 250W is 250W, at least with the clear you will never have any color mixing issues. But by the same token, red might be a little less glaring on your eyes.

[cakerookie]

Yeah that clear one is a little rough on the eyes. Thanks CH.

[foodpump]

I've got the red one, I find it hard on my eyes, but then the clear one is too...
For a heat lamp I resurrected an old spring-loaded study lamp and stuck on an aluminum shade from a trashed roast beef carving station lamp. Works good...

"....I've got blisters on me fingers!"....

[cakerookie]

Know how that feels.

[kimbrosj]

I would stick with the clear, yeah rough on the eyes, but thats what aluminum shades are for, I just chucked my red bulb off the roof two days ago, after I skrewed the color up on a piece I was working on. The reason for the red bulbs, as far as I know, is that they are widely used in carving stations, I'm sure most of us are using our old beat up carving stations for our sugar and chocolate work. But red bulbs were put into carving stations so that the light is dimmed and doesnt carry as far. Basically so patrons sitting in the dining room arent being blinded by that chump carving the leg of lamb, unless of course he pokes them in the eye with his meat fork. The idea of the red bulb though is also so that it just heats and not actually cooks whats under it....basically the wavelenght of the white light versus the red light (since i was in physics before switching to what I loved), but far too technical for in here, so I'll just say that white light is a combination of a spectrum of various light wavelengths, where as red is just the reds of the spectrum....doh, still quite technical.... either work, but clear wont make everything look a different color than what it actually is, and you wont have to keep turning it off just to see what color you are actually using.

[cakerookie]

Good Point!!