Weren halogen lamps banned in the late 1990s?
No. Although halogen lamps typically produce higher temperatures at the filament and bulb (a function of how the halogen cycle worksallowing for efficacies of up to 2 times better than those of standard filament lamps), they are safe when used properly. In the mid-1990s, a popular floor light (torchierewith a flared shade to uplight the ceiling above it) with a halogen lamp was a very convenient and cheap way to introduce lots of electric light into a room. Unfortunately, many of these cheap torchieres exhibited poor designeasily tipped over, and/or had no protective glass or metal screen over the lamp, for exampleor were used improperlyplaced next to window drapes, for exampleresulting in some catastrophic fires and loss of life. So, many apartments, condominiums, and university dorms banned these halogen torchieres. Some people extrapolate this to mean “all halogen lamps” are banned from use or are a bad idea. Don’t throw the baby out with the bath water! [Note: It doesn’t help that
