How to Connect a Light Bulb to a Battery
Light bulbs come in different sizes and have varying voltage ratings, but all of them can help you see in the dark once connected to an appropriate power supply. You can connect a light bulb to a battery by matching the voltage rating of the battery with that of the bulb, and then wiring the bulb directly to the battery. Learn this simple task to understand how a simple low-voltage light bulb circuit works. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Electrical wire
- Wire stripper
- Flashlight bulb (1.5 volts to 3 volts)
- Scissors
- Electric tape
- 1.5-volt battery (AA, C or D)
Instructions
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1
Strip off 2 inches from one end of a 6-inch copper wire using a utility knife or wire stripper. Wind the stripped end around the metal cap or base of a flashlight bulb a couple of turns. Loop or twist the wire end around the wire stem when both intersect in order to tighten the wire around the cap.
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2
Cut a 2-inch-long piece of electric tape and split the tape lengthwise using a pair of scissors. Get half of the electrical tape and wrap it tightly around the bulb cap or base to cover the wires, but do not extend the tape below the cap.
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3
Lay the wire and the bulb on top of a table or flat surface. Hold a AA, C, or D battery and place its bottom side (negative terminal) firmly onto the other end of the wire so that the battery's negative terminal will come in contact with the stripped end of the wire.
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Apply a little pressure on the battery while pressing it onto the bare wire beneath it. Grab the flashlight bulb using your other hand and place it on top of the positive terminal of the battery. Allow the metal nipple at the bottom of the bulb to come in contact with the nipple on top (positive terminal) of the battery. Turn off the light by lifting the bulb to disengage the battery nipple from the bulb nipple.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit light bulb image by Zbigniew Nowak from Fotolia.com
