My church has the standard lighted 'EXIT' signs above the door. The replacement bulbs are expensive 15W things. One gentleman insists that we can save money by using "Christmas" tree 4 W bulbs inplace of the 15W bulbs. Is this OK? It seems that we have to replace them more often than we did the 15W bulbs. Is this a hazard of any kind?:confused:

You can do an LED retrofit and you won't have to worry about it again and you'll use less energy. I found something similar for a friend.

http://www.theexitstore.com/KITS.htm

While Kiss offered the best simple solution, as LED retrofit lamps work well and save huge energy, to answer the original question, no, you cannot use the 4 watt lamp in place of the 15 watt lamp.

Exit signs are designed to use a certain lamp that offers the proper amount of light when needed, as in during an emergency. A 4 watt lamp will make the sign look lit, but will not offer the correct amount of light.

In lieu of the replacement LED lamps, look into having all of your exit signs replaced with new signs with permanent LED lighting built in.

These signs are readily available at electrical distributors, cost is about $25.00 each, with backup battery. Also check with your local electric utility, state, or public utility commission for an incentive program that offers rebates to install energy saving devices,