Copper Bulb – Wiki Guide

A copper bulb is a light-emitting block. It toggles on or off when it receives a redstone pulse, and does not need continuous power to emit light. Its light level depends on its state of oxidation.

Waxed copper bulbs do not oxidize, but otherwise function identically.

Background

Unoxidized

Exposed

Weathered

Oxidized  

Icon in Inventory: Unoxidized Exposed Weathered Oxidized

Stackable: Yes (64)

Tool:  Pickaxe

Hardness: 3

Obtaining

Breaking

Copper bulbs can be mined only with a stone pickaxe or better. If a copper bulb is mined without the use of a valid pickaxe, it drops nothing.

Block	Copper Bulb Exposed Copper Bulb Weathered Copper Bulb Oxidized Copper Bulb
Hardness	3
Tool

Breaking time (sec)
Default	15
Wooden	7.5
Stone	1.15
Iron	0.75
Diamond	0.6
Netherite	0.5
Golden	1.25

Natural generation

Lit, unwaxed copper bulbs in random states of oxidation are generated in trial chambers.

Crafting

Name	Ingredients	Crafting recipe
Unwaxed Copper Bulb or Waxed Copper Bulb	Matching Unwaxed Block of Copper or Matching Waxed Block of Copper + Blaze Rod + Redstone Dust
Waxed Copper Bulb	Matching Unwaxed Copper Bulb + Honeycomb

Usage

Copper bulbs can be activated to emit light, with the light level emitted decreasing for each stage of oxidation. When the copper bulb receives a redstone pulse, it immediately toggles between its lit and unlit states.

A comparator can read the state of a copper bulb, and it emits a signal strength of 15 if the bulb is lit, regardless of oxidation. If the bulb is unlit, the comparator does not emit any power, allowing this comparator and copper bulb combination to act as a compact T flip-flop.

While the copper bulb is receiving redstone power (either to toggle the bulb on or off) a red dot appears in the center of the block. An observer can detect this, and emits a signal when a copper bulb becomes powered or unpowered.

Oxidation

Non-waxed copper bulbs have four stages of oxidation (including the initial normal state). Lightning bolts and axes can remove the oxidation on copper bulbs. They can be waxed with honeycomb to prevent oxidation from progressing.

As the block begins to oxidize (exposed), it gets discolored and green spots begin to appear. As the oxidation continues (weathered), the block is a green color with brown spots. In the last stage (oxidized), the block is teal with several green spots.

The light level emitted by copper bulbs also changes depending on the stage of oxidation.

Oxidation level	Light level
Normal	15
Exposed	12
Weathered	8
Oxidized	4

Data Values

ID

Java Edition:

Name	Identifier	Form	Block tags	Translation key
Copper Bulb	copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.copper_bulb
Exposed Copper Bulb	exposed_copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.exposed_copper_bulb
Weathered Copper Bulb	weathered_copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.weathered_copper_bulb
Oxidized Copper Bulb	oxidized_copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.oxidized_copper_bulb
Waxed Copper Bulb	waxed_copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.waxed_copper_bulb
Waxed Exposed Copper Bulb	waxed_exposed_copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.waxed_exposed_copper_bulb
Waxed Weathered Copper Bulb	waxed_weathered_copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.waxed_weathered_copper_bulb
Waxed Oxidized Copper Bulb	waxed_oxidized_copper_bulb	Block & Item	mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool	block.minecraft.waxed_oxidized_copper_bulb

Bedrock Edition:

Name	Identifier	Numeric ID	Form	Item ID[i 1]	Translation key
Copper Bulb	copper_bulb	-776	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.copper_bulb.name
Exposed Copper Bulb	exposed_copper_bulb	-777	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.exposed_copper_bulb.name
Weathered Copper Bulb	weathered_copper_bulb	-778	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.weathered_copper_bulb.name
Oxidized Copper Bulb	oxidized_copper_bulb	-779	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.oxidized_copper_bulb.name
Waxed Copper Bulb	waxed_copper_bulb	-780	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.waxed_copper_bulb.name
Waxed Exposed Copper Bulb	waxed_exposed_copper_bulb	-781	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.waxed_exposed_copper_bulb.name
Waxed Weathered Copper Bulb	waxed_weathered_copper_bulb	-782	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.waxed_weathered_copper_bulb.name
Waxed Oxidized Copper Bulb	waxed_oxidized_copper_bulb	-783	Block & Giveable Item[i 2]	Identical[i 3]	tile.waxed_oxidized_copper_bulb.name

1. ID of block’s direct item form, which is used in savegame files and addons.
2. Available with /give command.
3. The block’s direct item form has the same id as the block.