This is probably a dumb question, but I haven't been able to find what I'm looking for (possibly due to incorrect terminology). I moved into a house that has a rectangular opening in the ceiling above the shower that houses a standard light bulb. The opening is uncovered--it's ugly and I'd like to cover it up. There is a sort of flat metal frame around it, as though there was once a rectangular plastic cover that has disappeared. Are these covers replaceable? If so, where can I find them? Any tips would be greatly appreciated--and sorry for the silly nature of this question!

Not a silly question. Yes there probably was some type of cover. Can you find a brand name at all on the fixture? If it is too old finding a replacement may be difficult, especially if you don't have a brand name.

No, it looks pretty old and I can't see anything on it that would help identify it. I was thinking maybe I could find some sort of plastic sheeting material that could be cut to the right size, but I'm not sure what materials are safe that close to a light bulb.

It's called a defuser.
Lowes and Home Depot have them in the dropped ceiling area.
If it's a light about 6 X 6 or so then most likly at one time it had a frosted glass one. If your luck they may have them in the lighting area or a real glass company may have something laying around.

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I'd replace that bulb with a compact fluorescent so that you can use a much wider variety of materials for the cover.

Another option would be to just go to any glass shop and buy a piece of "pin head" glass the size you need to slip into place. Pin head glass is glass that's bumpy on one side to allow sunlight into a bathroom, but still provide privacy for the people in that bathroom.

Yep, we've already replaced it with a fluorescent (so many lights in this house, and every fixture had incandescent bulbs when we moved in!). The light is on, at most, for 10-15 minutes a day, so I guess heat isn't really an issue. Sounds like a piece of glass is going to be the easiest solution, and I know there are pretty options to choose from--thanks so much for all of the suggestions and advice!

this is OVER THE SHOWER??? rent it out to the prison folks for an electric chair, this shower.

lighting over the shower has to be rated, and that basically means waterproof with waterproof installation to the ceiling. it also needs these days to be on a GFI protected electrical circuit. this was probably a MOE or Thomas recessed fixture of the type that went "out" in the 70s. it cannot be waterproofed to be legal or safe in an enclosed shower or wet area.

this is a big danger, and needs to be addressed soonest.

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