MARKETING!!!

[MasonJar]

Unfortunately, the lfourescent bulbs do not work in outside applications such as porch and garage lights. The new ones might be more efficient, but until the new ones can do the same job in all settings there will still be use for plain old incandescents. I use 45 watts for outside lights, myself. I just need to see adequately, not signal to the Hubble. 8-)

I have had a 13W (~60W equivalent) CFL in my outside light for nearly two years through all kinds of Canadian weather. In my neighbourhood, there are no street lights, just lights on everyone's front yard that are controlled by sensors. They are wired into the houses, but with no switches. They come on at dusk and turn off at dawn. Originally part of the city's plan to offload costs to residents.

Andrew

[Brakie]

Mmmmm..I guess my 100 watts isn't earth friendly..

But,that's a mote point..

It doesn't matter.

We are doom! DOOM!


The earth will end in 2012.. :o

[ngauger]

I tried using one in the desk lamp at work and my eyes were hurting less than 5 minutes later.

I ended up putting the incandescent bulb back in and there were no more problems. I just turn the lamp off when I'm away from the desk or when I can see my reports clearly.

Got ya covered.. it's not the bulb it's you!!!!

it affects a LOT of people... read here:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://alight.vox.com/">http://alight.vox.com/</a><!-- m -->

[ngauger]

Unfortunately, the lfourescent bulbs do not work in outside applications such as porch and garage lights. The new ones might be more efficient, but until the new ones can do the same job in all settings there will still be use for plain old incandescents. I use 45 watts for outside lights, myself. I just need to see adequately, not signal to the Hubble. 8-)

Most do not work wel in "cold" outside applications. For outside use you need a "Cold Weather rated" bulb:

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://lighterfootstep.com/2008/10/dont-leave-cfl-bulbs-out-in-the-cold/">http://lighterfootstep.com/2008/10/dont ... -the-cold/</a><!-- m -->

[ngauger]

Geeze!! Who would have ever thought that someting i learned at work, would help me on a railroad board?!?!?!

[Russ Bellinis]

I tried using one in the desk lamp at work and my eyes were hurting less than 5 minutes later.

I ended up putting the incandescent bulb back in and there were no more problems. I just turn the lamp off when I'm away from the desk or when I can see my reports clearly.

The problem is that our eyes are calibrated to the heat and wave length of sunlight. The eyes will adjust to less light, but as we get older they don't adjust as well. The cfl bulbs will work fine for back lighting or general room light, but for close work at a desk you need something like an Ott lamp to get adequate lighting. You still need decent back ground or fill lighting. A daylight spectrum lamp over a desk in a dark room is also bad for your eyes.

[doctorwayne]

This is all part of a government plot to keep us "in the dark". A couple of days ago, I picked up some bulbs that I had ordered at a local electrical supply - according to the guy on the counter, the 40 watt fluorescent tubes will soon be no longer available. I guess that I'd better stock up on those, too. This is, of course, in the People's Republic of Ontari-ari-ario, where Big Brother feels the need to babysit the masses. These are the same donkeys that intend to make the use of cfl bulbs mandatory, despite their propensity to burst into flames.

Wayne

[sgtcarl1]

Yes, and if you drop and break one, or one explodes, you can't just pick up the pieces. They contain mercury, and you are supposed to call a haz-mat team to come and properly clean up the mess. The approximate cost? 2-5,000 dollars, American. And your home owner's insurance WON'T pay for it! I'm NOT kidding! These so-called eco-friendly bulbs aren't so eco-friendly! They are hazardous!! Blame it all on Al "the Bore" Gore.

[TrainNut]

I've got 8 bulbs in my kitchen (recessed) and 8 more in the family room (2 strips of track lighting). I have not completely converted over and I don't think I will until I have to as it seems these darn CFL's burn out faster than the incandescants. I thought they were supposed to last a LOOOOOOOOOOOT longer.

[EM-1]

I don't know how well the CFL bulbs are sealed for outdoor use, but I have seen that they don't work with the motion detector outdoor fixtures I have at my house and garage doors. They are often incompatible with electronic switches and dimmers as well. However, indoors, they did get me an award for process improvement at the lab where I work.
We have an indoor facility for performing RFI Susceptablilty on developmental electronics products before getting the circuits certified prior to release. In the two rooms, there are a total of ten triple shielded box fixtures. They are limited to 3 60 Watt bulbs each fixture. In operation, they consume 180 Watts per fixture, therefore up to 1800 Watt total. Also, when doing a test series, at least 1/2 the incandescents would need replacement beforethe end of a test. I started tracking the lifespan, and found we could expect maybe 6 months per bulb.
I replaced each trio of 60W bulbs with 2 27W CFLs. 54 W per fixture, about 1/3 the electricity, the rooms actually had more light, and the bulbs are lasting over 2 years. The bulbs are individually more expensive than incandescents, but over time, we save almost 65% in overall cost, and have more light to work with. The only irritation is that because the CFLs generate some electrical noise, we have to turn them off for certain testing. No real problem, since you don't want to be in the test cell when it's operating, anyway. It would be like beng inside a 350W microwave oven.

[sgtcarl1]

H-m-m-m. I wonder, since CFL s emit "noise," would they interfere with sensitive equipment such as radio telescopes?

[doctorwayne]

They only emit noise if there's someone "out there" to hear it.

Wayne

[EM-1]

Got a couple hundred thousand worth of snoopy instrumentation that likes to eavesdrop!