21 May, 2007, I installed one 26W 6500°K major brand CFL; 8 June,
2007, I installed two 26W 6500°K and four 15W 6500°K CFLs, same major
brand; on 6 October, 2007, I installed two 26W 6500°K and one 15W 6500°K
CFLs, same major brand. I've stuck with the same brand (GE) because it
is the only one of a suitable (to my tired old eyes) color temperature
and widely available in handy-homeowner stores. All are either
horizontal or base-down and well-ventilated. I don't pay much attention
to the "15-minute rule" because, although, it may be a valid point from
an engineering POV, in real-life, it's simply academic twaddle: Life
does not transpire in15-minute units. For example, it is entirely
possible to piss and get off the pot in fewer than 15 minutes; do you
actually know someone who'd leave the light on and then -- getting out
of bed, perhaps -- go back to turn it off? Besides, when nothing but
CFLs is available, the "rule" will be irrelevant. In point of fact, in
two rooms with briefly transitory traffic, I have installed an
incandescent lamp AWA a "sleeper" CFL, used only when the room will be
in use for an extended period.
In recent weeks, two of the low-wattage and one of the
higher-wattage lamps installed in June, '07, have failed; one of the
higher-wattage lamps installed in October, '07 has failed. That seems
comparable to experience with100W incandescent lamps but at
significantly higher expense. Even if the PN succeeds in quadrupling
electricity rates, there's no way those suckers "save" enough juice to
amortize their (much) higher price.
Next week, I'm going to put GE's, "Lasts 5 years" guarantee to the
test. Am I the only cynical Luddite stockpiling "on sale" incandescent
lamps in anticipation of their extinction?
--
Running on single malt in USDA zone 9
Balvenieman wrote:
> 21 May, 2007, I installed one 26W 6500°K major brand CFL; 8 June,
> 2007, I installed two 26W 6500°K and four 15W 6500°K CFLs, same major
> brand; on 6 October, 2007, I installed two 26W 6500°K and one 15W 6500°K
> CFLs, same major brand. I've stuck with the same brand (GE) because it
> is the only one of a suitable (to my tired old eyes) color temperature
> and widely available in handy-homeowner stores. All are either
> horizontal or base-down and well-ventilated. I don't pay much attention
> to the "15-minute rule" because, although, it may be a valid point from
> an engineering POV, in real-life, it's simply academic twaddle: Life
> does not transpire in15-minute units. For example, it is entirely
> possible to piss and get off the pot in fewer than 15 minutes; do you
> actually know someone who'd leave the light on and then -- getting out
> of bed, perhaps -- go back to turn it off? Besides, when nothing but
> CFLs is available, the "rule" will be irrelevant. In point of fact, in
> two rooms with briefly transitory traffic, I have installed an
> incandescent lamp AWA a "sleeper" CFL, used only when the room will be
> in use for an extended period.
> In recent weeks, two of the low-wattage and one of the
> higher-wattage lamps installed in June, '07, have failed; one of the
> higher-wattage lamps installed in October, '07 has failed. That seems
> comparable to experience with100W incandescent lamps but at
> significantly higher expense. Even if the PN succeeds in quadrupling
> electricity rates, there's no way those suckers "save" enough juice to
> amortize their (much) higher price.
> Next week, I'm going to put GE's, "Lasts 5 years" guarantee to the
> test. Am I the only cynical Luddite stockpiling "on sale" incandescent
> lamps in anticipation of their extinction?
Note that 5 years is not 5 years. This is based on so many hours a
day, and I think their 5 years is about 6000 hours.
I'm running mostly Walmart and Home Depot stuff here. The one I just
looked at said Continental Electric. Now, I tend to buy the 7 year and
longer bulbs, but I have just one failure in the last several years and
I am 100% CFL.
BTW 1000 hrs of 100w at 10cents/kWHr is $10.00. So even if your CFL
only lated that long the break even price would be about $7.50. A good
deal, I think.
Jeff
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> 2007, I installed two 26W 6500°K and four 15W 6500°K CFLs, same major
> brand; on 6 October, 2007, I installed two 26W 6500°K and one 15W 6500°K
> CFLs, same major brand. I've stuck with the same brand (GE) because it
> is the only one of a suitable (to my tired old eyes) color temperature
> and widely available in handy-homeowner stores. All are either
> horizontal or base-down and well-ventilated. I don't pay much attention
> to the "15-minute rule" because, although, it may be a valid point from
> an engineering POV, in real-life, it's simply academic twaddle: Life
> does not transpire in15-minute units. For example, it is entirely
> possible to piss and get off the pot in fewer than 15 minutes; do you
> actually know someone who'd leave the light on and then -- getting out
> of bed, perhaps -- go back to turn it off? Besides, when nothing but
> CFLs is available, the "rule" will be irrelevant. In point of fact, in
> two rooms with briefly transitory traffic, I have installed an
> incandescent lamp AWA a "sleeper" CFL, used only when the room will be
> in use for an extended period.
> In recent weeks, two of the low-wattage and one of the
> higher-wattage lamps installed in June, '07, have failed; one of the
> higher-wattage lamps installed in October, '07 has failed. That seems
> comparable to experience with100W incandescent lamps but at
> significantly higher expense. Even if the PN succeeds in quadrupling
> electricity rates, there's no way those suckers "save" enough juice to
> amortize their (much) higher price.
> Next week, I'm going to put GE's, "Lasts 5 years" guarantee to the
> test. Am I the only cynical Luddite stockpiling "on sale" incandescent
> lamps in anticipation of their extinction?