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Old 07-08-2009, 10:20 PM
 
Location: Austin, TX
15,269 posts, read 35,637,527 times
Reputation: 8617

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The mercury levels have gone way down and the reduced electrical load lowers power requirements. Lower power requirements = less coal burned = less mercury from power plants. I have seen numbers shown both ways, and it is probably somewhere around a draw, but the mercury in the bulbs at least isnt spewed directly into the air.
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Old 07-08-2009, 11:11 PM
 
4,710 posts, read 7,102,284 times
Reputation: 5613
I agree that CFLs have gotten strange lately. I replaced a row of them in a bathroom strip light - got them at Home Depot. The bulbs initially have a split second of brightness, then become dim. Its like the bathroom is lit by candles. It takes a few minutes before they are actually fully bright. I hate it! We just remodeled 2 bathrooms, and because of this problem, I purposefully bought light fixtures that use linear fluorescents. They are really great - bright, instant on, no problem. We may just get a new fixture for that strip light. I can't afford to keep trying CFLs to get ones that work well.
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Old 07-09-2009, 10:18 AM
 
Location: Avery Ranch, Austin, TX
8,977 posts, read 17,552,407 times
Reputation: 4001
Quote:
Originally Posted by G Grasshopper View Post
I agree that CFLs have gotten strange lately. I replaced a row of them in a bathroom strip light - got them at Home Depot. The bulbs initially have a split second of brightness, then become dim. Its like the bathroom is lit by candles. It takes a few minutes before they are actually fully bright. I hate it! We just remodeled 2 bathrooms, and because of this problem, I purposefully bought light fixtures that use linear fluorescents. They are really great - bright, instant on, no problem. We may just get a new fixture for that strip light. I can't afford to keep trying CFLs to get ones that work well.
Consider mixing CFLs with incandescent...we had one fixture with three lamps, left one of them incandescent and the other two CFL. You get the 'instant on' light and full light in less than a minute or so. Still save heat and money but you will have a 'blend' of light color.

Unfortunately, the Drees home(master bath) we're in now has HALOGEN lamps in EIGHT slots/two fixtures...smallest Halogen to fit is 50w!!! That's 400 watts to light a bathroom...never mind the 5 can lights in the ceiling! I can't believe electricity was THAT cheap five years ago!

We had early CFLs in our old house for over 8 years(laundry room, work shop) but I have had some fail in less than a year. Looks like LEDs have a ways to go before they are any better than lousy CFLs(and a lot more spendy). No free lunch, as they say.

Still, DW and I have replaced nearly every medium-base lamp with CFLs, saving power and heat output throughout the house.
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Old 07-09-2009, 10:35 AM
 
Location: Austin, TX
16,787 posts, read 49,068,148 times
Reputation: 9478
Quote:
Originally Posted by 10scoachrick View Post
Consider mixing CFLs with incandescent...we had one fixture with three lamps, left one of them incandescent and the other two CFL. You get the 'instant on' light and full light in less than a minute or so. Still save heat and money but you will have a 'blend' of light color.

Unfortunately, the Drees home(master bath) we're in now has HALOGEN lamps in EIGHT slots/two fixtures...smallest Halogen to fit is 50w!!! That's 400 watts to light a bathroom...never mind the 5 can lights in the ceiling! I can't believe electricity was THAT cheap five years ago!

We had early CFLs in our old house for over 8 years(laundry room, work shop) but I have had some fail in less than a year. Looks like LEDs have a ways to go before they are any better than lousy CFLs(and a lot more spendy). No free lunch, as they say.

Still, DW and I have replaced nearly every medium-base lamp with CFLs, saving power and heat output throughout the house.
That is a good compromise, I have done the same with the 8 can lights in the kitchen, leaving one of them incandescent and the rest CF. So we get one bright instant on light over the counter next to the sink.
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Old 07-09-2009, 10:51 AM
 
Location: 78737
351 posts, read 1,431,345 times
Reputation: 170

YouTube - IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT ENERGY SAVER LIGHT BULBS!
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Old 07-09-2009, 01:01 PM
 
1,157 posts, read 2,652,272 times
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Oh my, what an embarrassment. Sometimes I remember that I live in Texas.

These guys are the ones running our country. Wow.
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Old 07-09-2009, 01:45 PM
 
Location: 78747
3,202 posts, read 6,020,012 times
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Do you have recessed can lights with dimmers in the kitchen? The dimmer switches don't work well with CFL's as there is a "ballast" in the CFL (the heavy plastic thing at the base of the bulb) that initiates the light within the bulb. There is no "in-between" on CFL's unless you buy a special kind. The gas in the bulb is agitated by the ballast in a chain reaction with the result for the bulb to be either "on" or "off" - not "half-way" - or you get that weird "strobing" effect like when a tube flourescent is about to die.
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Old 07-09-2009, 01:55 PM
 
Location: Austin, TX
16,787 posts, read 49,068,148 times
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No, just on off switch in kitchen. That is something to keep in mind though, I have one dimmer in the dining room.
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Old 07-09-2009, 02:28 PM
 
Location: Avery Ranch, Austin, TX
8,977 posts, read 17,552,407 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CptnRn View Post
No, just on off switch in kitchen. That is something to keep in mind though, I have one dimmer in the dining room.
Probably will still work IF the dimmer is on max. We have dimmer-style lamps that work fine w/CFLs as long as they are switched on full.
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