Re: Fluorescent Bulbs Are Known to Zap Domestic Tranquillity; Energy-Savers a Turnoff for Wives

["Robert Green" <ROBERT_GREEN1963@xxxxxxxxx>]

My experience has been worse but I keeping hoping the next batch of bulbs
will be better, and so far, that's been true.  For the most part, the newer
bulbs seem to start faster, last longer and interfere less with X-10.  But a
bulb that emits thick (probably very toxic) smoke when it fails isn't an
improvement, it's a serious setback.

All the assumptions built into the payback equation that we can't verify
personally bother me.  It's not a leap to assume that if the claims about
longevity that I can personally verify are inaccurate, other claims may be
dubious as well, particularly as to exactly where all the mercury goes and
how much of it ends up there.  Mercury is bad stuff:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamata_disease  (look closely at that hand!)

Fixing a pollution problem with a pollutant seems too similar to fixing the
cane beetle problem in Oz by introducing the cane toad,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_Toad

which is now the far larger pest.  Catch both pollutants at the smokestacks.
Don't depend on rosy projections of super long bulb life, reduced overall
electrical demand and responsible recycling that may not quite happen as
predicted.

--
Bobby G.



"BruceR" <razrbruce@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:4648dfd0$0$15127$4c368faf@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> The warranties on the packages all seem to tout 5 to 7 years but in
> reality, my experience has been 4 years tops running them 7 hours a day
> in mild temperatures (never below 65F).  On top of that the DOA rate is
> a very high 3%.  It's a PITA to mail bulbs back and even more of PITA to
> keep track of receipts so the warranty goes unclaimed.
>
>  Dave Houston wrote:
> > ericjhwilson@xxxxxxxxx wrote:
> >
> >> On Apr 30, 4:35 pm, "Robert Green" <ROBERT_GREEN1...@xxxxxxxxx>
> >> wrote:
> >>> "Dave Houston" <nob...@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> >>>
> >>> news:463652fe.1689880921@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> "Robert Green"
> >>> <ROBERT_GREEN1...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >>>
> >>>>> FWIW, my N-vision CFL floodlight has begun to take a very long
> >>>>> time to
> >>> warm
> >>>>> up and appears never able to reach its initial brightness level.
> >>>>> Too
> >>> bad,
> >>>>> because it looked like a real winner at first.  My wife wants it
> >>>>> gone
> >>> from
> >>>>> the kitchen!  I concur.  Slow warmup is really, really annoying
> >>>>> when you want to look at something right away.
> >>>
> >>>> Take care when you remove it lest you drop and break it. ;)
> >>>
> >>>
http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=aa7796...
> >>> -4c06-be84-b62dee548fda
> >>>
> >>> I'm beginning to think CFL's are the gypsy moths of the '00's.
> >>> Instead of
> >>> catching mercury spewing out of smokestacks like we should (along
> >>> with
> >>> carbon) we're distributing toxic mercury all throughout the
> >>> environment,
> >>> hoping it's all going to be properly recycled even thought we know
> >>> Americans
> >>> aren't the best recyclers in the world.  It is pretty bizarre, when
> >>> you stop
> >>> and think about it.  Perhaps the best we can hope for from CFL's is
> >>> that
> >>> they will spur development of better alternatives that don't require
> >>> creating mercury vapor in fragile glass tubes in our homes.
> >>>
> >>> --
> >>> Bobby G.
> >>
> >>
http://dafnwebpd.sylvania.com/idmweb/doccontent.dll?LibraryName=ecomcspd^daf
nctpd&SystemType=2&LogonId=f7eecb462aecb681dcfbdc3351d22153&DocId=003694126&
Page=1
> >>
> >> The mercury emitted by coal power plants to run an incandescent is 26
> >> mg over 5 years.  For a CFL this is 6 mg.  Add to that the max 5 mg
> >> of CFL in the bulb itself and you get 11 mg compared with 26 for the
> >> incandescent.  A mercury thermometer has between 500 and 1,000 mg.
> >> And the 5 mg of mercury in a CFL is contained, as opposed to the
> >> mercury emitted by coal power plants, which is breathed in or
> >> consumed when eating fish.   See the above link for what to do if a
> >> CFL breaks.
> >>
> >> So, as long as 80% of our electricity comes from coal, it's still
> >> better to use CFLs!
> >
> > Many people have reported premature failures after a year or so. If
> > you have to replace the CFL annually, the 5 year score becomes CFL
> > 31mg, Incandescent 26mg.
>
>