Re: CFL database

[nobody@xxxxxxxxxxxx (Dave Houston)]

AZ Woody <reply@here> wrote:

>Lon wrote:
>
>>
>> Yes CFLs generate more light per watt, but have mercury issues.
>>
>
>Why are only CFLs connected with mercury in this discussion?  The good
>old 4' tubes have the same "issues" with mercury, and have been around
>for decades!

But the bulk of straight tube fluorescents are used in commercial or
industrial facilities where hazardous waste disposal or recycling is not
quite the same issue that it is for households. And they've been used there
for many decades so there's no new mercury aside from normal growth.
Switching from incandescents to CFLs means a net increase in mercury.

I've taken a cue from the "environmentalists" who claim they buy nebulous
carbon offsets to counterbalance all of their trips by plane. I insist that
my electric utility only supply me electrons generated from non-coal burning
plants so I'm not causing any increase in mercury. ;^)

>Back, 20+ years ago, we had a guy (knowledgeable) at work that used to
>yell at people for turning off the overhead flor lights  at midday, and
>then turning them back on at the end of the day (we got dark at 4pm in
>the winter).  "it takes more power to turn these lights on than it takes
>to keep them on all day!"

I was taught that, too, in Air Force electronics school in the late '50s. I
think it was more myth than fact as the inrush current isn't that high and
doesn't last very long. There is a significant effect on bulb life but even
there the actual time was on the order of don't turn it off if it will be
off less than 20 minutes. And things have changed significantly since then.
The latest high efficiency electronic ballasts can even be used with
occupancy sensors.

>Just never get cut from a piece of broken glass from a 4' tube if you
>don't want to have a medical issue - yet how many times over the decades
>have you heard about this happening to anyone?


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