Old-style bulbs 'being hoarded'

[2 As and a B]

If the the nights were supposed to be as light as the days, we would have been given two suns. I find enough light to be able to do what I want is adequate. I don't need the house lit up like a Christmas tree to watch TV, drink beer, etc.

[Kieran]

Personally I love CFLs, they last ages give out reasonable light and use lots less electricity. They're not good for my Dad though as he has advanced macular degeneration and needs a very bright light, especially for reading.

Check out led lamps. They are perceived as very bright. They're getting better all the time and give a sharp, focused light. Not to everyone's taste for reading but personally I find they help enormously and use tiny amounts of juice.

I'll look into those, thanks for the tip.

[adam2]

regarding the CFL's - am I correct in thinking that they contain more 'nasties' and take more energy to produce?

Yes, CFLs contain mercury which is toxic, therefore such lamps should be recycled.
However even if they are not recycled, the mercury emited by dumping them is less than that resulting from burning more coal in power plants to produce the extra electricity used for incandescent lamps.

CFLs also take more energy to manufacture than incandescent lamps, but it is inncorrect to compare the energy used on a one to one basis.
The CFL should last ten times longer than the incandescent lamp, therefore one should compare the embodied energy of ONE CFL with that of TEN incandescents.
The embodied energy of a CFL is said (by Phillips who make both sorts) to be about three times that of an incandescent.

[adam2]

The powers that be seem to have gone off half cocked.
Do they really think CCFLs can be used to replace oven lamps ?
There are thousands of applications where CFLs cannot be used.
Low voltage applications just being one enormous field.

Barry White

CFLs can be used in many low voltage applications, they are readily available in 12 volt and 24 volt.
However the new regulations only apply to lamps designed for 60 volts or over.
Therefore 12, 24, 32, 42, and 50 volt lamps will still be available for as long as manufactuerers find production to be worthwhile.

Special appliance lamps, including oven lamps are exempt and may still be sold but must be marked "unsuitable for domestic lighting" or some similar wording.

[madibe]

Thanks Adam2 for the info. Appreciated.

[fifthcolumn]

I already have a lifetime supply of the new bulbs.

I went into sainsburys one day and they had a rather strange offer. Ten energy saving light bulbs for £1 or 99p each. I asked an employee whether a pricing mistake had been made and she said that it was correct. So I bought 30 of them for £3. I have used two of them and they have lasted for a year so far. I don't notice the difference anymore. I am used to it.

Ha. Applause mate. I did the same thing.
They are rather less than the brightness they're purported to be, but as you say, you get used to them, especially at 10p each.

Unfortunately I had to give them away when I moved because they don't work over here. The fixture is different and it's not worth using a power converter because the loss in conversion would outweigh the energy savings.

But I did feel rather smug with a cupboard full of them when I was back home.

[Vortex]

because they don't work over here.

So where have you moved to?

Anywhere exciting?

[snow hope]

FC moved to Canada

[adam2]

In general I would avoid the very cheap CFLs of unknown manufacture, the details regarding colour temperature, light out put and life are unlikely to be accurate, and such lamps may be less safe.

Reputable brands such as Phillips, Osram, Slyvania, and G.E. are regaularly sold for £1 each, and sometimes for much less.

Even reputable brands are often a bit optimistic as regards light output, for example when it is stated that a CFL gives "equivalent light to a 60 watt incandescent" what they normally mean is in fact nearest equivalent, not an exact equivalent.
That is the CFL is closer to a 60 watt incandescent than to a 40 watt incandescent, it might in fact be same as perhaps a 52 watt incandescent.

In many cases a slight reduction in light is of no consequence.
If however the full light output is essiential than I recomend replacing incandescent lamps with CFLs of 25% of the incandescent wattage and not the 20% often recomended.

For example, a 60 watt incandescent can often be replaced with an 11 watt CFL which will be a little dimmer, if however no reduction in light is acceptable, then I would use a 15 watt CFL not 11 watt.

High street stores sell CFLs from about 7 watts, up to about 25 watts.
Specialist suppliers have them from 3 watts up to at least 60 watts.

LED lamps are improving rapidly, and can compete with the lower powerred CFLs, and with directional or spot lights already.
Good LED lamps are very expensive though, and cheap ones are rubbish and give the technology a bad name.

For very low powered decorative or night lighting, LEDs are already the best option, but not yet for MOST general lighting.

[Aurora]

The Guardian - 31/08/09

Incandescent rage as lights go out on old 100W bulbs

Article continues ...

..... the intense feelings generated by the imminent extinction of the 100W lightbulb are a stark illustration of the uphill battle facing those who hope to wean consumers away from planet-spoiling behaviour. If so many people are so attached to something as trivial as lightbulbs, what hope is there of cutting the use of cars and planes?

How true.

[WolfattheDoor]

The Guardian - 31/08/09

Incandescent rage as lights go out on old 100W bulbs

Article continues ...

..... the intense feelings generated by the imminent extinction of the 100W lightbulb are a stark illustration of the uphill battle facing those who hope to wean consumers away from planet-spoiling behaviour. If so many people are so attached to something as trivial as lightbulbs, what hope is there of cutting the use of cars and planes?

How true.

Reading some of the comments on the Guardian website (which you would think would be more sensible and green), it makes you despair of mankind.

[revdode]

I think Adam2 covered most of the open points. One issue is that we shouldn't be too optimistic about further big steps in CFL technology. It is a fairly well developed variation based on a mature technology. Changes in the non-integrated market in the last few years have been slight. Cost savings on quality lamps are likely to come from further volumes but most of the larger companies involved now focus there development on sold state lighting.
As well as developments in accent lighting (we will see LED spots capable of matching 45W the 60W halogen for light output and beam angle range early next year) there are now some credible LED products in the professional markets for general lighting applications.
These will make an impact in home lighting in coming years (assuming the world doesn't end) especially as new technology companies use the change to move into the lighting market. However I don't think we will see credible plug in replacement general lamp based on LEDs. Having said that I thought LEDs were oversold only eighteen months ago... you never know.
Adam2 is (as usual) right on the money if you can excuse the pun when it comes to pricing and quality. Clone products using poor quality drivers and low end LEDs are unreliable and really more a novelty item in many cases than a usable light source.
For me if I was putting new lights in my house this year I would probably go for recessed (if I had the ceiling space) or surface mounted compact fluorescent from a professional range of products. Separating the gear from the lamp and adding a good quality reflector is still one of the most efficient ways to light a space.

[Bazz]

I take it Aurora you will be able to provide me with replacements for my
test equipment and radios etc etc.
There are mirriades of equipments that use lamps in all sorts of applications.

[revdode]

I take it Aurora you will be able to provide me with replacements for my
test equipment and radios etc etc.
There are mirriades of equipments that use lamps in all sorts of applications.

Limited numbers of lamps remain available for specialist applications, the price will likely increase as these become increasingly niche applications.

[adam2]

I take it Aurora you will be able to provide me with replacements for my
test equipment and radios etc etc.
There are mirriades of equipments that use lamps in all sorts of applications.

There should be no need to replace any test gear or radio equipment, in the UK the ban applies to mains voltage (over 60 volts) lamps inteneded for household and similar illumination.

Pilot lamps, vehicle lamps, torch bulbs, and vehicle lamps are not covered by the new restrictions, and may still be sold, manufactured or imported.
For new equipment I would advise the use of LED pilot lamps in the interests of efficiency and long life, and these should be retrofitted in old equipment when possible.

However a lot of old equipment cant be readily retrofitted with LED lamps, therefore such lamps are exempt.
Many old radio sets for example use incandescent pilot lamps in series with the valve heaters, they cant be readily replaced with anything else.

I have no doubt that the more common types of pilot lamp, torch bulb and vehicle lamps will still be available in several decades time.

Some of the rarer types will allmost certainly go out of production, some are already de-listed.
That however is not due to any government ban, but simply because production is no longer viable.
I would therefore advise stockpiling any rare or uncommon pilot lamps, torch bulbs, or vehicle lamps that you may require.

Those who restore old or vintage electronics, or vintage vehicles, already have to search for authentic spare parts, this will soon include lamps.

The following are now very hard to find, but they were either never very popular, or went out of general use decades ago.

20 volt 3 watt, MES coloured Christmas light bulbs
12 volt 3 watt MES coloured Christmas light bulbs
8 volt 0.3 amp radio panel bulbs
2.5 volt 0.1 amp radio panel bulbs
6 volt 0.04 amp MES bulbs
2.5 volt 0.25 amp MES torch bulbs
6 volt frosted GLS, BC, 15 watt
5.5 volt 0.3 amp torch bulbs
8.5 volt 0.7 amp prefocus torchbulbs

And many others, but that I stress is lack of demand, not a ban.