Don't put a 100w bulb in a 75w fixture
 

I feel I am reasonably prudent when it comes to electrical matters. I wouldn't put a 100 watt bulb in a fixture rated for 40w or 60w. But I have probably routinely gone one size bigger when I was looking for more light and didn't think it would be a problem. Guess I was wrong.

Had to change a bulb in a recessed light in a walk in closet. The glass separated from the base when I tried to remove the spent bulb. I used a cut off piece of potato to try to remove the base and the socket pushed through the recessed fixture trim. So I removed the trim and was shocked (pun intended) to discover melted insulation on the neutral.

This looks like a fire waiting to happen. Thank goodness I had a reason to take this fixture apart.

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...g/IMG_1360.jpg

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...g/IMG_1357.jpg

This would be a good time to start switching to CFL's- they don't have the current draw or the heat.

Same applies to our cars . . . putting in a 7W "hyperwhite" wedge bulb in the 5W instrument cluster socket is eventually going to melt the plastic prisms in the older cars.

As was posted above....why the heck are you using incandescent bulbs? 100W? You can light a whole house with less power than that!

Step into the future. I even consider CFL's a "moderately dated" technology. I am slowly migrating most of my lighting to ultra-efficient LED's. Can light a whole room with less than 5W of power! And even the lower lifespan ones last over 20,000 hours!

CFL's, while popular and portrayed as "the future" isn't always the best choice for illumination.

I wouldn't bank on that damage necessarily being caused solely by using a 100 W bulb in a 75 W fixture.

A poor electrical connection can result in local resistive heating that really cooks things. Use of a higher-wattage lamp would of course aggravate such a condition (higher current, more resistive heating).

What's the payback time on a CFL used in a closet?

Where do you get em from?

It might be a freak accident. Lets try THIS sucker to make sure. :D

I am steadily transitioning to CFL's. Haven't bought an incandescent in about two years. But I don't replace incandescents until they fail.

I've had several (at least 4 out of maybe 20) CFL's fail within 18 months even though the ratings say they'll last 8 - 11 years. Anyone else seeing this?

I was in Lowes yesterday and saw the LED's. They run upwards of $20 each. I'm not ready to shell that out until more data on their longevity is available.

Interesting. The connections to the socket are rivets done in the factory (you can see them in the second picture). The other end of the wires terminate in a molded connector that plugs into the recessed light trim. Doesn't seem likely that either end would be a poor connection.

BTW, this fixture was installed 21 years ago when I built the house.

CFLs have a LOT of issue's, I do use them where I can though.

MERCURY, requires special caustious disposal.
Not dimmable, I have most of my house on dimmers.
Longevity, heavily affected by on/off cycles.
Actually less efficient for fixtures that are turned on and off constantly, flourescents require a huge (relatively) power draw to start.
Color, getting better.
Cold start, not good for outdoors in cold climates.
Limited styles.
Slow start, I have several that take up to 5 minutes to produce full light.

Philips makes a $60 12W LED bulb that is equal to a 60W . . . 25x the life, using 80% less juice . . .

http://www.wired.com/images/productr...ural_led_f.jpg


The glow from the Philips EnduraLED is as comforting as Mom’s cooking, thanks to a special phosphor coating that absorbs the blue glare and transforms the light into a warm, golden hue — 2,700 degrees on the Kelvin scale. And using just 12 watts, the lamp matches the brightness of a 60-watt incandescent. Yet putting out all that shine exposes the LED’s kryptonite: heat. If diodes get too toasty, they’ll go supernova. So the Endura features cast-aluminum heat sinks to dissipate thermal energy from the LED panels. The result is a bulb that can screw into any socket, turn on instantly, and last 25 times longer than an equivalent incandescent, all while using 80 percent less power. Brilliant!

I'm all for LEDs, but I cannot in anyway justify the cost.
I expect them to come down in cost soon.

One issue that I do not like it that one discussion of them refered to lamps etc being made with permament LEDs, so when the light does go the lamp etc is trash.
Seems wasteful at the expense of saving a few pennies.
I hope this does not come about.

I'll try sometime and calculate the cost differences, energy wise at least.

But lifetime estimates are tough.
New incandescents are better and last longer than they used to.
Since the vast majority of mine are on high end dimmers that ramp up and down, they are not subjected to that jolt when they come on, so they last MANY years.
The 5 in the family room are well over 10 years old and still going strong, the kitchen ones 6+ and the same thing.
But the exterior house lights rarely make 2 years, they are automaticly on about 6 hours a day, and the one in the laundry room (1 incandescent, 2 SLOW start CFLs) is replaced regularly also. It is on a strat switch, the reason it is there is the CFLs take a long time before they produce enough light to move around safely, once running they are fine though.

The ramp up down (IMHO) makes a HUGE difference in the lifespan of bulbs, as some others that are not on dimmers do need to be replaced more often.


The flourescents(regular tube) in my basement (18 bulbs), and garage (24 bulbs) are 10+ years old and I've only replaced a few.

I put those curly cue light bulbs throughout my house and my electric bill went down $50 a month. :D

Depends on how many suckers will buy it. At one time, SUVs were the rage. When gas prices hit the roof and then some, they were dumped like yesterday's dog poop. People were buying the econo-mobiles that would save them a few bucks at the pump but would pay more in the long run. So as long as some suckers are willing to pay the premium, why should I lower my prices?

Depends on the price of the lamp, I would say. If the bulk of the costs were in the bulb, the lamp becomes disposable.

My electric bill only averages 170 / month, thats with several large fish tanks (heaters, pumps, lights (t-8s and t-10 flour), too many computers (6 including one monster energy sucker), gas heat/dryer/cooking, and my workshop which has the compressor etc.
And most of the lights that are used are either dimmed or flourescent.

So I don't see them having any big effect.

I will though use them where ever I can WHEN the existing bulb fails.

Not more than 200 years

thanks clk-man, i had no idea what all those acronyms meant. (actually, i still don't. :D ) but i have used the curly cues myself, and they seem to last longer.

I get my LED's from Home Depot....Menards.....Walmart, they are everywhere. And they DO last forever. I've had one in a light here in my office for over 2 years now.....its on probably 8-10 hours a day, its still going strong.

Think about the fact that an LED indicator on your typical alarm clock or computer spends many many years on 24/7 and never goes out. They rarely fail. So far I have LED lighting in about 5 lights in my house, the most often used ones. The rest are all various forms of CFL or fluorescent. Only three incandescent fixtures in the house, and they are on less than an hour a week and are on dimmers, so its not worth it. CFL/LED can be used in about 95% of situations with no detrimental effect.

Buying a good brand name CFL does result in longer life/better quality light.

My power bill only averages in the $65-70 range, and thats with a server, 3 other PC's, network equipment...all on 24/7, electric dryer.....and range.....we're quite efficient. :D Lighting probably is less than 2% of my power bill at this point.

But darned close to it.

Hm, I'm fairly certain the bill for my house's electric, was nearly $450 in the summer..

Salt water or fresh water fish? the wife use to have both for many years. :D

Fresh water, this link is VERY old, but I have the 55 on top, a 75 on the bottom in the wall.
The wall pic with 2 on the bottom was before I updated it to a 75.
Also have a 55 and 2 10's loose in the room.

Several other tanks in storage until I have time again.

That link is so old, it's invisible! :)

OOPs forgot to put the link in


http://www.knudsons.com/FishTanks.htm

Buy all your CFL's from HD
 

Their house brand has "Nine Year Guarantee" on the package.
Anytime one of my CFLs burns out ,I show them the package and walk
out with a New Free replacement bulb.

They're on their THIRD Chinese manufacturer.

And the CFL Bulbs are made especially for Home Depot.

Time for a smaller house? :eek: Are you cooling a stadium?

Or maybe that 1955 AirCon Unit set to 55F is a bit extreme. :D :D ;)

This summer I used a 12k and 5.5k btu window unit quite a lot, and my highest bill was about $90

house was built in 81, expanded in 04, somewhere around 4k sqft w/o finished basement..

dual Lennox furnace/aircon units installed 04

august-september bill year: 4688Kwh, 440.80

cfl's fail in huge amounts- I've had closer to 7 out of 20. No return on investment at that rate versus original price and running costs.

Dude you're in MICHIGAN. A/C cost in summer are elbow grease to open the window and make sure the screens are not full of holes.

500 years. Worst application for a CFL, since they take a minute to heat up and produce light.

When are you coming out of your closet? :D:D

I would think that it would NEVER pay for itself. I don't think CFLs are the greatest for on-off applications. I put one in our external light and it was triggered by a motion sensor. They replaced bulb after bulb on the warranty.