Got a CFL?

[runawayjim]

Is there a version that could be used to replace the large, round, clear bulbs you see in bathrooms or on something like a powder-room mirror? CFL's would look a littl funny in them I think.

[nashbill]

I have been changing over all the bulbs in my house over the past year. I am just now getting to the odd shaped special bulbs, like in bathrooms, dining rooms and outdoor. I have not been waiting for light bulbs to burn out. My question is, what do you do with all the bulbs you have replaced. It seems like a waste to throw them out. And I certainly don't want to give them to someone else to use. That kind of defeats the whole purpose. Can they be recycled? Do I just pitch them?

[suburban george3]

Is there a version that could be used to replace the large, round, clear bulbs you see in bathrooms or on something like a powder-room mirror? CFL's would look a littl funny in them I think.

[Captain Worley]

I did see the lights SG3 was referring to, they're about 9 bucks for two of them at Lowe's.

The smaller CFL's only went to 60W equivalent; I need 100W, so the porch light will remain incandescent for the time being.

I did pick up a 50-100-150W equivalent three way, actually a pair of them. They were 9.77 a pop at Wally world. Note that they are even bigger than the 100W equivalent CFL, appreciably bigger, and may not fit your lamp. I'm going to have to take one back, and probably have to get another lamp shade for the one I'm using as the CFL sticks far out over the top of the shade.

[suburban george3]

I did see the lights SG3 was referring to, they're about 9 bucks for two of them at Lowe's.

The smaller CFL's only went to 60W equivalent; I need 100W, so the porch light will remain incandescent for the time being.

[Captain Worley]

No I didn't, but I have to admit I've been disappointed by the amount of light. The three ways I just got seem to be more like a true 100W incandescent, but they are'rated'as equivalent to a 150W. I've actually had to pull out my old reading lamps because the CFLs don't put out enough to read by.

[monsoon]

I got a 6 pack of bulbs at costco or was it walmart for $9.95. Thats pretty cheap. Got some 60s, some 75s and some 100s. A few years ago I got a free 150w as part of a promotion and its in the basement. The only incandescent bulbs left in the house are in a chandelier that we rarely use, a lamp with an oddball socket, and in the fridge. I figure it is saving $15 - $20/month on the electric bill, especially in the winter months when the lights are on more. During the summer that is also a good bit of heat not to have to contend with.

Walmart has announced it is coming out with a house brand so I expect the prices to drop further.

[suburban george3]

No I didn't, but I have to admit I've been disappointed by the amount of light. The three ways I just got seem to be more like a true 100W incandescent, but they are'rated'as equivalent to a 150W. I've actually had to pull out my old reading lamps because the CFLs don't put out enough to read by.

[runawayjim]

The CFL's do put out light on a slightly different color than incadescents. Of course, the manufacuturers are trying to correct this by coloration on the tube/globe. I have seen soft light, bright light, bug light, and day light cfl's. At first, the difference in light color bothered me just a bit, but now that I'm used to it I can't tell any kind of difference.

[suburban george3]

i don't think it's a smart idea to ban incandescent bulbs. they do still serve a lot of purposes (clear bulbs for bathroom fixtures like someone mentioned, dimmers, lights on timers, and a bunch of niche purposes).

[runawayjim]

Many municipalities, states, and countries are looking at mandating banning incadescent bulbs and I support them. Too many people are going to still buy the incadescent because of a perceived savings at purchase just on shelf price.

[Recchia]

CFL's don't work with dimmers, right?

[Neo]

CFL's don't work with dimmers, right?

Not all work with dimmers but there are some that do. CFL technology is advancing to allow niche applications such as dimming. When I first started using CFL's there were no 3-way CFL's but now I have them in all of my lamps and they work quite well.

[jfmecca]

I have been changing over all the bulbs in my house over the past year. I am just now getting to the odd shaped special bulbs, like in bathrooms, dining rooms and outdoor. I have not been waiting for light bulbs to burn out. My question is, what do you do with all the bulbs you have replaced. It seems like a waste to throw them out. And I certainly don't want to give them to someone else to use. That kind of defeats the whole purpose. Can they be recycled? Do I just pitch them?

[Captain Worley]

Newsweek had an interesting article on CFL's that touched on a lot of areas. One interesting point was that energy efficient products miust make economic sense to acheive mass appeal.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21131778/site/newsweek/page/2/

[suburban george3]

Newsweek had an interesting article on CFL's that touched on a lot of areas. One interesting point was that energy efficient products miust make economic sense to acheive mass appeal.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21131778/site/newsweek/page/2/

[Neo]

but it would be nice to see incadescents die a slow natural death from lack of consumer demand.

I have no problem with seeing incandescents die a quick death. I would fully support the ceasing of manufacturing these energy hogs but before that happens what has to be offered is a comparable product for all incandescents currently manufactured. There are certain applications where a CFL won't work unfortunately such as recessed enclosed lighting (unless this has changed recently).

[runawayjim]

I have no problem with seeing incandescents die a quick death. I would fully support the ceasing of manufacturing these energy hogs but before that happens what has to be offered is a comparable product for all incandescents currently manufactured. There are certain applications where a CFL won't work unfortunately such as recessed enclosed lighting (unless this has changed recently).

[suburban george3]

NBC has reported almost 90 million of these bulbs have been sold in the past year.

[monsoon]

NBC has reported almost 90 million of these bulbs have been sold in the past year.

[GRDadof3]

We're slowly changing over to CFL's in our house, but I'm hesitant to change them all because the white light that it casts out seems pretty harsh compared to the warmer more yellowish color of the incandescents. Anyone have a remedy for that? We have a lot of warm colors in our home and the flourescent looks terrible with it. It'd be nice to eventually change them all.

[monsoon]

At least with the ones I am buying, I can't tell a difference in the light being produced. My recommendation is to shop around for the different models of the lights.

[Raintree21]

I bought 3 of the mini CFL's today at Target. They were like $5 each!

[Neo]

I bought 3 of the mini CFL's today at Target. They were like $5 each!

Yeah, I'd stay away from purchasing things like this at Target as they do seem to have higher prices than a large chain home improvement store such as Lowes. Several years ago I purchased a few dozen CFL's off of eBay, this is when they were fairly new to the mass market. I remember purchasing them (even with shipping) for 20% of what they were at Lowes. Prices have obviously come down a lot in the store though so there is no real need to purchase them off of the net anymore. For the record, most of my home is lighted with the same lights I purchased off of eBay, they're still working and are very close to their maximum lifetime of seven years.

[Miesian Corners]

Except for the mini halogen cans (that I rarely use), all lighting in my house is now CF. To be honest, CF light does take some getting used to--especially in the bathroom (makes you look really washed out in the mirror), but I'm happy overall. I'm most amazed with the outdoor floods. They use virtually no energy, yet are brighter than the old incandescents.