Who makes the best compact fluorescent light bulb?
Question:I put some of these in my home, and I think they still need some refinement. The 100+ year old model works much better. These take too long to "warm up" when you flip the switch, and it starts off emitting an eerie light, kind of like at dusk right before it gets dark. You can see stuff, but not too good. After about 30 seconds, the light is fine, but it still needs more warmth, like the incandescent bulb.
So, has anybody had better experiences with any particular brand? I want to do the right thing, and hope there are better technology options out there. Thanks.
Answers:
Popular Mechanics designed a test pitting seven common CFLs against a 75-watt incandescent bulb. To gather objective data, we used a Konica Minolta CL-200 chroma meter to measure color temperature and brightness, and a Watts up? Pro ammeter to track power consumption. Our subjective data came from a double-blind test with three PM staffers and Jesse Smith, a lighting expert from Parsons The New School for Design, in Manhattan. We put our participants in a color-neutral room and asked them to examine colorful objects, faces and reading material, then rate the bulbs’ performance.
The results surprised us. Even though the incandescent bulb measured slightly brighter than the equivalent CFLs, our subjects didn’t see any dramatic difference in brightness. And here was the real shocker: When it came to the overall quality of the light, all the CFLs scored higher than our incandescent control bulb. In other words, the new fluorescent bulbs aren’t just better for both your wallet and the environment, they produce better light.
The MaxLite excelled at rendering colors. It appeared to emit light reminiscent of the “sun at the beach,” with “very good color vibrancy.”
i have used maxlite for a few years, virtually no waiting to fully illuminate, plus they last for years.
I don't like CFL's, they're not nearly bright enough except in maybe a closet or small room...
Watch out too for broken bulbs. They contain a lot of mercury, and $2,000 environmental clean-up bills for broken lightbulbs is not uncommon.
Hold on a minute . . . need to rant. First, the answer to your question. . .
I have replaced most of the bulbs in my home with CFLs. Several different types, both GE and Phillips. Absolutely love them. No problems, have not had to replace a single one yet. I have been tending to replace with the next higher equivalent output, mostly 60 watt bulbs replaced with 75 watt equivalents. Because the power requirements and heat are so much less, this is not a problem.
I think you have an electrical problem. The bulbs should not have a noticeable warm up period (unless you live in a meat locker), should not be any noticeable change in the color. CFLs do not tolerate low voltage conditions well. I would be willing to bet that for one reason or another you are getting less than 108 volts to your light fixtures. Test with a multimeter some time. Also possible that the sockets on your fixtures are dirty. If this is the case, you may get a good voltage reading with a meter as the tip will tend to penetrate the dirt or corrosion. With the breaker off (not just the switch), clean the sockets out with some fine sandpaper and see if that helps.
Also, light sensing or motion sensing lights, ceiling fan fixtures with remote control and other electronically controlled circuits are a problem for CFLs. Dimmers will not work at all.
Now for the rant.
Every time this subject comes up, some moron has to play the fear monger with cleanup costs due to broken bulbs. Yes, there was a media report of someone that paid four figures to have a bulb cleaned up due to the mercury content. People get ripped off every single day, does not mean everyone will be silly enough to bite on the same.
CFLs (and all other fluorescent bulbs) contain mercury. The amount of mercury is minute, and here is the important part, the mercury is vaporized and remains vaporized. When a bulb breaks, the mercury VAPOR will quickly dissipate in the air. It is not a nice thing, you need to ventilate and avoid breathing the fumes (much like you would avoid the fumes if you had a gas leak). Because the mercury is vapor, there is no mercury that you can clean up off the floor, the ceiling or anywhere else. You simply scoop up the remains, wash with soap and water, put in a new CFL and go on with life. Yes, there is some mercury release into the environment and it would be nicer if it were not, but using CFLs reduces the amount of mercury spewed out of coal fired generating plants by a bit, so it should more than offset the evil.
Now, if you do get the bright idea to call an environmental cleanup company, they will come to your house, clean up the bulb and hand you a bill, probably for four figures. They would be under a great deal of liability if they were to chuckle and tell you to deal with it, even if you just cut your finger on the glass.
The EPA actually has a common sense guide to cleaning up a broken fluorescent bulb. OMG -- I just typed EPA and common sense in the same sentence! See http://www.epa.gov/mercury/spills/index.
Even these guys, as much of a pain as they can be, suggest that you take care of it yourself.
Sorry for the rant, but I get so sick and tired of people spouting of trash just because they read it somewhere. Learn to put things in context, please.
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