Compact fluorescent light bulbs suck

You can pry the warm, soft glow from my cold, dead hands.

My complaint is the whole ‘CFLs last ten years’ line. My house is all CFL and I have had three die on me since I moved in 6 months ago; they weren’t ten years old.

Did it take some getting used to the different colour light all throughout the house?

CFLs are supposed to cost a lot more than regular bulbs and the claim is that you’ll make your money back because they last longer AND use less energy. I wonder how long they have to last before you ‘break even’.

At least you’re not using the extra hydro and harming the environment like some people we know.

I was listening to CBC radio once and an economist was breaking down the break even point for bulbs and he said it was a big smoke and mirrors show. His point was that bulbs would need to work for years, 5 or 7 or some such, before the savings would be seen. The issue is that you front load the cost, by buying the bulb, and you rely on time for the payoff. The problem is that the bulbs don’t last as long as advertised (what a surprise). They burn out because they are manufactured poorly, they break (knocking over a lamp, etc), they begin to flicker, etc. I just buy them because the quality of light doesn’t concern me much (see my next point) and it’s what you’re supposed to do.

When I moved into our new house all the lights were already CFL. I didn’t notice a difference because it was an all new place, so I had no conception of what traditional bulb light would look like in this house. Since I have never known what I’m missing, I don’t think about it.

Yo, Jay… Whaddya mean ‘most CFLs is pretty lousy’?? I outta have Mike O’Shea knock your lights out!

I have had a couple of CFL bulbs since I lived in my one bedroom apartment, just after Pat and I got married. They made the move with us. They are the first ones that came out that required a separate, screw in ballast that the bulbs then plugged into. I have an 11 watt and a 13 watt in a couple of spots in the unfinished areas of the basement. They certainly don’t owe us anything, as they are over fifteen years old. One of them is usually on for hours per day, as it is in the area where the cat’s food dish is, and I don’t think she should have to eat in the dark. Still going strong.

I put new compact flourescents in the ceiling fixtures in our bedrooms, as those are just convenience lighting, and I don’t care what the light looks like. Sure, it’s a little bit cooler and dimmer than incandescents, but I figure taking out 120 watts, and putting 26 watts in their place has to be a significant savings. I am committed to replacing as many incadescents as I can over the next little while, as I am looking for some hydro savings.

Wow, that is impressive — 15-year-old light bulbs! I bet the person that designed those got fired.

Aside from CFLs I think that using power bars wherever you can is a good idea (and turning them off if you’re out for the day or away for a week).

I’ve heard the new ads about power bars with timers for equipment that presents a “phantom load.” My problem with that is the phantom load is there for a reason. For example, I wouldn’t want to come home to flashing twelve on my VCR every single day. Also, I don’t want my TV to take twenty minutes to warm up when I turn it on. I’m not convinced that the “phantom load” adds up to that much power usage anyway. Have you seen any stats on how much power these appliances “on standby” actually consume?

Its amazing what people TRY to do in the name of “saving the planet”, among other things, changing to sh*tty cfl’s (btw mercury for a strong heart right…), just look at the vast inefficiencies that exist beyond a few 60w standard light bulbs. There are many more ways to save energy, household light bulbs used for only a few hours per day will have a minimal overall effect (only saving a few dollars/month). I hate to say it but for the most part if your trying to save energy these bulbs are a waste of money, not to mention they simply don’t beat a standard light in terms of color and light output.

Does the ban of incandescent bulbs include halogens or just standard lights, I just cant see how the only type of bulb available for purchase will be a cfl. Many applications exist beyond a standard kitchen light that require other types of lighting (halogen flood lights and heat lamps for example).

I was a big CF proponent - until I started using them. The lesser light quality and the long warm up time don’t bother me. I just can’t stand that CF manufactures put out such poor quality bulbs! In a 9-month time span, I replaced every single bulb in my kitchen (8 canned lights) except for one. The one I kept came with the house and lasted for 1.5 years after I moved in. EVERY SINGLE ONE of the CF bulbs I installed lasted less than 3 months. I got the bulbs from Lowes and Home Depot. I complained to both of them, but the response was, “No one has complained”. I thought it was poor quality electricity in the house, but my electrician says otherwise. He says that CF manufacturers are simply ripping off the consumer with poor quality bulbs. Has anyone else had this problem?

Like others here, I’ve made efforts to be green-friendly. But some things are non-negotiable, and for me, fluorescent lights are one of them. They are ugly and depressing.

As a color consultant, I especially despise them because of the way they distort paint color.

This is a silly issue based not on a genuine desire to help the environment, but on greed. As usual. You can bet at the heart of it, some corporation is poised to screw the consumer and make big bucks.

It is nonsense for Congress to shove lightbulb legislation down our throats when half the automobiles in the South are either trucks or (in tonier suburbs) Hummers and giant SUVs.

Let’s put our conservation efforts where they will make the most impact, instead of chasing boogeymen like incandescent bulbs.

Lighting uses only about 5% of the power in the average Canadian homes, but every little bit counts. The biggest use of energy for cooler climates like where I am is space heating (due to the extremely cold months). The next greatest is water heating. So if you can cut your use of those two you’re making an even bigger difference.

I agree that CFL colours are less predictable than incandescent bulbs, but if you tried one a few years ago and wrote them off, you need to try a newer version. They really have improved. I have one that is about 10 years old and it is pretty green looking, makes me look like I’m sick. But the newer ones are barely different than incandescent. The problem is that each brand is different, so you have to try a few brands over time and then choose the best one….

I’m looking forward to LED lights, or other similar technologies.

I have six compact flourescent light bulbs that did not last one year. They are supposed to last years according to the manufacturers. What upsets me the most is that they are very expensive to buy. From now on, I will buy the regular incandescent bulbs.

Let’s not forget the mercury in those CFLs. Break on and you’ll have to call out a HAZMAT team.

They’re the latest in a long line of eco-disastrous ‘solutions’ from hydroelectric dams to MTBE to ethanol to wind generators to hybrid cars.

CFLs suck. They do not last as long as they advertize. The light quality sucks. Regular bulbs fail and the light goes out. CFLs dim and dim and dim. I thought I had a brain tumor. I finally realized what it was. Then there is the mercury in the bulbs. Did I mention CFLs suck…

I got fed up with it and replaced every f’kn bulb. It was like sun had risen in my house.
I do not give a s’it about the environment. I think this environmental crap is just complete bulls’it. I will never install another CFL again in my life. I will never believe another environmental lie that my life and lifestyle will kill the planet. Environmentalism is the new Facsism.

Let the sun shine in… In the form of two 100w incandescent light bulbs burning in a fixture above my head.

Did I mention CFLs suck…

My issue with the CFLs isn’t so much the light color as it is the buzzing noise. I had one in my favorite lamp (the one used as the sole lighting in my bedroom most of the time) for a few months, and the noise nearly drove me bonkers. And so when we got a new pack of Incandescent bulbs, I replaced it. Put the old CFL in one of the other lighting fixtures in the house.
Additionally, they don’t dim in fixtures with light dimming very well. Our living room light can be dimmed, but it doesn’t work with the new CFLs, which gives us two options: very bright or very dark. It’s unpleasant.

The incandescent bulbs are being forecefully phased out in European Union where I live. It is a complete lunacy! Yes the incandescent bulb will spent a lot of energy to produce heat instead of light - that’s where the “efficiency” of CFL-s come from. But we do use the most of those lights in winter when we do have to heat our homes anyway so you got to write down some of that efficency. ( Not the best to heat your hose with electricity yes - but to say that the energy is “lost” to heat is also plain wrong).
Also there are alot of specialty uses for incandescent lightbulbs - like for a closet/basement/other rarely used place - I’ll light a light there for 15 min. a time few times a week - and now I have to buy a 10-15$ bulb for that fun? (Which will burn out in a year because CLF-s don’t like to be turned up/down for short periods of times).
Also when I’m looking for bulb for my sauna - a place where it is regularily 110 Celsius ( about 230 fahrenheit) - I don’t think a CLF will even work there, also what would happen if this CFL would break in a small hot room like that? The hot vapors of mercury are not my idea of relaxation.

The trick to CFL’s is to avoid the ones Made in China. The catch? They’re all Made in China. Good luck!