Anyone else hate the new light bulbs?

[jrwalkerpa1]

CFLs are the result of politics - not consumer interest. They are slow. Light is poor. Breakage is to be handled as a hazmat situation - including vacating your home.

I bought cases of the old incandescent bulbs when all this leftwing nonsense starting gaining traction. They are still available but time is short.

.

I did the same thing a few years back. I was unprepared when the laws came down for those ridiculous new gas can spouts and was determined not to let the same thing happen with
light bulbs. I have enough "old school" bulbs of all sizes in my basement to last 3 lifetimes!

 

[ultrarunner]

Quality of bulbs vary greatly...

In 1979 I put two flood lights on a motion detector... had to borrow a tall ladder to get them up high enough to make them effective.

Nearly 35 years later... those 2 ACE Hardware Premium Long Life Floods are still working and they go on and off every night whenever something walks past.

In Olympia I was having trouble with can lights that I bought at a box store... later I found these bulbs had lots of complaints...

Bought a case of GE from Grainger and all was good.

Lots of variables when it comes to lighting...

On the job... I have some T8 Sylvania 4' in the mechanical room that have been locked on since December of 1995 and still going.

Same Hospital building and I can't get the T8's that have occupancy sensors to last more than 6 months...

Sometimes what is saved in power is offset with the higher and more frequent replacement costs plus the labor to change them out...

 

[SPIKER]

Pretty good timing as today in the mail arrived a box from our Electric utility company, it is filled with probably 10 + CFLs, LED Night Lights, Furnace Filter Whistle, and a few other things too. Part of First Energy (FE) energy conservation package. They were going to charge people some ridiculous price for them, bought a ton of the bulbs and no one wanted to pay the price they wanted (top quality USA Made stuff.) Well after a year of having the program and attempting to make EVERYONE pay the fees they dropped it and gave them away pretty much but have added on a buck a month to the bill or something like that. I have 2 Living Room lights in the Chandler and know where 2 of them are going lol... I JUST replaced both Kitchen Fixtures & used 4 (2 per fixture) 60watt bulbs. They are kind of yellow light & 1 gets left on whole time while cooking & eating & cleaning so may try and replace those with the CFLs just to see if they are OK. The old fixtures were 1 100watt bulb and a 12" FL round fluorescent light that just basically slowed to a near 10% of lighting on 1st try... Flicking it on/off got tiresome and was really old (guess it was original to the 1943 built date house.)

Mark

 

[dmccarty]

Can you guess at what percentage of your power goes to the clothes dryer? I know the amount is significant but can't find anywhere that guestimates it.

Our dryers is on a 30 amp circuit, so worst case the dryer uses 30*120=3,600 watts per hour.

Assuming that the dryer is used on average 3 hours a day, 3*3,600=10,800 watts. Power now costs us 11 or 12 cents a KWH so lets just say 12 cents for worst case. .12* 10,800= $1.30 a day. Assuming the dryer is run 30 days a week, $1.30*30 is $39 a month.

I think $39 is a bit on the high side but I bet is in the ball park, maybe $30 a month. I think the hot water heater is costing $20-30 a month. If our average power bill is $120 then the dryer is cost 25% of our bill with the hot water heater being another 16-25%.

Later,
Dan

 

[westcliffe01]

I see my Bosch dryer is 2.8kW But your dryer is a 230V appliance, not a 110/115v one. It uses both phases that run into the house. Does the 0.12 include all the "add on" fees ? I only have NG and electricity and my washer and dryer are definitely the primary electrical loads. The washer has an element of its own to heat the water on the "sanitary" cycle which is 2 hours long, but it is great for getting white stuff squeaky clean.

 

[sixdogs]

Our dryers is on a 30 amp circuit, so worst case the dryer uses 30*120=3,600 watts per hour.

Assuming that the dryer is used on average 3 hours a day, 3*3,600=10,800 watts. Power now costs us 11 or 12 cents a KWH so lets just say 12 cents for worst case. .12* 10,800= $1.30 a day. Assuming the dryer is run 30 days a week, $1.30*30 is $39 a month.

I think $39 is a bit on the high side but I bet is in the ball park, maybe $30 a month. I think the hot water heater is costing $20-30 a month. If our average power bill is $120 then the dryer is cost 25% of our bill with the hot water heater being another 16-25%.

Later,
Dan

Dan--thank you in a big way. I have been trying for some way to guestimate quantity usage but have zero ideas when it comes to electricity. I got "lifted" once and never got over it. Great comments.

 

[dmccarty]

I see my Bosch dryer is 2.8kW But your dryer is a 230V appliance, not a 110/115v one. It uses both phases that run into the house. Does the 0.12 include all the "add on" fees ? I only have NG and electricity and my washer and dryer are definitely the primary electrical loads. The washer has an element of its own to heat the water on the "sanitary" cycle which is 2 hours long, but it is great for getting white stuff squeaky clean.

Oh, yeah, you are right so that would double my costs! :shocked: The wifey might be getting a solar powered dryer for XMAS! :laughing::laughing::laughing:

12 cents includes taxes and fees. We have been running at 10 cents a KWH but it has gone up this year when the regulators allowed Duke Power to buy out Progress and raise the power rate. All sorts of lies were told about the purchase of Progress.

We had to buy a new clothes washer a few months back that has a sanitary and steam cycles but I don't think the wifey uses those. I have not seen a power usage increase with the new washer.

Later,
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

Dan--thank you in a big way. I have been trying for some way to guestimate quantity usage but have zero ideas when it comes to electricity. I got "lifted" once and never got over it. Great comments.

Welcome. Hopefully my numbers are in the ball park. Seems like Westcliffe01 caught a power boo boo on my part. :laughing:

Later,
Dan

 

[dave1949]

7200 watts per hour = 7.2 kWh times 0.12 per kWh. That's 86.4 cents per hour of max operation. The element probably cycles on and off in reality.

 

[DarkBlack]

How much of the recent outrage is due to their perceived design flaws or an individual persons political viewpoint?

I'm not sure to whom those 2 thoughts are aimed at. Can you elaborate?