Fluorescent Bulbs

[CurlyDave]

So my barn is unheated and i am looking for something to replace my HO fluorescent lights. Does anyone have experience with CF's in very cold weather (single digits or lower)?


My garage in CA is not only unheated, but very damp. The CF bulbs only last 3-4 months under those conditions, with them being on only 20-40 hours total.

A complete waste of money in my opinion.

I am dreading the day when regular lightbulbs are no longer made.

 

[dmccarty]

So my barn is unheated and i am looking for something to replace my HO fluorescent lights. Does anyone have experience with CF's in very cold weather (single digits or lower)?

Ken,

Thankfully we don't get single digit temps or at least not often. But we do get down into the teens

We have 10 CFIs used in floodlights, 3 more CFIs used on some wall lights, 4 CFIs in recessed cans on the back porch and I'm making a guess but close to 12 more CFIs in recessed cans on the front porch. Plus one flourescent in a ceiling fan on the porch.

We have not had to replace any of the bulbs, thank goodness. Some of the ones on the front porch have to be 16 feet up. The only "issue" we have with SOME of the lights is that they are the older CFis that are not instant on. They take a bit of time to get full light. I'm sure we have run the lights in the teens and certainly in the 20s without a problem.

Later,
Dan

 

[Bird]

We have not had to replace any of the bulbs

One of the 2 in the kitchen was burned out when I bought this place two and half years ago, so I replaced it. We have two of the 5 watt (supposedly 5 year bulbs that put out 25 watt light) outside; one in front and one in back. Those two are on 24/7; never turned off, but tonight I just finished replacing the one out back for the second time. The one in front still works.

 

[SpringHollow]

I appreciate all of the feedback on the cold starts. I will try one and see how it goes. But CF's are strange - we bought some for in the basement and thy fail within 20 hours of use (typically short on times). Have some in my office that get used every day for atleast a few hours and they are over a year old.

Ken

 

[Ray2210]

Incandescent bulbs are going to be outlawed in Canada Soon. I am very concerned about the cold start issue. It gets extremely cold here. Winter temps of -40 or colder are not uncommon and with wind chills it can easily get into the -50's. The cfl's in the garage come on slow at +50 F. How are we going to light the outsides of our homes and our unheated buildings. Are we going to be forced to replace alot of fixtures? I am also concerned that chandeliers, fridges, stoves and a multitude of other reqirements are going to get orphaned. Some X10 type of controls will not work with cfl's. I can't speak for cfl's on the shelf today but it wasn't long ago that there was a fire hazzard if you put a regular cfl in a dimming fixture. I can go on but all in all there are questions that need answering before incandescents go extinct.

 

[Mike058]

Incandescent bulbs are going to be outlawed in Canada Soon.

Nuts, I was counting on you guys to supply me with my incandescents. Mexico's too darn far away.

 

[_RaT_]

Nuts, I was counting on you guys to supply me with my incandescents. Mexico's too darn far away.

Don't worry, the Indian's can get you light bulbs, cigarettes etc, tax free. Stock up on a few thousand incandescent bulbs now and Ebay them in a year or two after the ban.

 

[Mike058]

Don't worry, the Indian's can get you light bulbs, cigarettes etc, tax free. Stock up on a few thousand incandescent bulbs now and Ebay them in a year or two after the ban.

Interesting. Now they'll have something to sell out of the fireworks stands the rest of the year.

 

[davitk]

I can't beleive you guys don't all love the CF bulbs. My favorite feature is the fact that they are NOT instant on - I typically turn a light on in the morning, when my eyes are half open, and love the fact that they take a bit to get to full intensity. By then, I've had my morning coffee

 

[hockeypuck]

At first look CFL's seem to be a no brainer, but after further review I will have to put it into the same category as the Prius and ethanol. You buy them and they make you fell good, but they are not very echo friendly after all. CFL's do have alot of mercury in them. Proper disposal will be difficult to manage. I read on one web site that they actually recommend cutting up the piece of carpet that it broke on. The prius has too many byproducts from its battery production and disposal to really make it worth while buying and ethanol takes more energy to produce, than it actually produces. It also is driving up the cost of my cereal. Using food to make fuel, there is something just plain wrong with that.

So in short, use halogen lights, drive a Hummer, and drill in Anwar.