Lightbulbs

[davel*]

Just saw this on TV

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/greenerliving/412...

Another fine example of the gubbermint getting far too involved in everyone elses lives.

[fatboy b]

It's easy to get round. We have no "traditional" bulbs in the house anymore. They're all 50w halogens, or 20w LV halogens (or other combinations). I think it'll be a while before this stupid government realises that they're chasing a dead dog anyway.

[grumbledoak]

Stockpile!
http://www.thelightbulb.co.uk/

ETA- Though you are a bit late - "06 Jan 2009"

Edited by grumbledoak on Tuesday 25th August 09:10

[pmanson]

Downstairs we have only halogen and upstairs are 60w standard bulbs which from reading that article will still be stocked for another year or so.

That reminds me though - I need to get a couple of spare's in

[Targarama]

Plenty for sale here in the Middle East. We have no 100W bulbs in the house, but easy enough to get if you REALLY need them.

[bigdods]

Some of those low energy bulbs are actually quite good now. But they do take a while to warm up. In the 3 places in my house that I have installed them I just leave them on 24x7 to avoid the problem. I suspect this is a bit more expensive than just turning a 60W bulb off and on when needed.

[davido140]

I went "energy saving" bulbs throughout my house at the end of last year. Still have a few halogen spots dotted around but most are energy saving ones.

My electricity bill went down by £20 a month.

Mine all light up pretty much instantly, dont seem to flicker that I can see and provided I've used the correct replacement for higher wattage bulbs they are plenty bright enough too. Obviously putting a 60w replacement (11w) where you had a 100w bulb is going to be a bit dark and dingy. They last longer too.

The gubberment meddling is a little insidious but I dont have a problem with the bulbs, if you dont suffer from any of the health issues that these bulbs can aggravate you really should give them a go if you care about the 'leccy bill.

Then again, if you're independently wealthy/loaded/multi-squillionaire like everyone is on PH then a few quid a month probably doesnt bother you much!

[tegwin]

Again the government are so short sighted they impiment this without actually thinking about how expensive these things are to manufacture and the impacys of disposing of them afterwards.... cretins!

I cant wait for LED technology to take over..... millions of hours... little heat....

[speedchick]

I have a couple of 100W lightbulbs here, maybe I should try and sell them!

My main light fittings take candle bulbs and I am damned if I am putting energy saving ones in there, it looks terrible, and the light is crap (which surprised me given that it takes 5 bulbs).

I need the normal bulbs when working on the jewellery as the energy ones give me a really bad headache and I can't see properly when using them.

We actually fitted 2 so far, one was in the area near the downstairs toilet, and you could switch it on, got do what you had to, come back out and it still wasn't fully on. The other one went in my son's room as at the time it was the only available one we had, put it in and then when he went to bed, he switched the light on and the thing just fell apart, the glass came away and left the bayonet bit in the light fitting, it was just a good job it landed on his quilt and not in any of the boxes of toys/lego/cars etc.

How are you supposed to dispose of them anyway?

[Simpo Two]

In a pale copy of the survivialist in 'Tremors', last year I calculated how many 60W and 100W PROPER lightbulbs I'd need for the rest of my life, then cleaned out my local cash & carry and also an ironmonger's shop that had quite a lot in stock. I also got more 100Ws that I intend to eBay once they get really scarce.

As for the savings on electricity bills, don't get too excited. Once the electricity companies see their profits declining, they'll simply increase the price to compensate.

'Low energy lightbulbs' are like solvent-free Tipp-Ex and every other half-baked needless change we have to tolerate - they're st.

Edited by Simpo Two on Tuesday 25th August 09:55

[dibbers006]

The thing that fks me off most is the fking energy saving wk lightbulbs I have in the hall. Whoever fitted them is a tt (Not me )

Late night, stumble through door, turn on light to navigate stairs... kick stairs in total darkness, trip up stairs in total darkness, fall over stairs, fall down stairs, roll up stairs, stub toe, misjudge top step, fall into dark room and glass table... get blinded by flickering bullst lightbulb finally turning on. Turn off hall light.

Complete wk.

[davido140]

I think perhaps there must be a big difference in performance depending on the manufacturer of these things, Mine are philips and work just fine.

[davel*]

dibbers006 said:

The thing that fks me off most is the fking energy saving wk lightbulbs I have in the hall. Whoever fitted them is a tt (Not me )

Late night, stumble through door, turn on light to navigate stairs... kick stairs in total darkness, trip up stairs in total darkness, fall over stairs, fall down stairs, roll up stairs, stub toe, misjudge top step, fall into dark room and glass table... get blinded by flickering bullst lightbulb finally turning on. Turn off hall light.

Complete wk.

Nice rant...short and sweet

I've not got a problem with the energy saving light bulbs apart from they are rubbish. The issue is at what point did the government think it was OK to tell us what lightbulbs we can use in our house!! It's ridiculous.

[Dogwatch]

davel* said:

The issue is at what point did the government think it was OK to tell us what lightbulbs we can use in our house!! It's ridiculous.

It might surprise you (but I doubt it) to know this was a Blair/EU stitch up agreement back in 2007, along with all the other things he conceded without bothering to ask us.

[Dr.Doofenshmirtz]

You should all switch to low energy light bulbs...it really will save the environment, I know this because a fine upstanding MP was on Radio 2's Jeremy Vine show and said so.
And I belieeeeeeve...as did several other listeners.

[Parrot of Doom]

They're just being removed from sale in the UK. There is nothing illegal about them, you'll be quite able to buy from abroad, and AFAIK there is nothing stopping retailers in this country from importing and selling them on.

I wouldn't mind betting that LEDs will, in about five years time, be easily capable of lighting a home.

[Diderot]

fatboy b said:

It's easy to get round. We have no "traditional" bulbs in the house anymore. They're all 50w halogens, or 20w LV halogens (or other combinations). I think it'll be a while before this stupid government realises that they're chasing a dead dog anyway.

Same here.

[Westy Pre-Lit]

Parrot of Doom said:

They're just being removed from sale in the UK. There is nothing illegal about them, you'll be quite able to buy from abroad, and AFAIK there is nothing stopping retailers in this country from importing and selling them on.

I wouldn't mind betting that LEDs will, in about five years time, be easily capable of lighting a home.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/6076996...

You get less for murder these days.

[tubbystu]

Parrot of Doom said:

I wouldn't mind betting that LEDs will, in about five years time, be easily capable of lighting a home.

Once they sort out cluster sizes etc.

LED's don't actually throw much light is the problem - they do glow chuffing bright but don't really project it unless you get an awful lot together.

As feature lighting they are coming along well, but as they also require a dc supply, transforming needs to be built into the unit if they are going to be a successful replacement for traditional fixtures.

[Bill Carr]

davido140 said:

I think perhaps there must be a big difference in performance depending on the manufacturer of these things, Mine are philips and work just fine.

Likewise. I couldn't give a toss if they save the environment or not, if they save me a few quid a month then I'm all for them.

PH members in fear-of-change shocker. I bet if the Labour government had invented the wheel we'd all be on here bhing about it