I was reading a newspaper article comparing prices at TARGET and WalMart stores.
They cited GE brand CFL's. Though packaged identically, the TARGET bulbs are waranteed for 10,000 hours, while the WalMart units are waranteed for 6,000 hours.
I haven't gone to my TARGET to check it out, but it would be interesting.
Do the ones at Wally World cost less?
Maybe the manufacturer packages the exact same bulbs with a shorter warranty to save on overall cost (cost of replacing failed bulbs) and sells them to WMart at a lower price?
Strange, I usually find the wal Mart merchandise to have a higher quality to value ratio and better selection than Target, especially in clothes and food. I've never had a CFL last as long as they say they do anyway, and returning them is more hassle than its worth. I bought
9 expensive dimmable large PAR floods and all died within 8 mos, while the old halogens next to them are going on 8 years, go figure. Those I did return and felt like I was being waterboarded for doing so. The new dimmable CFL's dont last very long at all from my experience, not good if most of your wall switches are dimmers.
I bet they have different item numbers so they cab claim they are not "identical". BTW WalMart has a house brand that is a lot cheaper than GE.
Lou
On 5/7/2009 12:48 PM RickH spake thus:
I don't know why, but for some reason CFL floodlamps always seem to die young. Anyone know why this might be? Heat?
on 5/7/09 6:23 PM David Nebenzahl said the following:
My Vision CFLs crapped out way too soon. Now trying GE.
In , RickH wrote in part:
Are you using the CFLs in small enclosed fixtures or recessed ceiling fixtures? Such fixtures build up heat, which CFLs do not like.
Meanwhile, CFLs tend to last longer if:
===============================================================
If you are having recessed ceiling fixtures installed and they will be using CFLs, things work better if the fixtures are ones with ballasts and take ballastless CFLs that have pins rather than screw bases.
- Don Klipstein ( snipped-for-privacy@misty.com)
I have over 70 CFL's installed and have just lost the second one in 7 years. It was in a water closet area and was cycled on/of about 10 times per day. The first one , in the basement and continous on, failed after about 5 years. I also have 4 of the pin type in recessecd cans and have had one failure in about 3 years. Just too many variables to accurately predict life. I have an incandescent in the pantry that is 15 years old and is cycled about 3 times per day.
What brand of CFLs do you use? I have a few that have lasted for several years, but at this point I would guess that I'm experiencing ~50% failure within one year. It seems that those that survive the first year last for several years after that. High infant mortality, and the rest live into old age.
G.E., Sylvania, TD, and n:vision. Most are the n:vision brand that I purchased @ the Big Orange Box. They had a sale years ago and 60W= were n:vision at 4 for $1.85 and the 100W= were G.E. at 2 for $2.79 so I stocked up. Still have about 20 unused. The Sylvania are bug lights used in the post lights and outdoor brackets. I think where I got the 2-13W= TD brands was a promotion by the co-op.
Is that not the same as buying, say, a car battery????? Brand X is, say, cheapest at say $50. Only warranty is 30 days and you have to fight the retailer to get that! Brand Y is, say more expensive at $80 and has a 3 year graduated warranty based on remaining life. Brand Z is say, most expensive at $100. But has a 5 year unlimited warranty; if anything at all goes wrong they will replace it without question for the remainder of the original five years. Brand W cost $120 and they will replace it for another full five years if it fails for any reason during the full five years! They may insist that you have 'A charging sytem check-up' at your cost of $20!!!! Which mainly involves testing the charging voltage of your alternator! If certain batteries encounter problems in a particular zone/area let's say, Alaska, due to low temperatures or Florida due to high temperatures the supplier 'modifies' the warranty conditions for that zone only! Same battery in each case? But supplier covers their costs against likelihood of failure or replacement?
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
Yes, standard 6 inch insulation contact rated cans with thermal switch (which didn't overheat).
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
I think it has something to do with this being the new "dimmable" CFL's on a standard 1000 watt slow-start triac dimmer. These dimmable CFL's did not last, the dimming was pretty crappy too, only the top 30% of the dimmer range seemed to work.
Is the thermal switch merely designed to prevent fire hazards and overheating of the fixturer as a whole, while being insufficient to prevent overheating of a screw-base integral-ballast CFL, since that degree of thermal protection may cause a CFL to "take time off" for a couple minutes a few times an hour, if the temperature threshold for the thermal protection also disfavors use of incandescents producing same or better illumination than the CFL does.
A CFL can fail to survive heat buildup in a recessed ceiling fixture even if the temperature that kills the CFL is not a problem for the fixture or an incandescent lightbulb. This CFL problem is less of a problem if the recessed ceiling fixture has a ballast as part of being designed for ballastless (which tend to be pin-base) CFLs.
- Don Klipstein ( snipped-for-privacy@misty.com)
Use them if you want, I have no problem, but please allow me the "freedom" to not use them, and to use incandescent. We don't need our government to tell us what light bulb we HAVE to use.
Bob-tx
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