Different CFL behaviors

Still in process of switching entire house and exterior to CFLs.

Thus far, I've run into these behaviors on different 13W (40W resistance lighting equivalent advertised) CFLs.

Lights in hallway and front porch- half second delay before any illumination at all. Relatively dim illumination to the others mentioned here. Makes me nervous without instant lighting.

Hollywood style lighting over sink. Immediate turn-on, practically no wait time for full illumination.

Recessed lighting in kitchen- takes about a minute before full illumination. Quite bright when that time expires. No time delay for some initial illumination, but, very dim initially. If switched off, and immediately turned on, full illumination is there right away.

Believe they're all GE make. First set bought at dollar store. 2nd and 3rd sets bought at Ace Hardware.

Why the different turn-on and illumination behaviors?

Reply to
Dioclese
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All CFL's have a warmup behavoir. After they are warm they get brighter. Higher wattage is more noticable. Colder location affects this as well. I have 3 yellow ones outside, this time of year they are very dim when turned on. Some are better at reducing the initial startup time than others. You get used to it.

Reply to
jamesgangnc

They are reviewed at Popular Machanics mag about a year ago, maybe in homeowner section and Consumers Reports. My ext floodlights take 12min

  • at 10f to get bright, a minute or so at 70f. Different brands are made different, old ones are not as advanced. HD has the 9w which equals 40w here for 1$, HD at Pop Mech was rated #1 in skin color look and has a 7 yr warranty. 13w should equal 60w, compare by Lumen Rating. Outside they are no good for motion sensors to light up quick but they work and last I have found. I use at least 50. HD has the best deal, light, and warranty I have found. Soft white are most like incandesant.
Reply to
ransley

Ace, for the price of one I can buy 3-4 at HD.

Reply to
ransley

Way too many factors to give a good absolutely correct answer.

  1. Temperature is a main factor in initial brilliance. Warmming up brings up the light level, then probably then are mounted in a location that is cold(er) than typical interior spaces.
  2. Some lamps take longer to achieve full brillance. IMHO just cheap design. Buy from China, and you takes your chances...
  3. Ditto for intial light, some lamps don't seem to come on as quickly as others. Again, low or non-existant quality control from cheap imported products.

Just because it says "GE" on the package, doesnt' mean that GE made it, or that it is quality! Instead all the name means is that some company paid GE for the rights to use their name.

Some simple tests may be to take a CFL that is working well in one location and try it in a location that is not working well... Also measure the temperatures at the socket (when off). If too cold you will see both delayed startup and low initial light output. Not to say you can't use CFLs in cold locations (I use one on my back deck, gets to -20 in the winter) just that you have to comphensate for that initial minute or so to full brightness. In my case I just turn it on a minute before I plan to go out.

Summary: Cheap lamps with low quality control/poor design, and low temperatures (often combined) will cause the problem.

Reply to
PeterD

Just wait until you replace your refrigerator light with a CFL.

Alas, our idiotic congress has spoken (though their asses).

Reply to
Matt Barrow

The thing about this is that no matter how much a pain it is it won't get repealed. The prevailing thinking will be that as long as the public is hassled then the impetus will be there to increase the technology.

So........why is it that no one has a toilet that can flush more than a tissue worth again? {grumble}

-- Put XYZZY somewhere within the subject line of any emails to me or it will be summarily deleted.

Reply to
tgmforum

You just have a poorly designed 1.6 toilet, consumer reports rated all of them, I just put in 10 HD 59$ Glacier bay 1.6 toilets a year and half ago, they flush anything down 1 flush and tenants dump everything.

Reply to
ransley

Bulbs sold and marked as "appliance lamps" are exempted from federal and state "ban-the-bulb" laws; so bulbs for your oven and fridge aren't going to disappear any time soon.

LEDs love cold and so interior refrigerator lighting is going in that direction including screw-in replacements. Lots of LEDs in store freezer cases already. They start instantly at full output and never need to be replaced.

Some CFLs are slow to start because of the ballast circuit, not temperature. Look for "cold cathode" CFLs; they start instantly.

If you want to raise your chances of getting a quality CFL product, look on the package for "Energy Star" or at least the manufacturer's "800" number. Energy Star lamps have to meet performance requirements, are regularly tested and have to be marked so you can contact the manufacturer for a replacement in case of problems.

If you buy CFLs only on price, sooner or later you'll get stung.

TKM

Reply to
TKM

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