Light Bulbs - the swirly compact flourescent type

I just bought some of these bulbs and they are the kind/brand that have to "warm up" so to speak. They take about a minute until they are full brightness. I know my friend had a bunch of these, but his were "instant on" bulbs. They definately were the swirly compact floursescent type but whatever brand they were were "instant on". What gives? What brands are best for instant on?

Reply to
Nath Newton
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I don't know--mine do the same, but I'm happy with them. Most of them are in high, high places I normally would access with a ladder, and it's money well spent if they last as they're supposed to do. I have an old house with a very modern kitchen (last owners) so the swirly flourescents mainly go with the black-granite-and-brushed steel decor of this rather spacious place with12 or

14 foot ceilings (hence the ladder.) zemedelec
Reply to
Zemedelec

PS--except in cases of life/death, why is it supposed to be a plus if everything's "instant"? One of these days we may "instant" our non instant bodies and brains to death and let the computers have the world. Problem is, they're still rather dumb and the world would "instantly" go to Hades. zemedelec

Reply to
Zemedelec

I've bought a few different types and it all seems to be based on which generation of technology the bulb is based on. Nearly all Compact flourescent bulbs had a long warm up time many years ago. Today you usually find that the expensive ones turn on quickly, while the cheap ones take a long time.

I bought a couple from Ikea. They are cheaper than CF bulbs found anywhere else. After flipping the switch you have to wait a good 3 seconds before any light starts. It takes 10 more seconds for it to get to reasonably brightness. And i would guess that it takes a full minute to reach full brightness.

I bought some GE ones from home depot. They take 0.5 seconds to respond and about 2 seconds to hit 'bright'.

Of course temperature also changes these times. Colder temperatures mean longer delays. In the summer I think the GE bulbs were nearly instantanious for initial response and full brightness. The slight delays have only really been noticeable now that it's winter.

Luckily there is no rampant commercialism happening with these bulbs. They aren't supposed to be designer accessories. They save energy and, over the long run, money. So right now it's a purely linear scale where the more expensive the bulb is, the better it performs. No such thing as an overpriced designer compact flourescent bulb yet.... knock on wood.

Kevin

Reply to
kevins_news

Mine take a second or two to come on. They may not work that well in a cold garage.

Reply to
Phisherman

Try the 23 watt (100 Watt equivalent) spiral bulbs - my 100 Watt equivalent spirals come on instantly - while my 60 Watt equivalent spirals take ....maybe 1/2 a second to 1 second ... to come on. Full light intensity is usually right away or within a fraction of a second .... inside the house. It takes longer outside (where it is a lot colder).

The ones I've been using are called 'MiniMax' by Globe Electric Company.

I can really notice the delay in a multi-bulb fixture hooked to a motion sensor light switch. I use one 60 watt incandescent (to allow the motion sensor circuitry to work properly) and the other 2 are 60 watt equivalent spirals. The incandescent comes on immediately & the spirals come on maybe

1/2 to 1 second later.

Reply to
A

I have GE flourescents that I bought 3 for $15 dollars at Home Depot or Lowes. They are the 13 watt (60 W equivalent) bulbs. They take maybe 1/2 to 1 second to come on. Long enough so I notice it, but not unbearably so.

And they also allow for instant redecoration in my yellow bath room. All I have to do is put them in the light fixture and the room turns green.

Bill Gill

Reply to
Bill

I have replaced all the lights in my home with compact fluorescents, and I keep the temperature in the winter around 52 degrees or less. Almost all are modern and fairly inexpensive (about $2. each). All except the old ones light as quickly as old incandescent bulbs. Most of my bulbs are from Commercial Electric, a few from GE, and I forget the 3rd manuf. All start at about 75-90% brightness from what I can see and go to 100% in 15-30 secs. This is all based on my observations, not scientific measurement.

I have a few of the old bulbs from 10 years ago that cost a bundle. I still have them on the porch and they work after a minute or so of warmup.

But the new bulbs are so good and so much more energy efficient and so cheap (in the Home Depot multi packs on sale about this time of year only) that I stock-up and use nothing else.

Reply to
Chia Pet

Compact fluorescent lamps with a short or long warm-up period are equally efficient and 3-4 times more efficient than incandescent lamps. Newer lamp designs are based upon "amalgam" technology which results in faster warm-ups. Some older lamps don't have this technology, but it will eventually be put into most types since performance over a wide range of temperatures is superior. Manufacturers usually don't say anymore whether or not a particular lamps has amalgam technology since lamp designs change constantly.

There are advantages to the warm-up period. It's nice to switch on a CFL in the morning when just out of bed and have the light come up as if it were on an automatic dimmer. It costs extra to get that feature with incandescent lamps :)

TKM

Reply to
TKM

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