Fluorescent lamps

[Jeff Layman]

There's been quite a bit of discussion in the past month or so on replacing these with leds, and whether or not it was worth it in terms of light output and electricity saved.

Well, I must have been stuck in a cave somewhere as although I knew fluorescents were going to be phased out anyway, I didn't known the legislation had come in at the end of August and T8 lamps can no longer be sold from now, compact fluorescents from 1 February 2024, and T5 lamps after 24 February 2024. More info at various led-supplier sites such as :

[The Natural Philosopher]

Well although I suspect the long tube fluoros are actually as good as if not better than LEDS, I won't miss ANY of the other crap.

LEDS are a technology that is absolutely justified in terms of cost and reliability. They have recieved no subsidies, but succeed anyway. Purely because they show a total cost benefit advantage .

[Scott]

I was one of the early adopters (waiting for Philips to receive a container load of them into the UK). There are no problems at all. They start instantly. I am not commenting on the cost as I probably overpaid at the time.

[Brian Gaff]

I know some contain a small amount of mercury, but really cannot see the reason for change until one has to. Get your moneies worth out of the existing tubes and bulbs, I say. I did try an led in my porch, but it made so much radio interference my shortwave radio was blasted. Surely this is not the norm, maybe its like the cheap chargers which are made in China. Brian

[Paul]

I would say that generally, they're worthwhile.

While you can buy pitiful LED solutions that are only as efficient as a fluorescent tube, generally they are better than that, and will eventually pay for themselves in electric costs. The "best" LED is 3x better than the "worst" LED.

There is a lot to know, about selection and installation, and a first step is to visit any lighting department and see examples of products, just so you can see what "bad" and "good" look like. You should *not* buy tat from online, using only "pseudo-specs", at least not in quantity. If re-doing your man-cave, you buy one panel as a sample and inspect the result, and if you like it, buy six or eight more and finish the install. Don't buy eight of something and then realize they suck.

I have some LEDs here, that I've sampled over the years, that I regret not buying more of them. One of them, for example, has "perfect light" and is the spitting image of an incandescent. Not many get that award. That one is not as power efficient as it might be, so would not be selected for usage today.

Paul

[Andy Burns]

Can no longer be "sold", or can no longer be "placed onto the market"