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Lightbulb boondogle

Discussion in 'Political Debate & Discussion' started by Earth Wind and Fire, Jul 22, 2011.

  1. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    WOW! What a Boondoggle to the unsespecting American public.

    1st, Im in the Electrical business for 26 years so the government cant bamboosle me. With lightbulbs you have 3 types (technologies if you will)

    1. Incandescent -- or your plain ole lightbulb. Three things you need to know (A) relatively cheap, (B) safe & /reliable---been around since Edison (3) You can dim it easily

    2. Compact Fluorescents - those squiggly tubes with the Transformer base. While they are marketed as energy efficient they have inherent flaws in safety, & longevity IE they really dont operate like a Incandescent bulb. Cant dim them & you cant get them wet because its got a transformer attached to the base so not as reliable. Finally they cost more. ( See attached blog)

    3. Light Emitting Diode (LED) -- Oh My Gosh, I just opened an advertisement for Lowes Building Supplies and a 40 Watt equivalent is listed @ $ 19.98 ...... see what I mean by boondoggle!!! I can get into differences in technology (I actually like the concept & the emerging technology) but to expect the American public to foot the bill to make GE, Sylvania & Philips companies wealthier is just nuts. What are we "Stupid"?

    Before reading attachment note the guy gets a little foul so be warned

    http://www.commentsonnationalamnesia.com/2011/06/22/republicans-blowing-light-bulb-scam/
     
    #1 Earth Wind and Fire, Jul 22, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 22, 2011
  2. carpro

    carpro Well-Known Member
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    The EPA is the dumbest agency in government and should be restructured or eliminated.

    Reminds me how they suddenly eliminated R12 refrigerant for autos with millions of autos still on the road that required it. A lot of prople got wealthy off the R12 black market and a lot of poor people got hit with conversion costs.

    Idiots.
     
  3. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    Can you even imagine spending 20 dollars for a bloody light bulb! I should go out & buy a hole case right now & store them. There also killing American jobs cause all this new crud is made in China.
     
  4. InTheLight

    InTheLight Well-Known Member
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    Over the years I have slowly converted my blown incandescent bulbs over to CFC's and I'm very pleased. I estimate I'm saving about $100 a year in electricity and I've only had one CFC burn out so far and that is one that is on about 14 hours a day. It lasted over 5 years.

    CFC's do have their drawbacks but the benefits far outweigh them. However, I'm not in favor of a government mandate to use them nor a ban on incandescent bulbs.
     
  5. billwald

    billwald New Member

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    We had an 18 watt florescent light over the kitchen sink that is NEVER turned off. I think I have replaced the bulb 4 times in 15 years. Experimentally, I replaced it with a cfl which burned out in less than a year.
     
  6. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    Very good, now add to this that these florescent bulbs (CFL) are replacing common incandescent (A Type) Bulbs in areas where lights may be turned on/off (cycled) and you shorten their life much further. The instructions on these CFL bulbs tell you to not do that (takes time for the chemical components to fire up & discharge) so by coming in a dark room & turning on a light, then exiting it & turning the CFL off your shortening the life. The intent of the CFL was to never cycle it that quickly.....so you by this energy efficient bulb thinking its going to give you less energy consumption & longer life & surprise....the life is if the bulb is far shorter than you anticipated & your out all that savings you thought you'd get. Can you say scam! And again dont think of dimming them. They are not designed for it & you will just kill the bulb. Anyway you look at it the Manufacturers win & you loose.
     
  7. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    ITL----I propose that its only really a stopgap measure to migrate to LED lights. If you pay 1 dollar for a CFL & they then eliminate those, then the only option is LED & thats $20.00 or more.

    note that last year, GE eliminated the last CFL factory (think it was in Virgina) to move to China.

    If the manufacturers want to do something revolutionary, make the LED devices affordable to everyone. I personally like that technology far better & they really save energy.
     
  8. billwald

    billwald New Member

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    > . . . Bulbs in areas where lights may be turned on/off (cycled) and you shorten their life much further.

    AGREE! My point is that even in situations where the bulbs are NEVER turned off/cycled their service life is less than a third that of the conventional tube bulbs which ALSO will be banned. All the 4 foot and 8 foot fixtures in your homes, businesses, and churches will need to be replaced.
     
  9. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    With the older 40 W Bulbs your very correct. They will go to 32 W hi energy efficient bulbs thus forcing you to also change out the fixture which have old reliable ballasts / transformers. So you have to buy a new fixture with an electronic ballast just so the government can say everything is now energy efficient. When you do that you also raise the harmonics (noise & heat in the electrical wire) that could cause harm to computer based equipment. Thats a whole other headache...LOL.

    Your problem with those CFL bulbs is that the transformers inside are cheap & dirty & getting worse when made in China. For example, if you install them upside down from a ceiling the heat generated from the bulb begins to kill the transformer. They are best used in an upright position like in a table lamp (which is what they were originally designed for).
     
    #9 Earth Wind and Fire, Jul 23, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 23, 2011
  10. exscentric

    exscentric Well-Known Member
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    Our cf units barely last a year in most applications, they have been VERY poor.

    I bought Christmas tree size led bulbs (Have a lot of decorative lamps) and they lasted less than a year before dimming to the point of very ineffective. The city of Salem has been replacing all their traffic lights with led and spending a fortune. Now all over town there are traffic lights with various patterns of black/red and black/green. The circuit boards are failing.

    Congress voted a few days ago not to repeal the law we are speaking of so you can stick that in your memory banks for future negative votes :)

    Now on the plus side, the high power single led flashlights are sooooo nice :) and they seem to last fairly well. Have one on my bike that can light a stop sign a block or two away and casts a wide beam as well.

    Led tech. should get cheaper fairly fast I would think, unless they try to rip us off with it.
     
  11. Don

    Don Well-Known Member
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    EPA recommends that consumers take advantage of available local recycling options for compact fluorescent light bulbs. EPA is working with CFL manufacturers and major U.S. retailers to expand recycling and disposal options.

    If your state or local environmental regulatory agency permits you to put used or broken CFLs in the garbage, seal the bulb in two plastic bags and put it into the outside trash, or other protected outside location, for the next scheduled trash collection. Never send a fluorescent light bulb or any other mercury-containing product to an incinerator.

    Fluorescent light bulbs contain a small amount of mercury sealed within the glass tubing. When a fluorescent bulb breaks in your home, some of this mercury is released as mercury vapor. To minimize exposure to mercury vapor, EPA recommends that residents follow cleanup and disposal steps.

    The most important steps to reduce exposure to mercury vapor from a broken bulb are:
    1. Before cleanup
    a. Have people and pets leave the room.
    b. Air out the room for 5-10 minutes by opening a window or door to the outdoor environment.
    c. Shut off the central forced air heating/air conditioning (H&AC) system, if you have one.
    d. Collect materials needed to clean up broken bulb.
    2. During cleanup
    a. Be thorough in collecting broken glass and visible powder.
    b. Place cleanup materials in a sealable container.
    3. After cleanup
    a. Promptly place all bulb debris and cleanup materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area until materials can be disposed of properly. Avoid leaving any bulb fragments or cleanup materials indoors.
    b. For several hours, continue to air out the room where the bulb was broken and leave the H&AC system shut off.
     
  12. Don

    Don Well-Known Member
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    Haven't found any disposal instructions for LEDs. Anyone else?
     
  13. carpro

    carpro Well-Known Member
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    One of the reasons I love Texas. We thumb our nose at the EPA.

    Texas has already passed a law to allow incandescent light bulbs manufactured in Texas to be bought in Texas.

    I expect the EPA will take legal action.
     
  14. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    Do you use any....you sound like your in purchasing or materials handling. right now most of the R&D on LED devices are carried by Philips (you know Philco -- the Dutch Mfg) and they have done some fantastic stuff with this technology. LED is essentially a Incandescent advancement....throwing little power thru a transformer to illuminate small light filament ....that energy is so tiny that it does not destroy the filament & you can get an intense light source using allot of the diodes. The cool thing is no mercury ionized tube to worry about & because the leds are really very miniature light bulbs, you can dim them. I like the concept but there is really no reason to charge the public $20 dollars for a 40 watt bulb equivalent.

    The Chinese have already gotten hold of the technology & can mass produce them & flood the market in a heart beat. Their just being held back because they want to sell the LED technology for a ridiculous profit. Next time you go to a Home Depot or Lowes just take a look....you will have sticker shock.
     
  15. Havensdad

    Havensdad New Member

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    This was the stupidest thing in the history of the U.S. Lets make everyone feel like mindless drones under the fluorescent lights...

    My suggestion to everyone is to install a 12V system on your house...which is exempt from the new regulations (what they have on RVs...)
     
  16. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    Thanks for the endorsement but I dont think that would pass code in homes, but write your congressman. I see the baloney because Ive been in the electrical industry & work with the technology so I guess I am sensitive to the scam unfolding before my very eyes & supported by the government. When I watched that loud mouth, Chris Mathews on MSNBC endorsing the scam to Americans by saying incandescent bulbs are garbage & the government should outlaw them (like he knows anything except running his mouth), I got burned up because now the media is in on it, perpetrating a hoax to unsuspecting Americans....No, No,No! Not if I have anything to say about it.
     
  17. Havensdad

    Havensdad New Member

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    I don't know about where you are, but where I am 12v systems are not even governed by local code. It is perfectly permissible, and if you have solar panels or other electric saving devices (windmills, etc.), it is more energy efficient.
     
  18. Don

    Don Well-Known Member
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    It it takes opening a new thread, I'd like to hear more about 12v systems.
     
  19. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
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    #19 Earth Wind and Fire, Jul 24, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 24, 2011
  20. exscentric

    exscentric Well-Known Member
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    Gee, mercury - dangerous - wow wonder why all us kids that used to shine dimes and quarters with it aren't dead yet. And, oh ya, that time in the Navy when off loading someone dropped a case of mercury breaking the canisters and they passed it up that long line of men handing the dripping box from man to man up four decks from the store room to the main deck and out onto the dock - wonder why I am not dead for sure? :)

    Amazing.

    Some suggest when the cfl's break that you call hazmat. That should help the financial load on the cities :)
     
    #20 exscentric, Jul 24, 2011
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 24, 2011
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