I can't remember the last time I've had to change a lightbulb

[time_has_come]

Installed the CFLs in my house, my girlfriends house, and my parents. Probably 50 or so, in total.

Did that about six years ago.

Have had two. Count 'em, two, that failed. And they did so early on. When I was buying them it was early stages, and I was buying the cheap WalMart brand.

I realize that LEDs are the future and all that, but to all the assholes who want to argue that the CFLs don't last, FU, they do.

[AnArmyVeteran]

1. I've heard Rush, Beck, Hannity & others on the right ridicule people using energy saving devices.

Limblah even bragged when gas was over $4 a gallon he was going to the nearest dealership and buy five cars with the worst gas mileage. How can any sane person listen to these right wing freaks and respect them?

[DainBramaged]

2. ONE in over five years, and others I've replaced were because of the new

brighter white ones. I gave my replaced bulbs to my beautiful daughter who immediately replaced all of her bulbs except those in her studio. Those remain halogen. I am sure she will see a nice decrease in her electric bill over the next couple of months.

[HopeHoops]

3. Unscrew it counter-clockwise. Screw a new one in clockwise. D'OH! All the clocks are DIGITAL!

:evilgrin:

[Kalyke]

14. Rightie-tightie. Lefty-Loosey

Easier than remembering clockwise/counter-clockwise.

Oh - and set your digital back an hour this weekend. :hi:

[HopeHoops]

15. And my pocket watch (yes, I have one - a shitload of them actually).

The one in question is the only one my grandfather gave me before he passed away. I have the remainder of his collection as well but that one is the only one I carry with me on anything approaching a regular basis.

[madokie]

4. Its been a while since I changed our 26 lightbulbs to CFL's

and I've replaced exactly two also. Both in the same fixture too, where the heat is trapped.

a 'while' is a good 3 or 4 years that I'm referring to too.

[hobbit709]

5. I replaced about 90% of my bulbs with CFLs years ago.

The only regular incandescents are in dimmer controlled lights.

When LED become bright enough and cheap enough, i'll start using them but for what they cost now, they are too dim.

[Mimosa]

6. They burn too hot, and have mercury in them (environmental hazard)

CFLs are not good. And the light is blue white.

[Demstud]

7. Overall, CFL's are still the better deal

I know they have mercury, but it's an extremely small amount these days (around 1/1000th of what's in a mercury thermometer), and it's still less mercury contributed to the environment overall than the extra mercury added by power plants due to the increased energy demands of incandescent light bulbs. I don't find the light that bad either, depending on what kind you get (full spectrum, soft white, daylight, or bright white). They don't burn hot at all in comparison, I don't know what you're talking about with that one. It's one reason they're so energy efficient.

[GoCubsGo]

12. So do regular fluroescent lights.

A lot more, since they're much larger. They've been around for decades, yet I have never heard anyone complain about the mercury in those. Hmmmm...

[phatkatt]

8. Someone left a package of CFL's in our break room ...

... with a note saying "For someone who might appreciate them". It was early January so I imagine a right-winger got them for xmas. At least he didn't trash them. They are now illuminating my liberal abode!

[MadHound]

9. I would love to use CFL's,

But the light they emit is painful to my wife's eye, as are LED's. We're starting to stock up on incandescents now, so that we'll have plenty to last our lifetime after the changes of 2014 go into effect.

[Better Today]

11. painful to her eyes??? wtf?

[MadHound]

13. My wife injured her eye a number of years ago

She literally got poked in the eye with a sharp stick. At the time, since her eye swelled up to the size of a cue ball, I thought she would lose it. Instead, through the work of a very excellent ophthalmologist, her eye, and most of her sight was saved. However her pupil doesn't contract down fully, her vision in that eye is a bit fuzzy, and she has scarring on her retina. Most of the time she is fine, and can compensate. But certain lights, namely fluorescents and LED's bother her. She wears sunglasses now outside at all times, and I drive at night because the contrast between bright lights and darkness really messes with her.

We've tried CFL's and they bother her eye, giving her headaches, same with LED's. So we stick with incandescents, and will stock up on them now so that we have them in the future.

[Better Today]

10. I have some of both CFL and standard light bulbs. I also ran

flourescent in my shop/darkroom, actually using a 20"x24" deck of them for print exposures. I've found and read some to back up what I found, that areas that have lights turned on and off frequently, may have very short lived CFLs, so places like the bathroom have regular bulbs, everywhere else is CFLs and except for having to have a few moments patience as the bulb doesn't get to full brightness till the gas gets a bit warm, I find them to be just wonderful. A new light fixture with a flat, circular flourescent bulb for the kitchen was installed 7 years ago and it's light is still in there working fine even with that being the one in the house that's on the most.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

16. I have to do something about the incandescent bulbs

that are on a dimmer switch.

The technology has some catching up to do.

:hi:

[marybourg]

18. Go to your hardware store. They have dimmable CFLs now.

Also 3-way ones. I started buying CFLs 24 years ago, when they were $20 a piece and I'm only on my second generation in most of my fixtures.

[4_TN_TITANS]

17. Looking back on when we used incandescants

I was constantly changing a bulb here and there. I love the CFL's - less heat, electricity, and maintence.