hilldweller Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 We like plenty of light in our kitchen, (it's so I can see what I'm burning). I got fed up of replacing the daft little 50 watt GU10 bulbs in the multi-lamp fitting and so I went out and bought a 6 ft. fluorescent fitting. Great, plenty of light but I'd usually walked right into the dark kitchen before the lamp struck. No problem I thought, I'll buy one of those electronic instant starters to replace the normal glow-starter. This did the trick and the lamp was lit before you heard the click from the wall switch. The lamp started so violently that the ballast choke made a noise like the Flamborough Head foghorn as the starter pulsed the lamp. I decided that we could live with that as a trade-off for instant light. About 2 weeks after fitting the new starter the tube failed, burnt out at one end. I bought a new tube and that one lasted for 5 days before being junked. Back to the draining board and yet another new tube and a conventional starter and hopefully this one might last the rated 12,000 hours. There's a lot to be said for old technology ! Posh fittings in commercial premises use all-electronic ballasts but they cost a fortune. The old instant-start fittings of 20/30 years ago were a fire risk which is why the industry went back to switch-start technology. HD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 We like plenty of light in our kitchen, (it's so I can see what I'm burning). I got fed up of replacing the daft little 50 watt GU10 bulbs in the multi-lamp fitting and so I went out and bought a 6 ft. fluorescent fitting. Great, plenty of light but I'd usually walked right into the dark kitchen before the lamp struck. No problem I thought, I'll buy one of those electronic instant starters to replace the normal glow-starter. This did the trick and the lamp was lit before you heard the click from the wall switch. The lamp started so violently that the ballast choke made a noise like the Flamborough Head foghorn as the starter pulsed the lamp. I decided that we could live with that as a trade-off for instant light. About 2 weeks after fitting the new starter the tube failed, burnt out at one end. I bought a new tube and that one lasted for 5 days before being junked. Back to the draining board and yet another new tube and a conventional starter and hopefully this one might last the rated 12,000 hours. There's a lot to be said for old technology ! Posh fittings in commercial premises use all-electronic ballasts but they cost a fortune. The old instant-start fittings of 20/30 years ago were a fire risk which is why the industry went back to switch-start technology. HD I can't say I am a fan of either fluorescent lighting or the modern low energy light bulbs which appear to be nothing more than a miniaturised fluorescent lamp anyway. I like a good old fashioned 100 Watt tungsten fillament, energy wasting, large carbon footprint, eco unfriendly, planet destroying bulb. It may have it's disadvantages but it reliably provides a good quantity of light at the flick of a switch. B) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vox Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 I can't say I am a fan of either fluorescent lighting or the modern low energy light bulbs which appear to be nothing more than a miniaturised fluorescent lamp anyway. I like a good old fashioned 100 Watt tungsten fillament, energy wasting, large carbon footprint, eco unfriendly, planet destroying bulb. It may have it's disadvantages but it reliably provides a good quantity of light at the flick of a switch. I've come to the conclusion that we need both in our house. A few proper bulbs where it needs to be bright and instant and LE ones where it doesn't really matter. Hall, porch, reading lamps, cooker hood, Blah blah blah. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 I've come to the conclusion that we need both in our house. A few proper bulbs where it needs to be bright and instant and LE ones where it doesn't really matter. Hall, porch, reading lamps, cooker hood, Blah blah blah. Our house is currently the same, a bit of a mixture The Government wants to force me to go all LE I would rather stay all filament. I blame LE and fluorescent lights for some of my health problems like frequent headaches and poor eyesight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vox Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 We've gone to LEDs for the band lights. They're very good (or brilliant if you fancy a pun) Lower energy use, little or no unwanted heat, lighter in weight, less fragile. You name it. I don't know if they've transferred the technology to domestic stuff yet but I'm sure it'll happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveH Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 We've gone to LEDs for the band lights. They're very good (or brilliant if you fancy a pun) Lower energy use, little or no unwanted heat, lighter in weight, less fragile. You name it. I don't know if they've transferred the technology to domestic stuff yet but I'm sure it'll happen. I quite fancy the idea of LED's. although I do find their light very intense and "off colour" However i think I could live with that and be eco friendly without having to put up with all the hassle of LE and fluorescent bulbs. Thanks vox, LED's may be a nice compromise and the way to go. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now