CFLs
- Thread starter Capt Worley PE
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csb
Well-known member
Dleg doesn't have a hot water heater? At all?
We have a a mix of incandescent and CFL's in our house. I find the light to be fine when it's under a lampshade and our newer bulbs are almost instant on. We even have a three-way bulb (which didn't seem dirty until I typed it). I think the only pain is going to be making sure when they die that we take it back to Lowe's. I'm guessing, like most of the batteries in our house, that my husband will throw them in the trash. That's just the way it goes.
We have a a mix of incandescent and CFL's in our house. I find the light to be fine when it's under a lampshade and our newer bulbs are almost instant on. We even have a three-way bulb (which didn't seem dirty until I typed it). I think the only pain is going to be making sure when they die that we take it back to Lowe's. I'm guessing, like most of the batteries in our house, that my husband will throw them in the trash. That's just the way it goes.
Capt Worley PE
Run silent, run deep
I doubt it. i have heard a lot of similar complaints.
I've gone through at least two five packs of CFLs over the past couple/three years. I'm pretty much done with them, except the always on basement lights where light quality isn't an issue.
Capt Worley PE
Run silent, run deep
Those are godawful expensive and require yearly maintenance. No way to make a ROI with those things.
I saw a guy who made a solar hot water heater with a fish tank water pump and refrigerator coll. Claims water came out at 140 degrees on a sunny day.
wilheldp_PE
PE, LEED AP, SPAM KING
A standard 60 watt incandescent is replaced by a 13 watt CFL. I would love for LEDs to make it because they only consume 1 watt per driver (most of them, anyway). The problem comes in with light distribution. Fluorescent tubes and incandescent filaments inherently direct light in every direction, so it is easy to put in reflectors and diffusers to get the light where you want it. LEDs, on the other hand, are highly directional, so it's a serious pain in the *** to diffuse or get good light distribution out of a 1 watt LED. Most of the current A19 (medium base bulbs) LEDs make up for this problem by using a shitload of LEDs facing in different directions. That makes them less efficient than a CFL due to the number of LEDs required to get the same distribution as a 13 watt CFL. If somebody can come up with a really good way to diffuse LED light, it would be a huge improvement over CFLs and incandescents.
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csb
Well-known member
But everything is better in Europe!
We get a lot of sun where we live. It would be like having a giant sun shower on top of the house.
We get a lot of sun where we live. It would be like having a giant sun shower on top of the house.
Really? I would assume it'd be cheaper since you're only getting hot water on demand instead of constantly heating a big tub of water.
I saw a bunch of solar hot water heaters in hawaii.
Capt Worley PE
Run silent, run deep
Yeah, I want to say it was on the instructables.com website(which is pretty freakin' cool, btw), but I'm too lazy to look right now. I imagine googling solar water heater refrigerater colis would yeild a design....
Capt Worley PE
Run silent, run deep
Just in case you want to start hoarding the incandescents....
http://www.amazon.com/SYLVANIA-12709-100-W...4142&sr=1-3
I thought it was a decent price. I did note that the supply went down by two cases in an hour...
http://www.amazon.com/SYLVANIA-12709-100-W...4142&sr=1-3
I thought it was a decent price. I did note that the supply went down by two cases in an hour...
wilheldp_PE
PE, LEED AP, SPAM KING
I noticed earlier this year the California is banning 100 W incandescents. My first question was "how will Easy Bake Ovens work in CA." It was fresh in my mind because my niece got an Easy Bake for Christmas, and my BIL had to go hunting down a 100 W light bulb for it.
snickerd3
Taking suggestions
he will ahve to buy the new redesigned Easy bake oven. They redesigned not to use a light bulb since they wont be available.
Capt Worley PE
Run silent, run deep
I'm surprised Kali hasn't banned the Easy Bake Oven for reinforcing gender stereotypes.
wilheldp_PE
PE, LEED AP, SPAM KING
snickerd3
Taking suggestions
light-bulb-free heating element that’s more akin to a conventional oven is the only description I seen so far. They aren't out in stores until fall
'tis true.... But you should realize our "cold" water isn't that cold, although there are times when I just can't take it. Mornings aren't bad though - when your body is all cooled down from sleeping and the airconditioner, the cold water feels relatively... less cold. On a sunny day it's almost warm, anyway - water lines around here are generally not very deep (12 inches or less)
I've looked into solar heaters, but a few years ago when I could still afford home improvements, the only solar heaters on island were from China and used glass heating tubes. That's gotta be the stupidest choice of materials in a typhoon zone, so I didn't bite. I hear there are other models in island now, so I need to check again now that I am making more money.
The other option, which is widely used here, is the big black plastic water tank. The problem with a big tank like that is that my roof can't take the load, so it would have to go at ground level, which means I would have to install a pump and pressure tank. Those types of systems are very common here because of the water problems (most places did not have 24-hour water until just recently). They work OK and have some advantages - like being able to augment with rain water (helps mitigate the salty and overchlorinated utility water), but it adds more electrical cost.
Good point! I was always disappointed in the Easy Bake for that reason - took to damn long to cook anything. They should put in a real heating coil and make the thing out of metal, basically a toaster oven for little kids. That would be pretty cool.
Oh - I forgot my point in opening this thread. Have you guys seen the new LED streetlights? They're in the process of retrofitting all our streetlights here as part of a stimulus (ARRA) project. They finished the main road near my house just last week, and I must say I am very impressed - these lights provide far better coverage and illumination that the usual streetlights (sodium?) that we have here (we still have the blue/white ones out here mostly), supposedly at 25% the power consumption.
If they can do that with streetlights, they should be able to do something like that with household LEDs. I met a woman from NREL out here two years ago who went on and on about LEDs being the wave of the future, but that there were still some issues in making a truly competitive light bulb replacement (this was after I bashed CFLs to her - despite what I said here, I agree on the whole life-cycle toxicity thing. I don't like them for that reason, but I use them because they save me money)
If they can do that with streetlights, they should be able to do something like that with household LEDs. I met a woman from NREL out here two years ago who went on and on about LEDs being the wave of the future, but that there were still some issues in making a truly competitive light bulb replacement (this was after I bashed CFLs to her - despite what I said here, I agree on the whole life-cycle toxicity thing. I don't like them for that reason, but I use them because they save me money)
We use LEDs for our kitchen countertop lighting. They work fantastic. Next year when our house is finished we are planning on raising chickens, how will I be able to heat the poor hen house if I can't get any more incandecents? 
I know that there are space heaters out there, but the nostalgia of having a 100 watt bulb burn 24/7 in the winter just gets to me.
I know that there are space heaters out there, but the nostalgia of having a 100 watt bulb burn 24/7 in the winter just gets to me.
