FREE Bulbs from Electric Co

[terambulan]

Today I fitted two free bulbs from the Electric co. They guarantee a life of 3y for these 'longlife/economical' bulbs.

Did u get them and have u fitted them?

[shylock73]

I have them all over my house in every room and although they take a moment or two to warm-up they are ok for me, and the bills should be ok too.

[bigmamma]

I have several round the house , still waiting for the ones the electricity peeps are sending .

[Buenchico]

No, I didn't get them but I've got quite a few low-energy bulbs around the house anyway. They used to be quite expensive but they're now well under a pound in most of the big supermarkets. (Morrison's were recently selling them at three for a pound).

There are two reasons why I've not changed all of my bulbs:

1. Up until recently, you couldn't get 'dimmable' low-energy bulbs. (The main lights in my living room and in my bedroom are on dimmers). They're now coming onto the market but they're still expensive.

2. I generally only think about changing a bulb when one fails. Most of the standard (tungsten) bulbs in my house seem to last for ages anyway. (I generally reckon to get at least 3 years, and sometimes more than 10 years, out of a conventional bulb).

Chris

[mrs.chappie]

Chris, I bought some for the bedside and they were so dim I couldn't read with them on, too dim!

Was I just unlucky?

[Ethel]

All the bulbs in my house are low energy, with the exception of two lamps.

For some reason, I have had at least 15 free bulbs arrive over the last two years.

Hurrah!

[Rtaxron]

How do I get my free bulbs, I am with Scottish Power?

[terambulan]

Southern Electric sent me 6 boxes (2 in each box, 60w & 75w) with 10y guarantee! I never requested them either?

If I get many more will have to open an ebay a/c!

[Buenchico]

Mrs C:
My problem with conventional bulbs has usually been getting hold of a low enough wattage. For example, I find that 40W is too bright for a desk lamp (because of the glare off the page), so (with conventional bulbs) I prefer 25W. It's taken me quite a while to get hold of of a 'long-life' bulb with an equivalent rating. (From memory, I think the bulb currently in my desk lamp is rated as "4W -equivalent to 30W tungsten).

However, I do understand your problem. No light bulbs produce 'true white' light. (The nearest you can get is the tungsten 'daylight' bulbs used by artists. To most people's eyes, the light from these bulbs is very 'clinical'). So the light from different types of bulbs has various colour biases. When scientists measure the 'equivalent light output' of the newer types of bulbs, they're using light meters rather than seeing the light in the same way that the human eye does. For this reason, many people perceive the light from a long-life bulb rated as 'equivalent to 40W' as being less bright than a normal 40W tungsten bulb.

However, the answer is simple. If you used to have a 40W tungsten bulb in your bedside lamp, simply get a long-life bulb rated as 'equivalent to 60W'. Similarly, if you were using a 60W tungsten bulb, look for a long-life bulb rated as 'equivalent to 100W'. You'll still use less electricity with the newer bulbs. You can also disregard any safety labels on the lamps (such as 'do not exceed 60W') because the newer bulbs generate far less heat.

Chris

[mrs.chappie]

Hey thanks for that, Chris. I will look for some more when I am next shopping.

[heathfield]

Totally agree with your answer Chris. I found that I have to get the next higher wattage to the declared output to get anything like the same light as from a tungsten bulb. This can be difficult in the case of a 100w replacement, since there are not many 120w equivalent low energy bulbs available, and they are still in the much higher price bracket. Power companies sometimes give out free low energy bulbs at street markets, etc, and I've argued with them that their light spectrum is crap. The answer is that 'We're working on it!'. Huh.
And when we all have to change over to these bulbs, how many millions of electronic timers in the UK and Europe are going to have to be replaced, because existing ones can't work with these bulbs?

[Postdog]

I fitted my whole house with them ages ago when the local supermarket did them cheap and in a BOGOF offer.

I am on pay as go electric, so I noticed the difference in costs staright away.

Trouble is, I bought a few more than I needed, and what with the free ones from the gas and electric, I have bulbs I probably won't need for years.

[Disco Fever]

I have the low energy type all around the house and I also have LED spot lights in the kitchen which will save me money in the long run as there only 4 watts per lamp....