CFL

• CFLs may save power consumption and carbon emissions.
• Cost saved may be more than their purchase cost (and this is after taking into account value of the heating effect of filament lamps).
• Energy saved may be more than bulb production energy
• CFLs vary in quality, from excellent to awful.
• CFL lighting does not save a lot compared to other ways to save.

Power Equivalence

Packet quoted power equivalents are wrong if compared to standard GLS filament bulbs. This continuance of misleading claims has put a good many people off using these light sources.

CFLs are at best 4x as energy efficient, so 1/4 the filament wattage is the best first choice.

The ratio changes for lowest power lamps because 240v filament lamps fall off in efficacy at low powers more than CFLs do.

• 100w: 25w
• 75w: 20w
• 60w: 15w
• 40w:9w or 11w
• 25w: 5w
• 15w: 3w

Tips

Bulb Choice

Available lamp models change, so try one each of a few different ones to see which gives best results.

Put 2 bulbs side by side, filament bulb and the cfl, to see if they give the same light colour. Some give an accurate match, some are slightly pinkish, and some give a much colder light. Pick bulbs that match filament light.

Outdoor Use

Most CFLs will take a while to warm up in winter outdoors. Outdoor rated bulbs are available. These often have glass or polycarbonate outer covers.

R80

For R80 fittings where the bulb is not visible, ie is wrapped around by the fitting cowl, try using miniature non-R80 bulbs. R80s are either steeply priced (Genura at around £20 each) or not as attractive as filament R80s.

20w Bulb Orientation

CFLs of 20w and more are designed to be used base down. They can be used base up too, eg in ceiling pendant fittings, but will have shorter lives than rated in this position. This does not prevent them saving money and energy.

Enclosed Fittings

Most CFLs are happy enough in enclosed fittings, but a minority aren't, and light output may fall, or the bulbs fail earlier than usual.

Fitting Power Ratings

Generally you dont need to worry about fitting power ratings when using CFLs, as the cfl power rating will be far below the fitting's limit. But with enclosed fittings or fitings where you need to squeeze maximum light output, this is best considered to avoid bulb failures.

A 25w rated bulb holder can cope with anything upto 25w of lightbulb, regardless of what technology that bulb uses.

But a 25w CFL would get too hot in a 25w max rated fitting, because CFLs are designed to run cooler than filament bulbs. So the practical recommended limit for CFLs is below the light fitting rated max. Its impossible to provide an exact number, as different CFLs will tolerate differing heat levels.

If your fitting is not giving enough light with a filament bulb of max rated power, using a CFL with half or a third the power will provide a good deal more light.

If too high a power CFL is used, the bulb will run hot and fail early. However this is not the fire risk that too high powered filament bulbs present, it is simply a risk to the working of the bulb.

Some too-hot bulbs may also produce reduced light output.

User Reviews

Osram

• Light quality excellent
• bulbs reliable
• recommended
• 10/10

Specialist

• Light quality good
• Candle bulb glass covers break easily
• 8/10

Pro-lite

• Light quality so-so
• bulbs reliable
• 7/10

Philips

• bulb life poor
• 5/10

Poundland

• Light quality horrendous
• Light output starts a bit low, and declines badly
• 1/10

Screwfix R80s

• Lower light output
• Light quality so-so
• Slightly longer bulb looks bad in fittings where the bulb is visible.
• High price
• 4/10

Suppliers

For a full long list of suppliers, see Suppliers Article.

Osram

Dyas

Pro-lite

Toolstation

Specialist

Screwfix

Philiips

Tesco

See Also

information on them including colour temperature and physical size:

http://www.lightbulbs-direct.com

http://www.bltdirect.com

http://www.yourwelcome.co.uk