Incandescents - do you still use them?

FoxEye

FoxEye

FoxEye

Caporegime
Joined
17 Feb 2006
Posts
29,263
Location
Cornwall
I thought it was illegal to sell these any more, but it turns out not to be the case. As long as the boxes are marked "not for home installation", they can still be sold. In fact some companies are selling them as mini-heaters, believe it or not. Either way, the legislation is apparently useless, which I personally think is a huge shame, given how inefficient these ancient things are.

All of this came up in a conversation about the dangers of energy saving ("ES") bulbs. A friend of my Mum's was warning her about the UV emissions of ES bulbs, which she was told are beyond safe limits. I'm not a fan of conspiracy theories, and the conversation was heading in that direction ("Do you believe what the govt tells you/ that they couldn't cover it up?"). Mum of course now wants to change the energy saving bulbs we've had for years to old filament types, and has convinced herself that the mysterious pain she's only just mentioned is due to being irradiated by energy saving bulbs. /le sigh

What shocked me during my Googling about the legal situation was how many people still buy these things. Aldi apparently still sell them, as do B&Q and other places, any many, many people are filament bulb die hards. They have stockpiled and refuse to switch to more efficient bulbs (inc LED tech). Many are applauding the legal loophole as a victory for "choice" and a win against the "meddling EU".

So, who here still uses filament bulbs, and if you do, why? Also anyone heard scare stories of ES bulbs giving people cancer? It's a new one on me.
 
I've still got them purely because they are what are fitted.

I've already replaced 3 of the 4 halogen bulbs in the kitchen, when the 4th goes that'll be replaced too although they are only cheap LED ones and are a very white light.

Other parts of the house will be changed as they go.
 
Only 2 left in the house are in the cooker hood, purely because the LED replacements don't last 5 minutes! I'd say 40% is LED and the rest is the energy saving bulbs in our house now. Slowly replacing with LED all the way though.
 
I use halogens throughout (around 100 in the house) as I have really struggled to find any alternative bulbs which actually work with a digital dimming system. They all flicker or go completely nuts then die :(

Until someone builds compatible bulbs I will stick with ones which actually work.
 
Interesting. The ones we sell at work say "not for household use" or somthing similar. Makes sense now.

We were originly told that from a date about 3 years ago, it was illegal to manufacture, or import 100w bulbs, and that 60w bulbs would follow suit soon. I was wondering how we were still finding stock of these 100w bulbs, but now it makes sence.

And yes, I still use them. The "ramp up time" of the fluorescent bulbs is a pain in the ass, and I dont care much for very small savings on my electric bill.
 
Jez said:
I use halogens throughout (around 100 in the house) as I have really struggled to find any alternative bulbs which actually work with a digital dimming system. They all flicker or go completely nuts then die :(

Until someone builds compatible bulbs I will stick with ones which actually work.
Click to expand...

You're either in a mansion or like directional lighting. :D
 
Just recessed down lights in most rooms that's all.

Led replacements have not gone well as I say, until they get a lot more compatible and ideally a lot cheaper they are just not a goer for us.
 
Was loath to swap over but then found some LED ones which have every bit as good brightness and light quality if not better than the old ones - will have to check what they are though IIRC they are "warm white" or something.

EDIT: Can't see brand on them but they are 3000K Warm White, 12W - weren't that expensive and last forever.
 
Last edited:
new boy said:
Interesting. The ones we sell at work say "not for household use" or somthing similar. Makes sense now.

We were originly told that from a date about 3 years ago, it was illegal to manufacture, or import 100w bulbs, and that 60w bulbs would follow suit soon. I was wondering how we were still finding stock of these 100w bulbs, but now it makes sence.

And yes, I still use them. The "ramp up time" of the fluorescent bulbs is a pain in the ass, and I dont care much for very small savings on my electric bill.
Click to expand...

Yeah from 2012 all filament bulbs no matter what wattage should have been illegal, but for aforementioned loophole.

LED bulbs btw have no ramp up time, and save even more energy than normal ES bulbs. The initial investment is a few quid per bulb, but the energy savings are significant. We're talking going from 100W to 3W for the same amount of light.

The newer generation ES bulbs have minimal ramp up time, getting to 60% brightness instantly.
 
FoxEye said:
Yeah from 2012 all filament bulbs no matter what wattage should have been illegal, but for aforementioned loophole.

LED bulbs btw have no ramp up time, and save even more energy than normal ES bulbs. The initial investment is a few quid per bulb, but the energy savings are significant. We're talking going from 100W to 3W for the same amount of light.

The newer generation ES bulbs have minimal ramp up time, getting to 60% brightness instantly.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. My step dad put LED bulbs in his kitchen. Gave the whole room a strange medical feeling due to the clour of light... I understand I could simply choose a colour of light closer to red end of the spectrum, but I just dont see the motivation to do so to save a few watts? Its not even the few quid to get the bulbs in the first place, I just cant be bothered to sort it all out to save a few pence a week lol.
 
new boy said:
Fair enough. My step dad put LED bulbs in his kitchen. Gave the whole room a strange medical feeling due to the clour of light... I understand I could simply choose a colour of light closer to red end of the spectrum, but I just dont see the motivation to do so to save a few watts? Its not even the few quid to get the bulbs in the first place, I just cant be bothered to sort it all out to save a few pence a week lol.
Click to expand...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/...w-to-save-240-a-year-with-LED-lightbulbs.html

Saving of £20 a month is not all that bad :p
 
It's the light colour I think is a big issue for a lot of people, I know its hard to find a decent match to what everyone is used to.

Also a lot of suppliers don't advertise the warmth number of the light, and photos aren't always accurate. Warm white seems the nearest but can also vary between manufacturers
 
They all require very specific leading edge dimmers and cost a fortune to buy though, the changeover cost is massive.

It'll pay back eventually for sure but it's hardly a quick "why not" exercise, I'd need to test the life of them carefully before investing a lot into the bulbs and new control systems etc.

As it stands yes they might use around 35w each for a halogen downlight on average brightness, but you can buy the bulbs for around 40p each and use them with existing switching etc.
 
I have a mixture of both. The only reason I don't have energy saving bulbs in a couple of light fittings is that it's been hard to find bulbs that fit the light fittings (they take SBC candle bulbs), the glass shades are really narrow. If I could easily find replacements I'd change them too. When I see ones that fit I do get them but usually they only have a couple in stock (I have 7 shades like that - 5 are on a dimmer).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom