Light Bulb Warning!

[Shortwavewave]

If you like shortwave/HF radio do NOT I repeat DO NOT buy energy saving light bulbs (aka: phillips, energy star)

These things make more FRIGGIN noise than a Bull in a China Cabnet

I bought some and have been using them for a while NOT KNOWING what all the darn noise was coming from, Turned every light off in the house except OL' Faithful 150watt Incandesant LIght Bulb and swear I could of heard a pin drop on 160meters.

Threw them *******(you fill in the blank) Away.

Well to make sure I replaced all my bulbs with Incandesant 60w and not a peep out of them.

Sorry if this isnt in the right place, or if I might be late on this topic, just want to warn people.

 

[Don_Burke]

I just do not use the compact fluorescents while I am trying to listen to HF.

The fluorescent fixtures seem to have enough bypassing in them to knock down the noise.

The CFLs reduce the heat in the house, so they are not going anywhere.

The next time you get the urge to throw some of them away, drop me a PM and I will send you my address.

 

[E-Man]

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT ENERGY SAVER LIGHT BULBS!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-LOtKIIKcg

This is what I use in my shack:

http://westmountainradio.com/PWRbrite.htm

 

[Shortwavewave]

Are you serious? I have broke one before, had a horrable smell, all I did was vaccum it up...OOPS

 

[pogbobo]

http://www.radioreference.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92803&highlight=light

my post is #19 :twisted:

 

[jon_k]

Well to make sure I replaced all my bulbs with Incandesant 60w and not a peep out of them.

Sorry if this isnt in the right place, or if I might be late on this topic, just want to warn people.

The cool and interesting thing is that Australia has passed legislation to BAN the sale of incandescents outside of specialty purposes last I heard. Agencies in the US and UK are lobbying for legislation like this in these places too.

If it gets introduced, you might want to stockpile some bulbs so you won't have to make a _REAL_ radio shack outside of your house just so you can listen to shortwave. You may end up clearing out that shed in your back yard after all.

 

[SAR923]

Better stock up on incandescents since the nannies in Washington have already passed legislation outlawing most of them them by January, 2014. However, you'll still be able to buy incandescents less than 40 watts and more than 150 watts, so you can have a really dim or really bright shack in 2014 still using incandescents. No one has yet figured out how to handle the hazardous waste problem of disposing of tens of millions of CFL's per year but, hey, if it's feel good legislation now, let's pass it and let the saps that in charge six years from now figure it out.

 

[poltergeisty]

Congress should focus on LED light bulbs. No, no, energy independence! FFS, The White House Pres Room uses LED bulbs.. :roll:


You wanna know how I make up the pollution created using the minuscule of energy from incandescent light bulbs? Buy "carbon off sets"... :lol: *Plus, I save money flying to San Fransisco in my undersized jet...

When does the hypocritical bureaucracy cease? Talk about a loss of efficiency..

ef·fi·cien·cy Pronunciation Key - [i-fish-uhn-see]

–noun, plural -cies.

1. the state or quality of being efficient; competency in performance. I.E. Congress

2. accomplishment of or ability to accomplish a job with a minimum expenditure of time and effort. I.E. Congress

3. the ratio of the work done or energy developed by a machine, engine, etc., to the energy supplied to it, usually expressed as a percentage.

Not a damn thing!
More taxes in, less work out...

Well, least I have the First Amendment. :lol:





Anyway, yeah, those "CFL's" are a killer when it comes to RF. Just can't wait to see what happens when more households have them....

Hey now, don't mandate hybrids and hydrogen fuel powered vehicles too quickly. Trying to save money so I can buy a HDTV converter. LMAO!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smug_Alert!

 

[slicerwizard]

No one has yet figured out how to handle the hazardous waste problem of disposing of tens of millions of CFL's per year but, hey, if it's feel good legislation now, let's pass it and let the saps that in charge six years from now figure it out.

It's better than burning a crapload of extra coal on incandescents.

 

[DaveNF2G]

It's better than burning a crapload of extra coal on incandescents.

Hmm. Let's see. Emit products of combustion that have to be measured in thousands of tons before they do detectable environmental damage, or use breakable light bulbs containing a liquid metal that is deadly in miniscule amounts. Which is better? Hmmmm.

:roll:

 

[Shortwavewave]

Heres some samples of what the CFLs Cause on 60-75khz as well as other freqs, it even creates a horried noise on my scanner!

This was used with spectrogram, R75, and NO ANTENNA! Between 60-75khz
Click for larger Images

My POINT......... I HATE THEM!

CFL turned on

ALt Display CFL Turned on

ON then, Turned Off


Idle Display CFL Turned off

 

[Shortwavewave]

Heres a audio clip of the forsakin thing, listen to the whole thing it sounds as if its warming UP!

 

[Mick]

I saw this bumper sticker on the Internet.

 

[Zaratsu]

Are you serious? I have broke one before, had a horrable smell, all I did was vaccum it up...OOPS

You smelled it?

Thats not good.


I like how the govt is mandating their use by 2014. About as good as flouride in your water



Heh, the house I just moved into had CFLs all over it. Besides the terrible light that makes me nausious, the RF and the Merc threat made me change them over to GE incans fast.


Gonna have to stock up if the gov is going to take them away from us.:lol:

 

[Zaratsu]

It's better than burning a crapload of extra coal on incandescents.

Because the extra coal is better off charging my ipod?


short-sighted band-aid solution. Power demands always go up. Solution is to build more power.

Go nuclear.

Cheap, safe, clean. The russians are selling us all their warheads to use as fuel. Nukes are good for peace too.


Not to mention there is a TON of great skilled-industry firms and jobs that accompanys a nuclear power infrastructure.



shi tty lightbulbs and not flushing the toilet when you #1 only is not the answer

 

[HM1529]

You guys crack me up.


CFL lights contain a minute amount of mercury, about 5mg or less. Manufacturers are constantly evolving the product and, in the process, reducing the amount of Hg in each generation of the bulbs.

Yes, CFL's can cause interference for radio monitors, but the amount of energy saved by these lights is tremendous. Sure, they contain some mercury, but if the lights are properly recycled, that mercury is reused and does not enter the environment or the waste stream. When power plants emit tons of pollutants (including mercury), none of that is any good for us. By using these lights, power plant emissions are reduced through a reduction in energy consumption.

You can also buy CFL's now that have coatings on the glass that make the emitted light much more similar to what you get from incandescents.

Lawyers and a hyperawareness of the dangers of mercury are what have caused the specialized clean up (including not vacuuming the broken glass thereby making the mercury airborne and more likely to be ingested by a human).

 

[Shortwavewave]

I dont care how safe or unsafe they are, I just care NOW because they cause so much interf

Although yeah so what they can be properly disposed of, but how meny people do you think actully recycle? NOT as much as you think

For EXample: You take the bulb and put in a glass jar and take it to the recycle center, some do but there are centers that dont give a crap! and its gets thrown away just like any other thing

and I have never recycled, shouldnt have to!

The Incandesant Light bulb has been around for 120years Its never failed on us, why replace it?

I use a 150watt bulb for my living room, and soon Im going to buy a 300watt one! so what an extra dollor a month

Like DAN said "Go nuclear"
Then ANYONE can use all the darn 300watt Lightbulbs you want.

 

[eorange]

CFL lights contain a minute amount of mercury, about 5mg or less.

...which is a hazardous amount! See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_(element)#Occupational_exposure

 

[rcvmo]

Congress should focus on LED light bulbs

I have been using a combination of the CFL's and LED's for a couple years since the shack was re-built.
CFL's when I'm working on something on the bench, LED's when I'm watching TV or playing on HF.

Too bad Google doesn't make a Sat map taken at night. Wonder what my amber LED tailight assemblies on each wooden privacy fence post look like from space? They look cool like a candlelight dinner setting. The again, the amber keeps the bugs away.

rcvmo

 

[SAR923]

Any idea of how much power generated in the US is used for home lighting? Just home lighting, not businesses, street lamps, and other outdoor lighting. A little over 4%. That's it. The amount of total power generation saved by mandating a switch to CFL's is miniscule. RCVMO is quite correct about LED's. If we are going to mandate a change (which I don't think we should), LED's are the way to go, not CFL's. Even the worst LED's are 50% efficient compared to 30% for the best technology CFL's. Even better, mandate that all new homes must be wired for 12 volts with 110/240 volts reserved for things like freezers and dryers. Think of how many inefficient wall warts and transformers we use to reduce 110 volts to 12 for things like halogen lights, many fluorescent lights, and even our beloved radios. That would have a real effect on the amount of power used for residential energy. But no, that's too complicated. Let's just pass feel good laws and hope no one ever works out the numbers to see what a bunch of nitwits we've elected.