In 2012, purchasing an incandescent light bulb will become a crime. Americans will be forced to use compact fluorescent light bulbs, or CFLs.
Now, we all have heard about the mercury content of these bulbs, and the ridiculous lengths we must go to when cleaning one up after a breakage. Evacuate the house, air out the room, use disposable materials like cardboard to scoop up the debris, seal the debris in glass jars (!), etc. No one’s going to do this—apart from the Goode family. But the threat posed by mercury is overblown, anyway. It’s just interesting that it turns out that there is “good” mercury and “bad” mercury. Green groups go bananas over the mercury produced by coal-fired power plants, and shrug over the mercury contamination in our homes due to CFLs.
John Stossel talked about this, and other CFL hazards, in a post at his blog the other day, in which he quotes from a story by Michael Heberling. In addition to the mercury content, it turns out that the amount of UV radiation these bulbs produce is cause for concern:
….the United Kingdom’s Health Protection Agency recommends that people be no closer than about a foot from these lights for more than an hour a day. The ultraviolet radiation emitted by CFLs is like direct sunlight on bare skin. Thus the [US] government is mandating that we all have miniature sun lamps throughout our homes.
And do they really last as long as advertised? What do you think?
The DOE guidelines for CFLs suggest that they be left on for at least 15 minutes after they are turned on…the lifespan of a CFL depends on how many times you turn it on and off. Failure to keep the light on causes the bulbs to burn out just as fast as the Edison bulbs. There go those big savings. So try to get in the habit of not turning off the lights after using the bathroom, a closet, or the laundry room. However, plan to come back 15 minutes later to turn off the light.
But that understates the problem. Leaving a CFL bulb on for 15 minutes won’t magically “heal” the bulb. It’s just a way to artificially extend the “lifetime” of the bulb. Don’t think of it as a lifetime measured in hours, think of it as a limited number of “on-off” events. If the DOE recommended that the bulb be left on for an hour at a time, the typical “lifetime” of a bulb would increase even more. Hell, if you left it on all the time it would last even longer! But I thought these bulbs were supposed to save energy…
And while CFLs that are left on may last ten times longer than incandescent lights, no one is saying that they will fully perform for that long. A Department of Energy study found that after 40 percent of the advertised service life, a quarter of the CFLs started to become dim bulbs. If you don’t mind having dim bulbs for 60 percent of the service life, then CFLs should make you happy.
So, in addition to leaving the bulb on at all times to maximize your “savings,” you should get a second one started about halfway through the first one’s life—at least if you want to be able to read something. I guess that’ll mean doubling your savings!
So, what’s the new danger posed by CFLs? These things are serious fire hazards.
A few weeks ago, my father was using one of them in a work light in the garage. The light dropped and the CFL inside shattered. My father was not overly concerned about the danger of the mercury released by this accident, mainly because the bulb began to shoot out flames like a blowtorch. The flame extended several inches from the base of the bulb, and lasted for several seconds until he managed to pull the plug.
[UPDATE: Here's the description from the man himself:
It shot flames for about 30 seconds and then “toned down” to two glowing rods. I watched it for two minutes and there was no change in the glowing status, it just continued to glow. I finally pulled the plug.]
He contacted Underwriters Laboratories, who wanted to know the serial number of the bulb, and when he couldn’t provide it they said there was nothing they could do.
I checked the UL website and found no discussion of anything similar to this event. The closest that came up was a description of what can happen at the end of a CFL bulb’s lifetime, which they described as normal.
“People expect to see the bright flash and to hear the popping like a traditional incandescent bulb, but the burn out of a CFL is different. The light dims over time and might produce a more dramatic pop, emit a distinct odor, and maybe even release some smoke,” said [John Drengenberg, consumer affairs manager at Underwriters Laboratories.]
In some cases, Drengenberg said that the plastic at the base of a CFL can turn black, but comments that this is also normal in most cases…
“CFLs are one of the products that we regularly test and investigate to specific UL requirements for electrical safety, fire and shock hazards,” he said. “Any popping sounds or smoke that a consumer might see when a CFLs burns out means that the bulb’s end-of-life mechanism worked as it should have.”
Well, that’s not quite the same thing as what happened to my father, is it? (Not that loud pops and smoke issuing from a burned-out light bulb are particularly desirable, either.) But there is no mention at UL of the possibility of a CFL bulb taking on the properties of a blowtorch if it is broken while power is still being supplied.
Lest you think my father is some nut making up a story (which you should, until proven otherwise), he’s not the only person who has reported this.
I also switched one on one time and had it catch fire at the base, shooting out flames, and I had to unplug it and grab the base of the lamp, and rush it outside before it caught the shade and the house on fire.
I lucked out being there when it happened. I’ll be stocking up on tungstens to use until I become a criminal.
And there have been several such incidents posted on the Consumer Reports Home & Garden Blog:
My wife had been in bed, heard a noise, and looking in that direction saw her bedside hurricane lamp’s single CF catch on fire. Fortunately, the fire went out quickly, and it occurred in a lamp that had no fabric. Although the lamp was old, it was rebuilt several years ago, never had a problem, and has continued to work after examination for several months after the incident.
I bought a number of FEIT cfls. While we were not in the room, one of them caught fire, breaking the bulb and leaving a major mess. These are not safe or acceptable. I am going back to regular globes. I don’t want my home destroyed.
I just had one flameout, while I was sleeping the other night. I keep a dining room light on at night. Had it not been for the smoke detector, I wouldn’t be here. It ruined the light fixture. From the heat. The light fixture used regular bulbs just fine until I converted the whole house to CFL’s. I just got done today going back to incandescent bulbs. I will buy a lifetime supply of regular bulbs if I have to. I will never use these things again.
I was an early adopter to CFLs. I was buying them when they were $20 a piece because I love new tech and saving money. 4-5 years ago I had one catch on fire and blow a hole in the white casing.
And take a look at this one:
I HAD THE HORRIFYING EXPERIENCE OF A FEIT CFL BULB
BPESL23TM
23W 120VAC 60Hz 380mA
UL # E170906SHOOTING OUT FIRE AND SMOKE AS IT BLEW OUT. THANK GOD (AND MAYBE NOT) THAT I WAS IN THE ROOM WHEN IT BLEW. BECAUSE MY ENTIRE HOME AND POSESSIONS WOULD HAVE BURNED TO THE GROUND.
There’s a serial number, and what do you know, a UL number, too. And yet, if this hadn’t happened to my father, I would never have heard about this danger. And I’ll bet you wouldn’t have, either.
We live in the age of the gesture. I think I started noticing this back in the ’80s, when the Nuclear Freeze Movement was big. The argument seemed to be, “We don’t care if it will make things better or worse! It’s the gesture that counts! Good people are for the Nuclear Freeze! Evil people are against it! That’s all that matters!”
I was thinking the exact same thing Lars.
It’s not important that it works, it’s that you submit to their authority. That’s the point.
But we have to save the planet. Even if it means killing YOURselves.
I was watching a congressman from Pennsylvania a few months ago on C-Span. He was talking to an empty house about the energy crisis. He talked about how Pelosi had ordered all the lightbulbs in the Capitol Building changed to CFLs, but did nothing about the single pane windows there. He also made it known that all CFLs are manufactured in China. I’m sorry I can’t recall the congressman’s name. He would make a better speaker than that dim bulb that is there now.
Go back to sleep, America, your leaders are taking care of you. Turn on “American Idol” and “Dancing with the Stars.” Your leaders care about and are taking care of you.
I cover CFLs and fire hazards here
http://ceolas.net/#li18ex
… but that sounded worse!
The ban on ordinary simple light bulbs makes no sense, for many reasons…
People choose to buy ordinary light bulbs around 9 times out of 10.
Banning what people want gives the supposed savings – no point in banning an impopular product!
If new LED lights or improved CFLs are good,
people will buy them – no need to ban ordinary light bulbs (little point).
If they are not good, people will not buy them – no need to ban ordinary light bulbs (no point).
The arrival of the transistor didn’t mean that more energy using radio valves had to be banned… they were bought less anyway.
All lights have their advantages.
The ordinary simple light bulb has for many people a pleasing appearance, it responds quickly with bright broad spectrum light, is easy to use with dimmers and other equipment, can come in small sizes, and has safely been used for over 100 years.
100 W+ equivalent brightness is a particular issue – difficult and expensive with both fluorescents and LEDS – yet such incandescent bulbs are first in line for banning in the EU!
There are also problems in achieving small size bright bulbs with fluorescents and LEDS, while halogens, related to ordinary bulbs are only slightly more efficient, and will gradually be phased out too given the proposed efficiency limits.
In any case:
Since when do we need to save on electricity?
There is no energy shortage, there are plenty of local energy sources, Middle East oil is not used for electricity generation.
Consumers pay for any power stations, just as they do for factories and shops generally.
Certainly it is good to let people know how they can save energy and money – but why force them to do it?
Emissions?
OK: Does a light bulb give out any gases?
Power stations might not either:
Why should emission-free households be denied the use of lighting they obviously want to use?
Low emission households will increase everywhere, since emissions will be reduced anyway through the planned use of coal/gas processing technology or energy substitution.
Also, the savings amounts can be questioned:
For a referenced list of reasons against light bulb bans, see
http://www.ceolas.net/#li1x onwards
That is a fantastic resource you’ve provided, Peter. Thank you for commenting! I especially appreciate that you are not a CFL-hater. They seem to make sense in a lot of situations, but when incandescents are banned, I guess that means the end of: outdoor lights in cold areas, oven lights, refrigerator lights, motion-sensitive lights, lights on a dimmer switch, lights that put the base over the bulb, etc., etc.
It is unreal that we will no longer be allowed to decide for ourselves how to make use of this technology.
I have to make sure to tell my father that those bulbs should not be used with a dimmer switch, even if he leaves it at the maximum setting.
I’ve never purchased a CFL. I guess they’ll have to throw me in the slammer.
CFLs don’t work at extremely low temperatures. Here in Minnesota, we go through fairly long periods of such temperatures every year. I can only assume we’ll have no outdoor lights at such times.
I found some info not long ago on the “carbon footprint” of the Prious, which indicates that taking into consideration the special metals, etc. in the manufacture and later destruction (after it’s useful life), it has a larger CF than the average gas guzzler SUV. I’m still trying to find a link on it, although I did see a similar report on the BBC America show “Top Gear” about a year ago.
Peter’s website makes the same point about CFLs, Fritz. First, these bulbs are made in China–their power plants pollute twice as much as ours do. Then you’ve got to ship the bulbs over here. Then—if the bulbs are recycled, and they probably won’t be which means mercury contamination—the old bulbs are shipped back to China for reclamation.
And have you seen the electronics that are in the base of the bulbs? Imagine the energy that goes into their production and assembly compared to a traditional bulb!
There is a new company called Vu1 that has produced a new type of lightbulb that is not an incandescent, a CFL, nor an LED. It contains no toxic elements like the CFLs, is more energy efficient that incandescents, and much cheaper than LEDs. It works on a new lighting technology called Electron Stimulated Luminescence (ESL). The lighting color produced by the light is very similar to lighting produced by an incandescent bulb.
The company is little known now, but that’s going to change real soon. They’ve hired a film production company, Opticus Films ( http://www.opticusfilms.com/ ), to do a short film on their technology which is expected to be completed sometime in August. They have been leasing a manufacturing plant in the Czech Republic that had previously been owned by Philips Electronics and are currently in negotiations to buy the plant. They also recently signed a financing deal that should supply them with enough cash to keep operations going until they are self-sustaining. I’ve been following this company since last December and it’s really the most exciting company and new technology that I’ve ever come across. (I wasn’t paying attention to such things when Microsoft first started out.) Here’s a link to their website: http://www.vu1.com/
Interesting idea, ginchinchili-
I’ll be watching it. Since I have a particular fondness for the CZ, I hope they do well.
Thanks Mike re comments,
Yes my basic position is that all products have their uses – or they wouldn’t exist on the market place for people to choose.
Normally products are banned for being unsafe.
It is a new sinister development to ban products simply for using more energy.
Consumers- not politicians – pay for their energy, and can of course be informed about different products energy uses, and make up their minds about it, compared with the advantages inefficient products have:
The characteristics of products change as energy efficiency is demanded – there is no such thing a free lunch.
Anyone interested in how energy efficency regulation changes the characteristics of everything from buildings to cars to dishwashers to light bulbs can see it on
http://www.ceolas.net/#cc2x
Even if a reduction in use was needed, then taxation to reduce consumption would make more sense since government can use the income to reduce emissions (home insulation schemes, renewable projects etc) more than any remaining product use causes such problems. People can still buy what they want, unlike with bans. However taxation is in principle wrong too,
at least on electrical appliances(for example, emission-free households are hit too).
————-
Re smoke and fire and CFLs, Energy Star says
“If you have a product that does begin to smoke or smolder, immediately shut off the power to the CFL and, once it has cooled, remove it from the light socket. Then, send us e-mail at [email protected] to alert us of this incident. Please include the product manufacturer’s name and model information that is included on the CFL base and if possible an electronic photo. Also please tell us how the CFL was used – open or enclosed light fixture; indoors or outdoors; base orientation – up, down or sideways.”
Interestingly as Energy Star also says, manufacturers producing Energy Star CFLs are only required to offer a 2-year warranty for residential applications – whatever about the advertised lifespan…
We had a similar issue in the States (you’re Australian, right?) with regards to our toilets. It is now illegal to buy toilets that use more than a couple of gallons of water per flush.
I don’t like wasting water, and I don’t. But the “low-flow” toilets are a joke. Without getting too descriptive, if it takes a few flushes to get everything down, then no water is being conserved. (Needless to say, there is now a grey market for used toilets.)
(Back to CFL’s)
The more I’m thinking about the UV light emitted by the bulbs, the less I’m liking it. My mother requires a lot of light to be able to read. A standard 100 watt bulb is the barely adequate. The “equivalent” CFL just doesn’t seem as bright to me. Add in the fact that halfway through its life, it gets dimmer and she’s going to be moving closer and closer to the bulb to get enough light, and then she’ll be exposed to an unhealthy amount of UV.
And while I’ve got you here, Peter, let me ask you. Is it possible that what my father described actually happened? I’m not questioning his honesty. (You hear that, Dad?> But could he have misinterpreted what he saw because of shock or something? Have you heard of any tests where a bulb is broken while the power is flowing?
I think Mike is the next Ralph Nadar:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d82WKtGjJBA
Take that, Floyd!
–Mike!
Mike, good job on this subject. It obviously a important topic for many (informed) people. One thing about dropping the drop-light with the fluorescent: It shot flames for about 30 seconds and then “toned down” to two glowing rods. I watched it for two minutes and there was no change in the glowing status, it just continued to glow. I finally pulled the plug. There are many people that are going to get rich in this scheme and it won’t be stopped until it’s too late.
Thank you, whoever you are.
(For God’s sake, don’t give out your first name here! That, with your “log-in name,” could fall into bad hands.)
When I described what happened, I guess I mis-remembered the severity of it. Or maybe I thought you were exaggerating? I’ll edit the post.
It sounds plausible enough Mike.
They can explode too,
for more see http://sound.westhost.com/articles/incandescent.htm#explod
Some particular problems = fitting them in dimmer cicuits,
using them where there is vibration (as might happen in a garage, or near a fan)
and near moisture (as in a bathroom),
using them with timers (especially electronic or digital timers).
What gets me riled up is that the incandescent light bulb is truly an amazing piece of technology. It’s cheap, effective, versatile, and even aesthetically pleasing if that matters. And most of all, it’s stood the test of time.
If we are lucky, white LEDs will be at a good price point before 2012.
Mike,
yes I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more dumb decision than to ban bulbs (whether or not one likes using them, and whether or not we need to save the planet).
A ban on a safe versatile cheap quick responding bright broad-spectrum product,
a ban all the more strange with the environmental reasons given for it, since light bulbs don’t emit any gases: power stations might, and we know about the safety/health/environment problems
of CFLs, whatever about their other qualities.
As for LEDs, they are also complex
multimodular structures to produce white light, 40W replacement types currently 50 US dollars, 60W 120 dollars, don’t expect bright replacements – at low price – before 2015, if ever.
Peter, as I mentioned in my earlier post, Vu1 has a bulb that IS energy efficient and doesn’t have the problems associated with CFLs and isn’t as expensive as LEDs. You haven’t heard of electron stimulated luminescence yet, but you will soon. And I applaud any skepticism that you or anyone else might have until you see the Vu1 shining before your eyes. Skepticism is good and I’m a dyed-in-the-wool skeptic myself, but I really think these guys are on to something. And if you’re a stock investor, this is currently one of the best investment opportunities you’ll ever see in your life. JMHO. At least check it out. The link to their website is in my earlier post.
I might add that many say that expensive CFLs and LEDs is OK, since they (supposedly) last very long:
Of course, with CFLs that’s debatable (and manufacturers or energy star won’t back up advertised lifespans by warranty), and in any case, many of the 45 lighting points in a US household are not used much.
What’s the great saving of sticking expensive bulbs in all of them? Savings are debatable anyway (http://ceolas.net/#li13x onwards )
and of course people might simply prefer light bulbs for other reasons.
The moment I was in office, as President I would lift the ban on regular bulbs. That would be the first thing. Second thing, I would make GITMO a permanent feature in the war on terror and make it clear that goes for the home grown jihadi freaks as well. Third thing? I’d make a presidential directive aiming at closing the southern border permanently and I’d ask the govs. of the states that border Mexico to help out. You eitehr help or you recieve no fed. money. Texas not withstanding the other three would jump through hoops.
ginchinchili
RE “Peter….. Vu1 has a bulb that IS energy efficient and doesn’t have the problems associated with CFLs and isn’t as expensive as LEDs”
Thank you very much for that interesting information!
For anyone else, useful links are
http://www.vu1.com/news/news.htm
(also NY Times article about it)
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/09/the-promise-of-a-better-light-bulb/?scp=1&sq=vu1&st=cse
CFLs are an extreme fire danger. I am an electrical engineer just starting to investigate these devices. The problem is, as the lamp bulb itself ages, and approaches end-of-life, a very dangerous set of events are triggered in the “inverter”, the electronics PC board inside these devices. The lamp’s characteristics change with age, and the inverter tries to compensate, to keep the bulb current (and to an extent, the light output) constant. But the result is that the inverter components themselves overheat and may catastrophically fail. There will virtually always be a guatantee of at least a puff of smoke, maybe a pop, and more likely extreme heating and eventually a flame. Please stop using these until the government and UL starts taking this seriously. NEVER leave them on while sleeping or away from your home.
Thanks, crt99! This is why we only use kerosene lamps in the Firefly household. I’m waiting for George Westinghouse to work out the bugs on that AC current thing.
thanks for the heads up!
Guys, do you know if it is harzardous to open the plastic package of a CFL to see the ballast without breaking the glass?
cos i opened one to see the electronics inside it and i dunno if mercury is released or not.
Daniel,
I’m no expert, but I thought one had to break the glass to get to the mercury.
There should be a recall for Feit Electric Conserv-Energy CFL Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs purchased from Costco.
BPCE23TM/4
23W 120VAC 60Hz 380mA
UL # E170906
Base of bulbs melted black and burned. Acrid smoke filled our house while light bulb was still on. This is the second bulb that has burned within 1 year of purchase. Luckily we were home both times and smelled the smoke before it got worse.
The box says: “Lasts up to 9 years” LOL…less than 1 year for us.
And the bulbs are UL approved.
And it takes a long time to get rid of the smoke and smell.
Vu1 looks interesting indeed, but it seems that their technology is essentially an adaptation of CRT (ie TV picture tube) technology.
They linked this blog post in their own blog (which is how I found it) and its mention of issues like UV output of CFLs.
All very well and good. But what I want to know about Vu1′s technology then, are the kinds of things we always had to be concerned about re: CRT’s. In other words:
A) X-ray emissions resulting from the high-voltage/high-velocity electron beam blasting the tube/bulb surface, and
B) Lead contamination upon disposal. Many (most?) CRT’s embedded lead in the face of the envelope to cut down on X-ray emissions, which would otherwise be a serious health hazard to CRT viewers.
I’ve been reading the Vu1 blog in chronological order from oldest to newest, and just discovered they have answered my concerns above in a blog post from 9/2009.
Strange that they don’t highlight that point in their FAQ in the same section they discuss the fact that their technology is closely related to CRT technology.
Sorry for the false alarm.
When we posted this I went to their website. It’s an interesting approach, but seems prohibitively expensive.
I too have had problems with Feit CFL’s. Short lifespan and horrible odor at burnout. After reading the above I will rid myself of all remaining CFL”s (no more Feits) and load up on the old incans. (No , not the indians)
Anybody want some cheap CFL”s? Some still in original packaging. (Careful not to break the squiggly part when you open)
WTF? Was that english?
…………
Brilliantly stated, Ron P!
that’s a very elliptical argument
some smoke detectors use radioactive materials, we should avoid those smoke detectors;”-
my preference would be photoelectric type smoke detectors because they don’t contain radioactive materials“;
when choosing smoke detectors, it is still cheaper to use those ionization type smoke detectors _
Our household was jolted into the surreal land of CFL hell, yesterday. While in the garage, a CFL bulb manufactured by Sunbeam started hissing and smoking. Of course, it stopped upon turning off the switch but I have never heard of or witnessed this event. Later in the evening, our neighborhood had a house catch on fire. Luckily, the residents were home when this happened to call the fire department. Turns out a CFL bulb actually burned out and caught fire. We gave our bulb to the firefighters who inspected our house with a heat monitor to see if there was an undetected fire in the ceiling. Now I search the internet and find hundreds of instances of the same or worse.
Absolutely crazy, has all of humanity lost common sense? If the incandescent bulb has worked all these years without fail, why change it. There are easier and more productive ways to save the planet. BTW, at least when we are all arrested and sent to incandescent bulb prison we will stimulate the economy since they will need to build more facilities.
Well it has happened to us tonight. I was at the dinning room table and the kids were in the living room playing on the floor. All of a sudden the light went dim and at that point I got up to see the smoke and the smell of course was awful. I dread to think what whould have happened if we were not home. I think so many of us use these lights as we are away from our homes as a sense of security because they use so little energy. But they are actually locked in our home safe and secure until they decide to strike. I will begin using the old style bulbs from now on!
FEIT-ELECTRIC
BPESL25T(ESP22W)
120V-50-60HZ 330mA
I HAD A CFL CATCH ON FIRE!!!
My FIRE was from a cfl in an inverted ‘U’ shape, about 4 inches long, not the ‘curly’ kind, but still a ‘cfl’ I had no choice of bulb, as this wall fixture had this strange square ‘plug’ that the square base of the ‘U’ bulb snapped into, instead of a threaded round hole.
THOSE FIXTURES SHOULD BE BANNED AND ALL RECALLED.
This was an exterior fixture, installed by the builder. My house and the fixture were only about 5 years old at the time.
It did NOT fall or get bumped… No one was near it. By a miracle, a neighbor spotted it and called me, at night, probably saving the life of 4 people.
When I went to check, blue-orange flames were shooting out and up, at a 45 degree angle, out 5 to 6 inches from the base, looking like a giant blowtorch. The bulb was barely lit a dim orange. Turning off the wall switch immediately stopped the flame, but if it had been pointing towards my vinyl siding, instead of pointing out away from the house, I would not be here to tell you about it.
Obviously the whole fixture was damaged and had to be replaced, but I certainly would have replaced it with a conventional fixture, even if it had not been damaged.
This is something that I still—almost two years later—haven’t seen spoken about. The experts say this doesn’t happen; that these bulbs might emit a puff of smoke or a smell as if something is burning, but that there is nothing to worry about.
Light bulbs shouldn’t turn into blow torches. Ever!
The post that keeps on keeping on.
I just had this FEIT bulb smolder and smoke. Luckily I was present and smelled it before I saw the smoke (have I inhaled a brain-damaging amount of mercury, I wonder?) I turned off the switch and removed the bulb. One of the connections to the base is charred, open and partially melted – what I smelled was basically burning plastic! I have a lot of these bulbs and this is the first time I’ve ever had this happen. How do I report to UL? I have the actual bulb and would be happy to send it to them.
I’ve had that happen too, Mikem. Don’t tell anyone, but I just threw mine in the trash. I’ve had more than one shatter also. Naturally I played around with the mercury on the floor for awhile (without touching it, of course, I used a pencil!) Not sure how to contact Underwriter’s Laboratory. I’m sure there is an e-mail on their website.
I first contacted the Consumer Product Safety Commission, then Underwriters Laboratory, then the manufacturer. I googled them all for website info.
[...] *** In an unrelated note I predict this post will still be getting comments two years from now. [...]
[...] Another Great article http://www.threedonia.com/archives/10595 [...]
Four days ago I had an incident with a CFL. I have always used incandescent bulbs until about 10 yrs ago. CFLs were very expensive, but since they lasted longer, I would purchase one ocassionally without incident. It wasn’t until the last year or so that I decided to do my part. To me the attraction was the long life and the fact that they didn’t get hot, unlike regular bulbs. I also like that CFLs just continue to get dimmer over time versus the popping noise that regular bulbs make when their time is up. However, the other evening, my husband noticed a burning smellthen saw smoke coming from our lamp, the same lamp we tend to leave on when we go out. He quickly unplugged the lamp, removed the bulb which was uncharacteristically hot and took it outside. This bulb had not been in this lamp but a bit more than 6 months. I contacted (and I sent pics to) the CPSC, UL and Sunbeam the manufacturer of the bulb. In a nutshell, this was the response. UL said “this is completely normal and presents no danger or hazard, but with all the complaints, we have increased our safety standards as of last month”. Sunbeam said “we are sorry for your inconvenience, if you will send us the bulb, we can investigate further). Of course I replied back “no” since I had sent them a pic. The CPSC said “we would be more than happy to investigate this matter. We ask that you please hold onto the bulb for at least 30 days till we complete our investigation”. All three agencies received the same pic.
I told UL that their stamp did nothing more than give people a false sense of security and no longer meant anything to me. I also told them, in order to satisfy my own curiosity, I would like to get the opinion of my fire department and an electrical inspector. I will forward them any comments I get.
Despite my anger about this whole thing, I find the more I rant and rave right now, the higher my blood pressure goes, literally. I’ll have to continue later. So for now, I’ll have to see if I hear anymore from these guys.
good luck cathy! Glad you guys were all right… I’ve heard other stories of these things catching fire.
This morning I had an incident with CFL. Thank God I was home. The bulb is burnt in two places. I am going to Costco where I purchased the product and also going to contact my State Representatives, since this is an election year and they want Brownie points!!!
Good luck, Cindy!