what remains to convert to compact flourescent

The following are difficult to convert and unfortunately, some are fairly commonly used:

1. outside lights - takes too long to turn brighten and a pain to install
2. chandeliers - i have several (kitchen, foyer, dining room). It would cost a fortune at $9.00 each to convert. and they still aren't that attractive. let alone figure out how to climb all the way up to the taller fixtures.
3. loft lights - i have a few in a lofted ceiling - when service men come to fix a gutter, i may convert them too.
4. dimming ceiling sconces - requires candlesticks.
5. dimming canned lights - i have about 20!!! mostly in the basement.

The kitchen chandelier is used most frequently.

On the whole, i have quite a bit of work to do, but figure about 80% of my commonly used lights are converted. Still, the others could save money, however, the cost is daunting.

i'm tempted to convert them onesy twosey style, but my better sense says to wait and see what new technology is introduced.

How do we know if any of the bulbs we're buying to day will make sense in light of new products 2-3 years from now?

Regards,
makingourway

dimmable compact flourescents - sylvania's work

I've been using Sylvania's dimmable compact flourescents. You can buy them at Menard's in the Chicago region.

The price is competitive about $8.50 - $9.00 per bulb, however overall, I feel they are way overpriced as a product - Menard's is well priced compared to others.

They do not buzz, however, they dimm only fairly well.

I have however, had significant problems with non-dimmable bulbs ($4.50 each) for ceiling fans and candle stick types in fixtures meant to dim. They buzz, flicker, etc....

Regards,
makingourway

The grail has been partially met - flame-tip and dimmable compact flourescents have been found!! -

I found both flame tip and dimmable compact flourescents at Menard's.

I bought the following:

Compact flourescent flame-tip AKA decor bulbs for approximately $4.88 each for $9.96 in two packs. These were not dimmable, but they do fit into ceiling fixtures, etc.... The ones I bought were made by Sylvania at 40 watts. The bulbs come with a small tip and a converter to the larger standard size.

For some reason the builders of my house force me to use these ridiculous things.

They are quoted at 300+ lumens with 8000 hour life span. They use 9 watts (equivalent to 40 watt incandescent bulbs). Competing bulbs use onlky 7 watts, but provide substantially less lumens. They are also longer and may not fit certain light fixtures.

I also saw a high end 25 watt flame-tip bulb with a 25,000 hour life span for considerably more money - about $12. I need to many to justify the expense. I may replace future bulbs once the flourescents expire - if I don't replace the fixtures.

I also bought several two packs of dimmable compact flourescent BR30 indoor flood lights for $17.99. Unfortunately, the builder of my house put quite a few can lights on dimmers - especially some of my higher traffic areas.

I am pleased to report that they do work - however, the precision they achieve compared with an incandescent is lacking. From my personal impression, it sees if there are three to four dim levels, rather than the gentle gradience one experiences with incandescent bulbs.

However, I never dim these high use areas, so I don't care much. Unfortunately, I can't eliminate the dimmers cheaply, so i buy the more expensive dimming CF's. So these more expensive dimmable comact flourescent floods come to about $8.00 each - i think you can buy BR-30's in packages of 6 for about $3.00 each - so there is a big premium.

Finally, the dimmable bulbs are not nearly as impressive as the other CF's. They do have the 8,000 hour life, but only provide 700 lumens - comparable to a normal flood.

I'm still missing dimmable flame-tip / decor compact flourescents. If I recall correctly, I did see them at another Menards, but the one I visited did not have them. I may have to wait a while for these. As I don't travel in that direction often.

At this point nearly all of the high traffic areas of my house have CF's. I do still have a great need for BR-30 dimmable floods in some less used areas, like my basement as well as dimmable CF candles for two fixtures. Also, I need dimmable CFs for my chandeliers - however, I'd like to wait for another generation for all but one of them. I'll need quite a few.

I still plan to buy dimmable candles for two more fixtures - they are high traffic. The rest of the house can wait until costco works out a great deal.

If you really need to buy dimmable CF candles, you might try on line - it's quite expensive - usually $12+. I'm sincerely hoping I can find the less expensive dimmables somewhere. Who knows?

At the end of the day, I wonder how much this energy savings effort is really worth? I did lower my electrical bill from $220 to $150, but summer cooling and pool filtration costs are driving that number from $150 to $550.

If I'm lucky, raisting thermostat temperatures will help somewhat.

Regards,
makingourway

PS The menards website is pretty hard to use. I couldn't figure out how to look in store product up on line, nor could I place an order on line to pick-up at the store - something you can do with circuit city.

I have found the grale of compact flourescent light bulbs!

I'll write more on this soon.
While shopping I took the time to stop at a few stores en-route and examine compact flourescent light bulb (CF) offerings.

although it's easy to find 60-100 watt non-dimmable spirals and 65 watt feflectors for Can / ceiling insets - I recommend Costco for these - especially now with the commonwealth Edison sponsored discounts (35%).

I have finally! Finally! found affordably priced decor flame tip style bulbs that are dimmable!

I'll explain what I've learned in the next post.