Don’t mix and match

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If you plan to put new energy-saving fluorescent bulbs into light fixtures, I suggest you not install them into ones that require multiple bulbs. The main bathroom has a four-bulb unit, and I just replaced two burnt-out regular bulbs with two of the new variety. There’s a split-second time lag between the time the switch is flipped and the time the new bulbs light, and it’s really disconcerting to have the two old incandescent ones in this thing light immediately and the other two come on a half-second later.

4 Comments

  1. We’ve also noticed that they have to “warm up.” They get brighter gradually the longer they are on.
    But, they last a helluva lot longer than regular bulbs.

  3. Ms. Toxic,
    From General Electric’s FAQs:

    CFLs contain a very small amount of mercury sealed within the glass tubing – an average of 5 milligrams (roughly equivalent to the tip of a ball-point pen). Mercury is an essential, irreplaceable element in CFLs and is what allows the bulb to be an efficient light source. By comparison, older home thermometers contain 500 milligrams of mercury and many manual thermostats contain up to 3000 milligrams. It would take between 100 and 600 CFLs to equal those amounts.

    There is currently no substitute for mercury in CFLs; however, manufacturers have taken significant steps to reduce mercury used in their fluorescent lighting products over the past decade.

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