"Christian Fox" wrote in message
...
In article ,
says...
Just found the instruction sheet - it *is* the SS8. Keep something in
mind,
though: Intermatic did NOT say these failed because of being used with CF
bulbs - they said it was a design problem involving the tiny mechanical
switch inside. (When it switches off & on, you hear a "zzzzt" sort of
noise - not sure of what's really going on inside).

Interesting - I managed to dig up a web page talking about this problem:

http://www.fifengr.com/intermatic/

Lowe's replaced the first one at no charge. The second & third time, I
called Intermatic and they explained the situation, finally sending me
another model which is NOT designed for CF bulbs.

Why didn't they send you the same model (one that works, of course)? What
did they tell
you when they explained the problem? ETA for a fix?

If I were you, I'd call
them before wasting a trip to the store and the time it takes to install
them. By the way, they were VERY cooperative.

I'm not sure if calling in advance is going to help - the timers are
designed to work
with CF bulbs, but my concern is whether the timer will be reliable. I
guess it's good
that there's a warranty. How willing was Intermatic to send you a
replacement (did you
have to argue with them, provide a receipt along with a blood sample,
etc.)?

Sorry - I wasn't clear about this. They sent me a total of two identical
units at no charge, and, by the way, they didn't ask me to return the bad
ones. They sent the same ones because I preferred NOT to go back to using an
incandescent bulb, and the person I spoke with figured that popping in new
ones might buy me some time until they figured out their problem. She said
the ones they were sending would very likely die like the earlier ones.

Thinking all this through, it means I went through 4 units. 1 purchased, 1
replaced by Lowe's, 2 replaced by Intermatic. The fiasco began in early
2005. Suggested ETA for a fix was September. But by then, they had sent me a
different model, and I'd gone back to incandescent.

I finally asked for a different unit because my wires were getting shorter
and shorter. The timers come with stranded wire. I will not use wire nuts to
attach stranded to solid - just crimps.