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Don Klipstein

In ,
wrote:
On Jan 5, 12:40 am, wrote:
I tried to replace the two 60W incandescent bulbs with two 13W CFL
bulbs in the garage door opener. They didn't light. Anyone know
why? The CFL bulbs work in other fixtures. I guess the most energy
efficient solution would be to manually open the garage door.

I have the same set up 2 13 watt in place of the pair of 60W. What
you have to do is get a flat head screw driver and pry the contact at
the base of the socket up enough to get contact to the bulb. To test
turn on the light for the unit and then insert the bulbs.The cfl bulb
doen't go in quite as far as an incandescent because of the larger
portion at the base. First unplug the unit though, just to be safe.
This works great for the opener because I have NEVER had to replace
the bulbs for burn out because there is no filament to vibrate and
break!

CFLs are usually not the best choice in applications where on-time is
low, and especially when on-time per start is low. It is probably more
economical to use incandescents rated for vibration duty.

If the garage door opener uses electronic means to switch the lamps,
CFLs may not work right unless they are rated for use with dimmers.

- Don Klipstein )