In article , Arfa Daily
writes

There are signs of the ballast
enclosure running hot, so I guess that any electros in there, have just
cooked dry, due to the fact that it is predominantly hanging down, in a
semi-enclosed 'shade'

They don't last as long when run base-up, as you have found.

, much like a lot of household room and decorative
lighting does. They are fundamentally a crap technology that has been forced
on a largely unwanting public, by supposedly green issues with a dubious
foundation in fact.

My thought too. What about the mercury in the tubes?

I know a lot of people on here seem to like the dreadful things, and swear
by them, but my continuing experience, judged from when they first appeared,
right up until now, just makes me want to swear *at* them ...

They have their place, but are not the universal panacea the greenies
profess them to be. They're ok in outside lights, for example, or in
the garage or shed.

I have now found an internet site selling all varieties of incandescents,
including 60 watt pearl, so I shall be stocking up post haste.

Me too. The pound shops and TJ Hughes are still stocking them, 60 and
100w, clear and pearl, for 99p for four.

I snarfed for free a big bag (about 50) of incandescent R60 spot bulbs
from some guy who had replaced the lot in his new house with CFLs.
Excuse me? Try turning them off occasionally...

--
Mike Tomlinson