I know that Feit CFLs are crap.
What about other brands of CFL, what has been your experience with
their lifespan ?
What about the LEDs ?
How long have they lasted for you ?

I have replaced most of the bulbs in our house with CFL bulbs. The early
CFL bulbs didn't last very long, but the ones in recent years seem to be
much better. I'm not positive on the brand, but I think I have been getting
the EcoSmart brand that comes in four packs at Home Depot (60W equivalent
soft white). Some bulbs have lasted years, others die in a few months. You
never really know which ones will last and which ones won't. I even use
them in outdoor fixtures with no problems.

In the last year or two, I've started replacing the CFL bulbs with CREE
brand LED's. So far none of them have stopped working. The glass bulb did
come unglued from one of the CREE LED's in the kitchen (hangs upside down).
It still worked, but I replaced it anyway.

I just installed a couple of 75W equivalent CREE LED's in our kitchen and
it helped give off a bit more light.

I'm planning to replace all of our CFL's with the CREE LED's when the CFL's
die off.

Unfortunately, I still need to use regular incandescent bulbs in our
dimmers. I tried dimmable CFL's and the CREE LED's and neither works very
well. They dim slightly to a point, then just shut off. I am not able to
dim to the low level light needed in our living/TV room. They make dimmers
specifically for CFL and LED lights, but so far I have not found one that
is controllable by an infrared remote control.

Anthony Watson
www.mountainsoftware.com
www.watsondiy.com