I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

The information label on the reflector says it takes BR-40 (and the
bulb in there now has the shape of a BR-40).

There aren't that many choices for CFL BR-40, however, and I'm
wondering whether "R-40" is the same thing as BR-40. I've looked
around on the web and can't find anything about this.

TIA,

S

The lamps are physically equivalent in terms of reflector diameter; but may
be different in overall length (usually called "MOL" or maximum overall
length in lamp manufacturers spec. sheets.). The "40" refers to the
diameter of the lamp in 1/8 of an inch (yes, it's an odd way to measure
lamps; but that's what it is.

So, an R-40 reflector lamp is 40/8 = 5 inches in diameter.

The BR-40 has the same reflector diameter, but has a bulge in the glass near
the lens. That doesn't change the optics of the bulb significantly, but it
does create more volume inside the bulb. Most BR-40 lamps are 6 1/2 inches
from lens to tip of base; but check that dimension in any "R" or "BR" lamp
that you buy as a replacement since MOLs can vary and a longer lamp may look
glaring and ugly if it sticks out the bottom of shallow "can" fixtures.

While there aren't many listings for BR-40 CFLs, there are enough to find
replacements for your standard lamps and BR-40 CFLs are made by the major
manufacturers such as GE.

TKM


wrote in message
...
I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

The information label on the reflector says it takes BR-40 (and the
bulb in there now has the shape of a BR-40).

There aren't that many choices for CFL BR-40, however, and I'm
wondering whether "R-40" is the same thing as BR-40. I've looked
around on the web and can't find anything about this.

TIA,

S

wrote in message
...
I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

The information label on the reflector says it takes BR-40 (and the
bulb in there now has the shape of a BR-40).

There aren't that many choices for CFL BR-40, however, and I'm
wondering whether "R-40" is the same thing as BR-40. I've looked
around on the web and can't find anything about this.

TIA,

S

What you really need to be aware of is that many CF- reflector flood
equivalent lamps won't seat properly in the recessed fixture socket.
Depending upon the make and model of the recessed fixture, and CF lamp,
internal fixture parts can interfere with the lamps ability to be completely
screwed down, and of course, you assume the lamp is defective when this
happens

RBM wrote:
wrote in message
...
I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

The information label on the reflector says it takes BR-40 (and the
bulb in there now has the shape of a BR-40).

There aren't that many choices for CFL BR-40, however, and I'm
wondering whether "R-40" is the same thing as BR-40. I've looked
around on the web and can't find anything about this.

TIA,

S

What you really need to be aware of is that many CF- reflector flood
equivalent lamps won't seat properly in the recessed fixture socket.
Depending upon the make and model of the recessed fixture, and CF lamp,
internal fixture parts can interfere with the lamps ability to be completely
screwed down, and of course, you assume the lamp is defective when this
happens



I might add that all of the CF reflectors, at least the ones I have,
take a long time to come up to full brightness ~2 min. or so. And they
don't seem to last as long as the non reflector type.

Kevin

On Tue 05 Aug 2008 06:15:16a, Kevin Ricks told us...

RBM wrote:
wrote in message
news:8f37fac0-22c5-4ae7-be52-66c9aacd9d29
@k37g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

The information label on the reflector says it takes BR-40 (and the
bulb in there now has the shape of a BR-40).

There aren't that many choices for CFL BR-40, however, and I'm
wondering whether "R-40" is the same thing as BR-40. I've looked
around on the web and can't find anything about this.

TIA,

S

What you really need to be aware of is that many CF- reflector flood
equivalent lamps won't seat properly in the recessed fixture socket.
Depending upon the make and model of the recessed fixture, and CF lamp,
internal fixture parts can interfere with the lamps ability to be
completely screwed down, and of course, you assume the lamp is defective
when this happens



I might add that all of the CF reflectors, at least the ones I have,
take a long time to come up to full brightness ~2 min. or so. And they
don't seem to last as long as the non reflector type.

Kevin


Well, not *all* CFL reflectors. I have 12 23W R40s in recessed cans in my
kitchen. They were purchsed nearly two years ago and are used for the
better part of the day and evening. They reach full brightness in ~30
seconds. We have had no problems. I don't recall the brand, but the were
purchased at Home Depot.

The said poart about CFLs in general is that there don't seem to be any
standards that manufacturers follow that would insure consistency across
the board.

--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Tuesday, 08(VIII)/05(V)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------
The cat was created when the lion sneezed.
-------------------------------------------

On Aug 4, 2:29*pm, wrote:
I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

snip

Thanks for all the responses---very helpful. I'll buy one CFL bulb
and try it out before buying lots of them.

Cheers,

S

"Wayne Boatwright" wrote in message
5.247...
On Tue 05 Aug 2008 06:15:16a, Kevin Ricks told us...

RBM wrote:
wrote in message
news:8f37fac0-22c5-4ae7-be52-66c9aacd9d29
@k37g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

The information label on the reflector says it takes BR-40 (and the
bulb in there now has the shape of a BR-40).

There aren't that many choices for CFL BR-40, however, and I'm
wondering whether "R-40" is the same thing as BR-40. I've looked
around on the web and can't find anything about this.

TIA,

S

What you really need to be aware of is that many CF- reflector flood
equivalent lamps won't seat properly in the recessed fixture socket.
Depending upon the make and model of the recessed fixture, and CF lamp,
internal fixture parts can interfere with the lamps ability to be
completely screwed down, and of course, you assume the lamp is defective
when this happens



I might add that all of the CF reflectors, at least the ones I have,
take a long time to come up to full brightness ~2 min. or so. And they
don't seem to last as long as the non reflector type.

Kevin


Well, not *all* CFL reflectors. I have 12 23W R40s in recessed cans in my
kitchen. They were purchsed nearly two years ago and are used for the
better part of the day and evening. They reach full brightness in ~30
seconds. We have had no problems. I don't recall the brand, but the were
purchased at Home Depot.

The said poart about CFLs in general is that there don't seem to be any
standards that manufacturers follow that would insure consistency across
the board.

--
Wayne Boatwright

Any CFLs marked "Energy Star" have to conform to some rather extensive
performance specifications involving life, light output, color, etc. See:
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=cfls.pr_cfls Further, samples of the
lamp have to be tested on a regular basis and the manufacturer has to
provide a toll-free telephone number on the package in case of consumer
problems. The dimensions of CFLs are standardized, including the bases too,
according to ANSI C78.901-2001. But, some CFLs don't fit into the "can"
type downlights because the fixtures (and their sockets) are older than the
standard.

The reason for the slow warm-up of some CFLs is that they use an "amalgam"
for temperature control. That improves light output in hot fixtures.
Amalgam lamps are a good choice for can fixtures as they are usually
enclosed and/or surrounded by insulation.

TKM

On Tue 05 Aug 2008 06:16:28p, TKM told us...


"Wayne Boatwright" wrote in message
5.247...
On Tue 05 Aug 2008 06:15:16a, Kevin Ricks told us...

RBM wrote:
wrote in message
news:8f37fac0-22c5-4ae7-be52-66c9aacd9d29
@k37g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
I want to replace some recessed flood light bulbs in my basement den
with CFL equivalents.

The information label on the reflector says it takes BR-40 (and the
bulb in there now has the shape of a BR-40).

There aren't that many choices for CFL BR-40, however, and I'm
wondering whether "R-40" is the same thing as BR-40. I've looked
around on the web and can't find anything about this.

TIA,

S

What you really need to be aware of is that many CF- reflector flood
equivalent lamps won't seat properly in the recessed fixture socket.
Depending upon the make and model of the recessed fixture, and CF
lamp, internal fixture parts can interfere with the lamps ability to
be completely screwed down, and of course, you assume the lamp is
defective when this happens



I might add that all of the CF reflectors, at least the ones I have,
take a long time to come up to full brightness ~2 min. or so. And they
don't seem to last as long as the non reflector type.

Kevin


Well, not *all* CFL reflectors. I have 12 23W R40s in recessed cans in
my kitchen. They were purchsed nearly two years ago and are used for
the better part of the day and evening. They reach full brightness in
~30 seconds. We have had no problems. I don't recall the brand, but
the were purchased at Home Depot.

The said poart about CFLs in general is that there don't seem to be any
standards that manufacturers follow that would insure consistency
across the board.

--
Wayne Boatwright

Any CFLs marked "Energy Star" have to conform to some rather extensive
performance specifications involving life, light output, color, etc.
See: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=cfls.pr_cfls Further,
samples of the lamp have to be tested on a regular basis and the
manufacturer has to provide a toll-free telephone number on the package
in case of consumer problems. The dimensions of CFLs are standardized,
including the bases too, according to ANSI C78.901-2001. But, some CFLs
don't fit into the "can" type downlights because the fixtures (and their
sockets) are older than the standard.

The reason for the slow warm-up of some CFLs is that they use an
"amalgam" for temperature control. That improves light output in hot
fixtures. Amalgam lamps are a good choice for can fixtures as they are
usually enclosed and/or surrounded by insulation.

TKM

Thanks for all that information. I was unaware. I don't know if our lamps
are Energy Star compliant. I do know that our recessed can fixtures are
brand new and well-ventilated. We had no trouble with the lamps fitting
the sockets in the fixtures.


--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Tuesday, 08(VIII)/05(V)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------
Do radioactive cats have 18 half-lives?
-------------------------------------------