A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

Correct me if I’m wrong but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.
Now they’re saying the same thing about LEDs.
I was at a store and saw these LED light fixtures,
so I asked the guy if he sold the LED light bulbs for them.
The salesman said that the LED light bulbs for the fixtures weren’t replaceable and that the LEDs would last twenty years
and I wouldn’t need to replace them
but would have to replace the whole fixture when that happens.
I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago
and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months
until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

wrote:
Correct me if Im wrong but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.
Now theyre saying the same thing about LEDs.
I was at a store and saw these LED light fixtures,
so I asked the guy if he sold the LED light bulbs for them.
The salesman said that the LED light bulbs for the fixtures werent
replaceable and that the LEDs would last twenty years
and I wouldnt need to replace them
but would have to replace the whole fixture when that happens.
I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago
and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months
until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.

It sounds as if you are assuming that the LED are the problem. It could be
the circuitry, connections, etc.

If this were a non-LED flashlight and the flashlight itself went bad, you
probably replace it, but it wouldn't be because of a burnt out LED.

The same thing could be true for the LED fixture.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On Friday, August 23, 2013 5:00:52 AM UTC-5, wrote:

I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago

and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months

until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.

Production-line poor soldering is usually the cause...it was with the one I bought.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

wrote in message
...
Correct me if I'm wrong but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.
Now they're saying the same thing about LEDs.
I was at a store and saw these LED light fixtures,
so I asked the guy if he sold the LED light bulbs for them.
The salesman said that the LED light bulbs for the fixtures weren't
replaceable and that the LEDs would last twenty years
and I wouldn't need to replace them
but would have to replace the whole fixture when that happens.
I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago
and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months
until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.

Your memory is accurate; but measuring fluorescent lamp life in years is
incorrect unless the lamp is burned continuously or you know how many
hours/day it's operated. Fluorescent lamp life is rated in hours so is the
lamp operated for 1 hour per day or 5 or what? Manufacturers also found out
early on with fluorescent lamps that starting the lamp reduces lamp life.
More starts = less life, so now manufacturers rate lamp life at (usually) 3
hours/start.

We're going through the same process with LEDs. They're capable of lasting
for many years -- think of the LED indicators in cars, household appliances
and the like; but every LED bulb or fixture is different and may overheat or
overpower the LED so it fails early. Some people have found that LED bulbs
don't last very long if they put them inside enclosed fixtures where heat
can build up, for example.

The DOE is testing the Philips "L Prize" LED bulb and recently reported that
the 200 bulbs on test have now burned for 25,000 hours with no failures and
no loss of light output. Maybe that's where the "25 years of life" came
from because, typically, a bulb in a home is usually burned about 1,000
hours/year.

Tomsic

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On 8/23/2013 6:00 AM, wrote:
Correct me if I’m wrong but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.
Now they’re saying the same thing about LEDs.
I was at a store and saw these LED light fixtures,
so I asked the guy if he sold the LED light bulbs for them.
The salesman said that the LED light bulbs for the fixtures weren’t replaceable and that the LEDs would last twenty years
and I wouldn’t need to replace them
but would have to replace the whole fixture when that happens.
I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago
and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months
until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.

So, what is the question?

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 13:14:14 +0000 (UTC), Doug Miller wrote:

wrote in news:838ef959-5b79-43d0-933d-5a96bd03ecb3
@googlegroups.com:

Correct me if I’m wrong

OK, you're wrong.

but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.

I never heard anyone make that patently absurd claim.

I never heard that either.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On Friday, August 23, 2013 9:14:14 AM UTC-4, Doug Miller wrote:
wrote in news:838ef959-5b79-43d0-933d-5a96bd03ecb3

@googlegroups.com:



Correct me if I’m wrong



OK, you're wrong.



but as I remember

when fluorescent lamps went into common use

they used to say that they would last twenty years.



I never heard anyone make that patently absurd claim.


It's not even clear to me what he means by "when fluorescent
lamps went into common use"? Is that the original tube
type fixtures? If so, that must have been a very long time
ago, pre 50s I would think.

Or does he mean when CFLs that were developed to replace
incandescents went into use?

My memories go back to the 60s and I don't recall any
claims of 20 year life for either.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

wrote in message
...

Correct me if I’m wrong but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.
Now they’re saying the same thing about LEDs.
I was at a store and saw these LED light fixtures,
so I asked the guy if he sold the LED light bulbs for them.
The salesman said that the LED light bulbs for the fixtures weren’t
replaceable and that the LEDs would last twenty years
and I wouldn’t need to replace them
but would have to replace the whole fixture when that happens.
I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago
and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months
until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.


How could ANY type of light be rated in YEARS? Depends on the usage time.
WW

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On 8/23/2013 6:00 AM, wrote:
Correct me if I’m wrong but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.
Now they’re saying the same thing about LEDs.
I was at a store and saw these LED light fixtures,
so I asked the guy if he sold the LED light bulbs for them.
The salesman said that the LED light bulbs for the fixtures weren’t replaceable and that the LEDs would last twenty years
and I wouldn’t need to replace them
but would have to replace the whole fixture when that happens.
I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago
and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months
until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.


I can't say I recall hearing a 20 year claim but I do know that most manufacturer's representatives exaggerate.

Cut their marketing claims in half and you'll have something close to the truth.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On Friday, August 23, 2013 11:16:09 AM UTC-4, Not My Real Name wrote:
On 8/23/2013 6:00 AM, wrote:

Correct me if I’m wrong but as I remember

when fluorescent lamps went into common use

they used to say that they would last twenty years.


I never heard that claim.

I heard they would last 5 times as long as an incandescent, and that has been true in my experience, except for the occasional defective one that goes right away.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 13:14:14 +0000 (UTC), Doug Miller
wrote:

wrote in news:838ef959-5b79-43d0-933d-5a96bd03ecb3
:

Correct me if I’m wrong

OK, you're wrong.

but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.

I never heard anyone make that patently absurd claim.
The claim was made. And some of them DID last 20 years. I had an old
circline fixture that I threw out because I was sick of it and it was
at least 20 years old - and still working - on the original tube.
Then they brought out the "green " tubes - and the first 5 or six I
bought didn't last a year - - - -. Same with the first CFLs I bought -
they went off like popcorn.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

wrote in message
...
On Friday, August 23, 2013 9:14:14 AM UTC-4, Doug Miller wrote:
wrote in news:838ef959-5b79-43d0-933d-5a96bd03ecb3

@googlegroups.com:



Correct me if I'm wrong



OK, you're wrong.



but as I remember

when fluorescent lamps went into common use

they used to say that they would last twenty years.



I never heard anyone make that patently absurd claim.


It's not even clear to me what he means by "when fluorescent
lamps went into common use"? Is that the original tube
type fixtures? If so, that must have been a very long time
ago, pre 50s I would think.

Or does he mean when CFLs that were developed to replace
incandescents went into use?

My memories go back to the 60s and I don't recall any
claims of 20 year life for either.

Such claims were common in the lighting industry because people were so fed
up with the short life of incandescent bulbs -- kind of like now with
household incandescent and LEDs.

Fluorescent lamps came out of the lab in 1938 and started appearing in the
early 1940s. One of the first major installations was at the NY Worlds Fair
in 1939-40; but WWII limited their manufacture and use; so it was the late
1940s before they became common.

Tomsic

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On 8/23/2013 10:43 AM, WW wrote:


How could ANY type of light be rated in YEARS? Depends on the usage
time. WW


I have seen that in advertisements, but the fine print said something
about "based on X hours per day use" and other weasel words. If it was
in a stairwell that had to be lit all the time, 20 years is about
175,000 hours. That would be about 150 standard incandescent bulbs, or
1460 bulbs made in China.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 12:57:40 +0000 (UTC), DerbyDad03
wrote:

wrote:
Correct me if I’m wrong but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.
Now they’re saying the same thing about LEDs.
I was at a store and saw these LED light fixtures,
so I asked the guy if he sold the LED light bulbs for them.
The salesman said that the LED light bulbs for the fixtures weren’t
replaceable and that the LEDs would last twenty years
and I wouldn’t need to replace them
but would have to replace the whole fixture when that happens.
I bought this cheap multi LED flashlight a few years ago
and one of the LEDs has been going out every few months
until now I only have one or two of them left that still comes on.

It sounds as if you are assuming that the LED are the problem. It could be
the circuitry, connections, etc.

Well there are only two connections for each LED. And there is no
etc.

Also, these lamps could have the same connection problems his
flashlight has

I too have LEDs going out in my flashlights but I haven't tried yet to
find the problem.

The quetsion with both lamps and flashlights is, How hard will it be
to get them apart, and back together again.


If this were a non-LED flashlight and the flashlight itself went bad, you
probably replace it, but it wouldn't be because of a burnt out LED.

The same thing could be true for the LED fixture.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 19:26:41 +0000 (UTC), Doug Miller
wrote:

wrote in :

On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 13:14:14 +0000 (UTC), Doug Miller
wrote:

wrote in news:838ef959-5b79-43d0-933d-5a96bd03ecb3
:

Correct me if I’m wrong

OK, you're wrong.

but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.

I never heard anyone make that patently absurd claim.
The claim was made. And some of them DID last 20 years. I had an old
circline fixture that I threw out because I was sick of it and it was
at least 20 years old - and still working - on the original tube.

Riiiiiiight....

I believe it. When my grandmother moved out of her home about
1962, she had an incandescent light in her pantry that had a point on
the bulb. When was the last time they sold one of those 1930"s?
early 40's? And it still worked fine. A pantry light she probably
turned on and off more than once a day,

Unfortunately I left it in my closet when my mother sold our house.
That was about 45 years ago. I want to go to the new owners and ask
for the bulb. Should I do it?

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On 8/23/2013 11:28 AM, wrote:
On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 13:14:14 +0000 (UTC), Doug Miller
wrote:

wrote in news:838ef959-5b79-43d0-933d-5a96bd03ecb3
@googlegroups.com:

Correct me if I’m wrong

OK, you're wrong.

but as I remember
when fluorescent lamps went into common use
they used to say that they would last twenty years.

I never heard anyone make that patently absurd claim.
The claim was made. And some of them DID last 20 years. I had an old
circline fixture that I threw out because I was sick of it and it was
at least 20 years old - and still working - on the original tube.
Then they brought out the "green " tubes - and the first 5 or six I
bought didn't last a year - - - -. Same with the first CFLs I bought -
they went off like popcorn.


We have a Circline fixture in the hall in front of the clothes dryer and
it is turned on and off quite a bit. I put a new bulb in it 8
years ago and it's still bright with no blackening around the connector.
It's also not a Greenie Weenie light. ^_^

TDD

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

Someday I've got to walk through and get a rough idea
how many bulbs at church. I replace about one a week,
and the facilities guys get the high ones in the gym.
Figure out average hours per bulb use. This could be
fun for nerds.

..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

On 8/23/2013 2:53 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

I have seen that in advertisements, but the fine print said something
about "based on X hours per day use" and other weasel words. If it was
in a stairwell that had to be lit all the time, 20 years is about
175,000 hours. That would be about 150 standard incandescent bulbs, or
1460 bulbs made in China.

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

Sounds reasonable, to me. Modelled after Grampa
Eddie's head?

..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

On 8/23/2013 5:34 PM, micky wrote:

I believe it. When my grandmother moved out of her home about
1962, she had an incandescent light in her pantry that had a point on
the bulb. When was the last time they sold one of those 1930"s?
early 40's? And it still worked fine. A pantry light she probably
turned on and off more than once a day,

Unfortunately I left it in my closet when my mother sold our house.
That was about 45 years ago. I want to go to the new owners and ask
for the bulb. Should I do it?

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

I remember those Circline. They were good, but
some table lamps didn't fit the bulbs very well.

..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

On 8/23/2013 6:48 PM, The Daring Dufas wrote:

We have a Circline fixture in the hall in front of the clothes dryer and
it is turned on and off quite a bit. I put a new bulb in it 8
years ago and it's still bright with no blackening around the connector.
It's also not a Greenie Weenie light. ^_^

TDD

A fluorescent lamp question for the old timers
 

On 8/23/2013 1:53 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
On 8/23/2013 10:43 AM, WW wrote:


How could ANY type of light be rated in YEARS? Depends on the usage
time. WW


I have seen that in advertisements, but the fine print said something
about "based on X hours per day use" and other weasel words. If it was
in a stairwell that had to be lit all the time, 20 years is about
175,000 hours. That would be about 150 standard incandescent bulbs, or
1460 bulbs made in China.


Rough service 130volt incandescent bulbs sure do last a long time. The
rough service bulbs resist vibration which can cause premature failure
of a standard lamp but the 130 volt non-rough service bulbs will last a
very long time too. When I mentioned vibration, imagine living in an
earthquake prone area or someplace where heavy trucks drive by your home
every now and then. I'm impressed with my new 12watt LED, 60watt
incandescent equivalent bulb in my desk lamp. Because I'm always
fiddling with my computer, the lamp which sits on top of the mid-tower
workstation, gets knocked off the darn thing sometimes. I've blown both
standard incandescent and CFL lamps when it's happened. The LED bulb
has, so far, been unaffected by crashing onto the desk. ^_^

TDD