Litebulb ripoff?
 

Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ. He
told me they were selling long life lightbulbs for $5.00 plus
shipping. I know there is nothing outstanding about that price but I
assumed they were compact flourescent bulbs and he told me I would be
helping disadvantaged and unemployed persons. When I received my bulbs
today I was very dissapointed.They were ordinary bulbs and seemed to
very sloppily made. there was poor soldering on the base, some bulbs
seemed to have dirt inside them and one had a broken off filiment.
(metal content). There was no brand name on them but they were marked
"American, made in USA, !0,000 hours, 130v, krypton. They billed me
$47.06 for 4.
I checked them out on the Internet and they had one complaint on a
website called Ripoffreports:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/...Off0342625.htm

Also the Phoenix BBB has an unsatisfactory rating for them:
http://central-northern-western-ariz...1126&firm=7195

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman

Litebulb ripoff?
 

wrote:
Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ.

Sounds like about 78c worth of bulbs ya got there.
http://www.lightbulbemporium.com/pro...sp?prod=100100

If it was me, I'd send them back with a well worded letter.
Then I would contest the charge on my card after the merchant
predictably failed to refund.

--Winston

Litebulb ripoff?
 

wrote in message
...
Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person

You can't GIVE me something on the telephone... Just hang up!

Think of it as a cheap lesson.


--
Vaughn

.................................................. .......
Nothing personal, but if you are posting through Google Groups I may not receive
your message. Google refuses to control the flood of spam messages originating
in their system, so on any given day I may or may not have Google blocked. Try
a real NNTP server & news reader program and you will never go back. All you
need is access to an NNTP server (AKA "news server") and a news reader program.
You probably already have a news reader program in your computer (Hint: Outlook
Express). Assuming that your Usenet needs are modest, use
http://news.aioe.org/ for free and/or http://www.teranews.com/ for a one-time
$3.95 setup fee.
.................................................. ........

Will poofread for food.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Wed, 10 Sep 2008 17:11:50 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ. He
told me they were selling long life lightbulbs for $5.00 plus
shipping. I know there is nothing outstanding about that price but I
assumed they were compact flourescent bulbs and he told me I would be
helping disadvantaged and unemployed persons. When I received my bulbs
today I was very dissapointed.They were ordinary bulbs and seemed to
very sloppily made. there was poor soldering on the base, some bulbs
seemed to have dirt inside them and one had a broken off filiment.
(metal content). There was no brand name on them but they were marked
"American, made in USA, !0,000 hours, 130v, krypton. They billed me
$47.06 for 4.
I checked them out on the Internet and they had one complaint on a
website called Ripoffreports:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/...Off0342625.htm

Also the Phoenix BBB has an unsatisfactory rating for them:
http://central-northern-western-ariz...1126&firm=7195

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman
Something like this was operating around here some twenty years ago
except that the bulbs did appear well made, and any that burned out in
less than five years were replaced no charge. I don't recall the price
at that time but I did have several replaced and was totally
satisfied.
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 00:27:45 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm,
Winston quickly quoth:

wrote:
Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ.

Sounds like about 78c worth of bulbs ya got there.
http://www.lightbulbemporium.com/pro...sp?prod=100100

If it was me, I'd send them back with a well worded letter.
Then I would contest the charge on my card after the merchant
predictably failed to refund.

Engineman got off lucky. I might be taken by Everycontractor.com to
the tune of 3 grand, if, as expected next month, they fail to return
my funds. Their money back guarantee was for delivering a minimum of
fifteen times my contract fee worth of work during the year. They have
so far provided two leads, neither of which were within my listed
expertise or work areas. Caveat emptor.

I'm composing a letter to the Nevada Attorney General now...

--
"Most Folks Are As Happy As They Make Up Their Minds To Be"
-Abraham Lincoln
-----------------------------------------------------------

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Sep 10, 5:11 pm, " wrote:

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman

Whatever you do, do not use the bulbs. Super long life bulbs are big
energy wasters.
And the extra amount of electricity you use will be several times the
amount you were charged for the bulbs. If they paid you ten dollars a
bulb to use them, you would still be better off not using them.

Dan

Litebulb ripoff?
 

wrote in message
...
Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ. He
told me they were selling long life lightbulbs for $5.00 plus
shipping. I know there is nothing outstanding about that price but I
assumed they were compact flourescent bulbs and he told me I would be
helping disadvantaged and unemployed persons. When I received my bulbs
today I was very dissapointed.They were ordinary bulbs and seemed to
very sloppily made. there was poor soldering on the base, some bulbs
seemed to have dirt inside them and one had a broken off filiment.
(metal content). There was no brand name on them but they were marked
"American, made in USA, !0,000 hours, 130v, krypton. They billed me
$47.06 for 4.
I checked them out on the Internet and they had one complaint on a
website called Ripoffreports:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/...Off0342625.htm

Also the Phoenix BBB has an unsatisfactory rating for them:

http://central-northern-western-ariz....aspx?site=30&
bbb=1126&firm=7195

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman


Alert your credit card company and block any future charges from them...they
WILL tap you monthly! Cheap tuition, you just went to school.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

This scam has been around for decades.
JR
Dweller in the cellar

On Wed, 10 Sep 2008 17:11:50 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ. He
told me they were selling long life lightbulbs for $5.00 plus
shipping. I know there is nothing outstanding about that price but I
assumed they were compact flourescent bulbs and he told me I would be
helping disadvantaged and unemployed persons. When I received my bulbs
today I was very dissapointed.They were ordinary bulbs and seemed to
very sloppily made. there was poor soldering on the base, some bulbs
seemed to have dirt inside them and one had a broken off filiment.
(metal content). There was no brand name on them but they were marked
"American, made in USA, !0,000 hours, 130v, krypton. They billed me
$47.06 for 4.
I checked them out on the Internet and they had one complaint on a
website called Ripoffreports:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/...Off0342625.htm

Also the Phoenix BBB has an unsatisfactory rating for them:
http://central-northern-western-ariz...1126&firm=7195

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman
--------------------------------------------------------------
Home Page: http://www.seanet.com/~jasonrnorth
If you're not the lead dog, the view never changes
Doubt yourself, and the real world will eat you alive
The world doesn't revolve around you, it revolves around me
No skeletons in the closet; just decomposing corpses
--------------------------------------------------------------
Dependence is Vulnerability:
--------------------------------------------------------------
"Open the Pod Bay Doors please, Hal"
"I'm sorry, Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that.."

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Vaughn Simon wrote:
wrote in message
...

Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person


You can't GIVE me something on the telephone... Just hang up!

Think of it as a cheap lesson.




A-Men Brudder!

--

Richard

(remove the X to email)

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Alert your credit card company and block any future charges from
them...they
WILL tap you monthly! Cheap tuition, you just went to school.

One good thing about the school of hard knocks - you seldom forget the
lesson.

Karl

Litebulb ripoff?
 

If as you say, they billed you (as opposed to your having agreed to a credit
card payment, and I hope you didn't give your credit card number to an
unknown company) just return the product.

Personally, I never do business of any sort with someone who slithers in my
phone line. Or, in fact, anyone who approaches me instead of my approaching
them. I don't understand why some people feel obligated to listen to any
huckster who tries to demand their attention. Hilary's campaign team tried
to use my phone line to intrude into my home and that clinched my voting
plans. Same thing with charities; decide yourself ahead of time which
reputable causes you wish to support this year and how much and do so; then
simply tell any others no; you don't owe anybody an explanation (yes, I make
rare exceptions but never to unknowns). The moment somebody tries to
persist, that's your clue to hang up; you don't owe them an explanation.

David Merrill


wrote in message
...
Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ. He
told me they were selling long life lightbulbs for $5.00 plus
shipping. I know there is nothing outstanding about that price but I
assumed they were compact flourescent bulbs and he told me I would be
helping disadvantaged and unemployed persons. When I received my bulbs
today I was very dissapointed.They were ordinary bulbs and seemed to
very sloppily made. there was poor soldering on the base, some bulbs
seemed to have dirt inside them and one had a broken off filiment.
(metal content). There was no brand name on them but they were marked
"American, made in USA, !0,000 hours, 130v, krypton. They billed me
$47.06 for 4.
I checked them out on the Internet and they had one complaint on a
website called Ripoffreports:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/...Off0342625.htm

Also the Phoenix BBB has an unsatisfactory rating for them:

http://central-northern-western-ariz...1126&firm=7195

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:47:03 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

On Sep 10, 5:11 pm, " wrote:

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman

Whatever you do, do not use the bulbs. Super long life bulbs are big
energy wasters.
And the extra amount of electricity you use will be several times the
amount you were charged for the bulbs. If they paid you ten dollars a
bulb to use them, you would still be better off not using them.

Dan

care to explain that?

Thank You,
Randy

Remove 333 from email address to reply.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Wed, 10 Sep 2008 17:11:50 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

Also the Phoenix BBB has an unsatisfactory rating for them:
http://central-northern-western-ariz...1126&firm=7195


For profit company. do they really use handicapped workers? I'd ask
for a replacement for the bad one at least, or return the whole bunch.

I only use about 3 screw in incandesents in the whole shop and only as
machine lights. so I always say no to these people.

Thank You,
Randy

Remove 333 from email address to reply.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

He told me they were selling long life lightbulbs for $5.00 plus
shipping.

This doesn't help your current dilemma, but my rule of thumb on these
things is if it's worth their time to cold call me with a "deal" it's
not worth my time to listen...

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Sep 11, 6:17 am, Randy wrote:

care to explain that?

Thank You,
Randy


Take the rated lumen , the rated wattage and the rated hours and
calculate the total lumen hours produced in the bulb lifetime. Also
calculate the kilowatt hours of electricity used. Multiply the
kilowatt hours by your cost per kwh to get the cost of electricity
used during the life of the bulb. And finally divide the cost by the
lumen hours to get the cost per lumen hour.

Now do the same thing for a standard bulb.

Now divide the life of the long life bulb by the life of a standard
bulb to get how many standard bulbs you would have to buy for the same
number of hours of use. Now calculate the cost of the same number of
lumen hours for standard bulbs and add in the cost of all the
replacement bulbs.

If you do this you will find that GE and the other manufacturers make
their bulbs to have the lowest total cost for light provided. Long
life bulbs will cost at least $60 more than standard bulbs to supply
the same amount of light for the life of the bulb.

Now repeat for compact florescent bulbs. They will save you a lot of
money. At least in the summer when the heat from the bulb does not
help to heat the house.

Dan

Litebulb ripoff?
 

cavelamb himself wrote:

Vaughn Simon wrote:
wrote in message
...

Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person


You can't GIVE me something on the telephone... Just hang up!

Think of it as a cheap lesson.



A-Men Brudder!


I like to let them give their whole pitch, until they get to my using
a credit card. I appoligize for not having one, or any money in my
checking account, then ask if they would mind holding a check for a
couple months, since their product sounds so good.


--
http://improve-usenet.org/index.html

aioe.org, Goggle Groups, and Web TV users must request to be white
listed, or I will not see your messages.

If you have broadband, your ISP may have a NNTP news server included in
your account: http://www.usenettools.net/ISP.htm


There are two kinds of people on this earth:
The crazy, and the insane.
The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

"David Merrill" wrote in message
news:XP8yk.282719$TT4.251190@attbi_s22...
...you don't owe them an explanation.

More than that, you don't owe them a second of your time, you don't even owe
a "duty of politeness". It is your home and your phone line.

Just hang up! If everybody did that, there would be no "do not call" lists
because nobody would bother making sales calls.


--
Vaughn

.................................................. .......
Nothing personal, but if you are posting through Google Groups I may not receive
your message. Google refuses to control the flood of spam messages originating
in their system, so on any given day I may or may not have Google blocked. Try
a real NNTP server & news reader program and you will never go back. All you
need is access to an NNTP server (AKA "news server") and a news reader program.
You probably already have a news reader program in your computer (Hint: Outlook
Express). Assuming that your Usenet needs are modest, use
http://news.aioe.org/ for free and/or http://www.teranews.com/ for a one-time
$3.95 setup fee.
.................................................. ........

Will poofread for food.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 15:06:31 GMT, "Vaughn Simon"
wrote:


"David Merrill" wrote in message
news:XP8yk.282719$TT4.251190@attbi_s22...
...you don't owe them an explanation.

More than that, you don't owe them a second of your time, you don't even owe
a "duty of politeness". It is your home and your phone line.

Just hang up! If everybody did that, there would be no "do not call" lists
because nobody would bother making sales calls.

Agreed. And if you want a little satisfaction, lambaste the
individual on the other end for disturbing your peace. "I'm just
wondering what kind of pitiful, useless excuse for a semi-human being
you are, that you can make a living only by annoying other decent
human beings to the point that they buy your shoddy goods just to get
you to go away and leave them alone."

Yeah, I'm a little over-the-top but I hate solicitations, whether they
be door-to-door, by phone, or by letter.

Best -- Terry

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Vaughn Simon wrote:

"David Merrill" wrote in message
news:XP8yk.282719$TT4.251190@attbi_s22...
...you don't owe them an explanation.

More than that, you don't owe them a second of your time, you don't even owe
a "duty of politeness". It is your home and your phone line.

Just hang up! If everybody did that, there would be no "do not call" lists
because nobody would bother making sales calls.


I still get calls, even though I'm on the list. They ask for another
name, and after you tell them they have the wrong number they go into
their pitch. That is why I waste as much of their time as I can before
telling them no sale.


--
http://improve-usenet.org/index.html

aioe.org, Goggle Groups, and Web TV users must request to be white
listed, or I will not see your messages.

If you have broadband, your ISP may have a NNTP news server included in
your account: http://www.usenettools.net/ISP.htm


There are two kinds of people on this earth:
The crazy, and the insane.
The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 07:41:45 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:
On Sep 11, 6:17 am, Randy wrote:

care to explain that?

Take the rated lumen , the rated wattage and the rated hours and
calculate the total lumen hours produced in the bulb lifetime. Also
calculate the kilowatt hours of electricity used. Multiply the
kilowatt hours by your cost per kwh to get the cost of electricity
used during the life of the bulb. And finally divide the cost by the
lumen hours to get the cost per lumen hour.

Now do the same thing for a standard bulb.

Now divide the life of the long life bulb by the life of a standard
bulb to get how many standard bulbs you would have to buy for the same
number of hours of use. Now calculate the cost of the same number of
lumen hours for standard bulbs and add in the cost of all the
replacement bulbs.

If you do this you will find that GE and the other manufacturers make
their bulbs to have the lowest total cost for light provided. Long
life bulbs will cost at least $60 more than standard bulbs to supply
the same amount of light for the life of the bulb.

Now repeat for compact florescent bulbs. They will save you a lot of
money. At least in the summer when the heat from the bulb does not
help to heat the house.

The ONLY time a "Super Long Life" bulb like that makes sense is if
you have to call an Electrician like me out to replace it, usually
because it's difficult to change. Big ladder, scaffolding, taking
apart displays or climbing inside the walls to get to the back side of
lighted glass shelves.

(And Joy of Joys :-( there's one building I have to rappel off the
roof to change one of the parking lot floodlights - they planted a
tree under it. One of these years I really should make them rent a
basket lift, or move the light over to one side.)

In that case, you have to add in a minimum $72 service call to each
lamp change, and even when that gets spread around multiple lamps it
still hurts. And sometimes a laborer - the 24' trestle ladder doesn't
go far from the truck without two bodies.

And it's still smarter to change the lamp type so I'm not there as
often - go to a Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium or Fluorescent,
and get the longer life and a lot better efficiency.

If it HAS to be dimmable, they make fluorescents that can be fully
dimmed - and some MH and HPS lamps can be "dimmed" if you put relay
switched capacitors on a CWA ballast - you can choose Dim or Full.

-- Bruce --

Litebulb ripoff?
 

"Bruce L. Bergman" wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 07:41:45 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:
On Sep 11, 6:17 am, Randy wrote:

care to explain that?

Take the rated lumen , the rated wattage and the rated hours and
calculate the total lumen hours produced in the bulb lifetime. Also
calculate the kilowatt hours of electricity used. Multiply the
kilowatt hours by your cost per kwh to get the cost of electricity
used during the life of the bulb. And finally divide the cost by the
lumen hours to get the cost per lumen hour.

Now do the same thing for a standard bulb.

Now divide the life of the long life bulb by the life of a standard
bulb to get how many standard bulbs you would have to buy for the same
number of hours of use. Now calculate the cost of the same number of
lumen hours for standard bulbs and add in the cost of all the
replacement bulbs.

If you do this you will find that GE and the other manufacturers make
their bulbs to have the lowest total cost for light provided. Long
life bulbs will cost at least $60 more than standard bulbs to supply
the same amount of light for the life of the bulb.

Now repeat for compact florescent bulbs. They will save you a lot of
money. At least in the summer when the heat from the bulb does not
help to heat the house.

The ONLY time a "Super Long Life" bulb like that makes sense is if
you have to call an Electrician like me out to replace it, usually
because it's difficult to change. Big ladder, scaffolding, taking
apart displays or climbing inside the walls to get to the back side of
lighted glass shelves.

(And Joy of Joys :-( there's one building I have to rappel off the
roof to change one of the parking lot floodlights - they planted a
tree under it. One of these years I really should make them rent a
basket lift, or move the light over to one side.)

In that case, you have to add in a minimum $72 service call to each
lamp change, and even when that gets spread around multiple lamps it
still hurts. And sometimes a laborer - the 24' trestle ladder doesn't
go far from the truck without two bodies.

And it's still smarter to change the lamp type so I'm not there as
often - go to a Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium or Fluorescent,
and get the longer life and a lot better efficiency.

If it HAS to be dimmable, they make fluorescents that can be fully
dimmed - and some MH and HPS lamps can be "dimmed" if you put relay
switched capacitors on a CWA ballast - you can choose Dim or Full.

-- Bruce --


Are you one of the guys who replace every fluorescent bulb at once,
or keep going back for a few at a time? I had someone try to convince
me they were saving their customers money by changing a single bulb in a
sign.


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listed, or I will not see your messages.

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your account: http://www.usenettools.net/ISP.htm


There are two kinds of people on this earth:
The crazy, and the insane.
The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 12:20:33 -0400, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Vaughn Simon wrote:

"David Merrill" wrote in message
news:XP8yk.282719$TT4.251190@attbi_s22...
...you don't owe them an explanation.

More than that, you don't owe them a second of your time, you don't even owe
a "duty of politeness". It is your home and your phone line.

Just hang up! If everybody did that, there would be no "do not call" lists
because nobody would bother making sales calls.


I still get calls, even though I'm on the list. They ask for another
name, and after you tell them they have the wrong number they go into
their pitch. That is why I waste as much of their time as I can before
telling them no sale.
I ask them to hang on then come back and ask if they are still there,
hang on. Kept this up for a half hour on one. Wife says I have too
much time on my hands.
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Gerald Miller wrote:

Michael A. Terrell wrote:

I still get calls, even though I'm on the list. They ask for another
name, and after you tell them they have the wrong number they go into
their pitch. That is why I waste as much of their time as I can before
telling them no sale.

I ask them to hang on then come back and ask if they are still there,
hang on. Kept this up for a half hour on one. Wife says I have too
much time on my hands.


The next time she says that you should tell her, "I could be playing
my stupid jokes on you, instead." ;-)


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listed, or I will not see your messages.

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your account: http://www.usenettools.net/ISP.htm


There are two kinds of people on this earth:
The crazy, and the insane.
The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 20:04:11 -0400, with neither quill nor qualm,
Gerald Miller quickly quoth:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 12:20:33 -0400, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Vaughn Simon wrote:

"David Merrill" wrote in message
news:XP8yk.282719$TT4.251190@attbi_s22...
...you don't owe them an explanation.

More than that, you don't owe them a second of your time, you don't even owe
a "duty of politeness". It is your home and your phone line.

Just hang up! If everybody did that, there would be no "do not call" lists
because nobody would bother making sales calls.


I still get calls, even though I'm on the list. They ask for another
name, and after you tell them they have the wrong number they go into
their pitch. That is why I waste as much of their time as I can before
telling them no sale.
I ask them to hang on then come back and ask if they are still there,
hang on. Kept this up for a half hour on one. Wife says I have too
much time on my hands.

I have a couple of idiots who call on a regular basis and won't take
no for an answer. I should use that on them. One guy cusses me out
for not buying, if you can believe that. Of course, that's the one
which has a bogus caller ID so I can't report him.

Yeah, I'll keep that turkey on the line as long as I can.

--
"Most Folks Are As Happy As They Make Up Their Minds To Be"
-Abraham Lincoln
-----------------------------------------------------------

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:10:03 -0700, with neither quill nor qualm,
Bruce L. Bergman quickly quoth:

If it HAS to be dimmable, they make fluorescents that can be fully
dimmed - and some MH and HPS lamps can be "dimmed" if you put relay
switched capacitors on a CWA ballast - you can choose Dim or Full.

I got a dozen of the dimmable CFLs off eBay last year for $24
delivered. I've been using 7 of them daily and there have been no
dropouts (like the 3 Feit bulbs I got last year) so far. They even
work in lamp home automation modules, but they do flash a wee bit all
night. Off current is a fluctuating portion of 1 watt due to the
cycling of the inductive bounce through the cheap lamp module. I only
have one on a lamp module. The rest are either hard-switched or are
behind relays via appliance modules.

http://tinyurl.com/48vxz4 is my source vendor.

--
"Most Folks Are As Happy As They Make Up Their Minds To Be"
-Abraham Lincoln
-----------------------------------------------------------

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Larry Jaques wrote:

I have a couple of idiots who call on a regular basis and won't take
no for an answer. I should use that on them. One guy cusses me out
for not buying, if you can believe that. Of course, that's the one
which has a bogus caller ID so I can't report him.

Yeah, I'll keep that turkey on the line as long as I can.


Note the exact time he calls, and request the phone company to tell
you where the call really came from. If you are on the Do not call list,
and in the US, you can file charges with the state attorney general's
office. Record the call, if you can. Or just tell him you record all
calls, and that you are going to report him. :)



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The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Terry wrote:

Agreed. And if you want a little satisfaction, lambaste the
individual on the other end for disturbing your peace. "I'm just
wondering what kind of pitiful, useless excuse for a semi-human being
you are, that you can make a living only by annoying other decent
human beings to the point that they buy your shoddy goods just to get
you to go away and leave them alone."

Yeah, I'm a little over-the-top but I hate solicitations, whether they
be door-to-door, by phone, or by letter.

When I was working turd shift, these jerks ignoring the do not call list really cut into
my sleep. I have to leave the phone on, mom and uncle are not all that young.

Oh, and when you get x or something, note separate shipping and handling as in instead of
one box with 5 in it, 5 boxes each billed out separately. Another part of the scam.

I think an open season on telemarketers should run from January to December. They are
nothing but scum.

Wes

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Sep 11, 7:32*pm, Wes wrote:

I think an open season on telemarketers should run from January to December. *They are
nothing but scum.

Wes

I got an automated call about credit cards, punched one, and told the
kid that answered that I was on the Do Not Call list.

He said " good for you. I wish I could be on the do not call list ".

I hate telemarketing, but suspect most of the people are just trying
to get by.

Dan

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:42:31 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:


I hate telemarketing, but suspect most of the people are just trying
to get by.

Agreed. I don't see the point in giving some poor shmuck who'd rather
be doing something else to make a buck a hard time. On the other hand,
this is awfully funny without being too mean spirited:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fd4MKflsPtg

--
Ned Simmons

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Wed, 10 Sep 2008 21:42:27 -0400, Gerald Miller
wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2008 17:11:50 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

Several weeks ago I was contacted by phone by a person who said he
represented Handicapped & Disadvantaged Employment of Phoenix AZ. He
told me they were selling long life lightbulbs for $5.00 plus
shipping. I know there is nothing outstanding about that price but I
assumed they were compact flourescent bulbs and he told me I would be
helping disadvantaged and unemployed persons. When I received my bulbs
today I was very dissapointed.They were ordinary bulbs and seemed to
very sloppily made. there was poor soldering on the base, some bulbs
seemed to have dirt inside them and one had a broken off filiment.
(metal content). There was no brand name on them but they were marked
"American, made in USA, !0,000 hours, 130v, krypton. They billed me
$47.06 for 4.
I checked them out on the Internet and they had one complaint on a
website called Ripoffreports:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/...Off0342625.htm

Also the Phoenix BBB has an unsatisfactory rating for them:
http://central-northern-western-ariz...1126&firm=7195

So now I'm wondering what would be the best to do, send the bulbs back
collect, call them and complain, send a report to the BBB or keep the
bulbs and do nothing?
Engineman
Something like this was operating around here some twenty years ago
except that the bulbs did appear well made, and any that burned out in
less than five years were replaced no charge. I don't recall the price
at that time but I did have several replaced and was totally
satisfied.
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

Indeed. Those are the only ones my Dad ever bought for the homestead
and his business

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 22:32:52 -0400, with neither quill nor qualm, Wes
quickly quoth:

Terry wrote:

Agreed. And if you want a little satisfaction, lambaste the
individual on the other end for disturbing your peace. "I'm just
wondering what kind of pitiful, useless excuse for a semi-human being
you are, that you can make a living only by annoying other decent
human beings to the point that they buy your shoddy goods just to get
you to go away and leave them alone."

Yeah, I'm a little over-the-top but I hate solicitations, whether they
be door-to-door, by phone, or by letter.

When I was working turd shift, these jerks ignoring the do not call list really cut into
my sleep. I have to leave the phone on, mom and uncle are not all that young.

Bullpuckey. Didn't you have a neighbor who could answer your daytime
emergency calls and wake you if necessary? Turn the phone off and get
a good night's sleep, people! (Yeah, I know it's too late for you,
Wes, but others might learn if they're now in the same boat.)


Oh, and when you get x or something, note separate shipping and handling as in instead of
one box with 5 in it, 5 boxes each billed out separately. Another part of the scam.

I think an open season on telemarketers should run from January to December. They are
nothing but scum.

Amen. Let's put telemarketers, missionaries, and lawyers on 365 day
open seasons.

--
"Most Folks Are As Happy As They Make Up Their Minds To Be"
-Abraham Lincoln
-----------------------------------------------------------

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:23:40 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:10:03 -0700, with neither quill nor qualm,
Bruce L. Bergman quickly quoth:

If it HAS to be dimmable, they make fluorescents that can be fully
dimmed - and some MH and HPS lamps can be "dimmed" if you put relay
switched capacitors on a CWA ballast - you can choose Dim or Full.

I got a dozen of the dimmable CFLs off eBay last year for $24
delivered. I've been using 7 of them daily and there have been no
dropouts (like the 3 Feit bulbs I got last year) so far. They even
work in lamp home automation modules, but they do flash a wee bit all
night. Off current is a fluctuating portion of 1 watt due to the
cycling of the inductive bounce through the cheap lamp module. I only
have one on a lamp module. The rest are either hard-switched or are
behind relays via appliance modules.

http://tinyurl.com/48vxz4 is my source vendor.

The dimable CFL integrated lamps are a crap-shoot - and make sure
they are a 'second generation' design, The 'first generation' dimable
CFL's AIUI had a habit of catching fire, which is bad...

I was talking more the dedicated fixture dimmers for F40T12 and
F32T8 lamps. (Among others, but those are the workhorse sizes.)

And even with the new ones you have to gang-change the lamps and
burn them in at full brightness for 100 hours before dimming.

-- Bruce --

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:32:05 -0400, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Are you one of the guys who replace every fluorescent bulb at once,
or keep going back for a few at a time? I had someone try to convince
me they were saving their customers money by changing a single bulb in a
sign.

All depends. In a sign or somewhere you need to rent a lift to get
to, and they are used every night all night, I would gang change.
They all have 12,000, 15,000 hours on them.

Unless you were just there last month and one died - then you don't
gang change. This is why you carry a Sharpie and date the lamps.

For tennis courts that don't get constant usage, then you change
individually. The variation in lamp life can mean years of extra life
left for the lamps at the high end of the bell curve if they only get
lit for 10 hours a month. And those 1KW MH lamps are $40 or more.

For offices that just take a 6' ladder, do the whole fixture at
once. Or at worst the whole room at once if they are on one switch.
But I usually give the customer a 15-second explanation of the options
and offer them a choice.

-- Bruce --

Litebulb ripoff?
 

"Bruce L. Bergman" wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:32:05 -0400, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:

Are you one of the guys who replace every fluorescent bulb at once,
or keep going back for a few at a time? I had someone try to convince
me they were saving their customers money by changing a single bulb in a
sign.

All depends. In a sign or somewhere you need to rent a lift to get
to, and they are used every night all night, I would gang change.
They all have 12,000, 15,000 hours on them.

Unless you were just there last month and one died - then you don't
gang change. This is why you carry a Sharpie and date the lamps.

For tennis courts that don't get constant usage, then you change
individually. The variation in lamp life can mean years of extra life
left for the lamps at the high end of the bell curve if they only get
lit for 10 hours a month. And those 1KW MH lamps are $40 or more.

For offices that just take a 6' ladder, do the whole fixture at
once. Or at worst the whole room at once if they are on one switch.
But I usually give the customer a 15-second explanation of the options
and offer them a choice.


Good. That's the kind of answer I expected from you. :)

The id10T I was dealing with was doing supermarkets & retail stores.
I was looking for 50 or more used 8' tubes for an old warehouse. I had
two working fixtures, and was converting the building into a TV station.
The ceiling was over 25 feet, and the bulbs only had to last about 150
to 200 hours. I didn't want to buy new bulbs, then rip the lights out a
couple months later when the studio lighting gear arrived.

Other parts of the country I'd worked, i could pick up working pulls
for a dollar or two per box. Some relamping services would give you up
to five dozen, for free.


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The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:14:40 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 20:04:11 -0400, with neither quill nor qualm,
Gerald Miller quickly quoth:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 12:20:33 -0400, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Vaughn Simon wrote:

"David Merrill" wrote in message
news:XP8yk.282719$TT4.251190@attbi_s22...
...you don't owe them an explanation.

More than that, you don't owe them a second of your time, you don't even owe
a "duty of politeness". It is your home and your phone line.

Just hang up! If everybody did that, there would be no "do not call" lists
because nobody would bother making sales calls.


I still get calls, even though I'm on the list. They ask for another
name, and after you tell them they have the wrong number they go into
their pitch. That is why I waste as much of their time as I can before
telling them no sale.
I ask them to hang on then come back and ask if they are still there,
hang on. Kept this up for a half hour on one. Wife says I have too
much time on my hands.

I have a couple of idiots who call on a regular basis and won't take
no for an answer. I should use that on them. One guy cusses me out
for not buying, if you can believe that. Of course, that's the one
which has a bogus caller ID so I can't report him.

Yeah, I'll keep that turkey on the line as long as I can.
I used to have an Oriental who kept calling for Gerard Miller (rather
than Gerald) and kept working on him to get him to pronounce the "L"
He wanted to sell me a service plan on my furnace since he already had
a service plan on my rental water heater. I argued that there was no
service plan but he insisted that it was included in the rental, "then
why haven't you serviced it in over twenty years?" "Oh, you mean the
furnace plan is free also?" I kept giving him such a hard time he
finally gave up. Appearance of stupidity can be an asset in dealing
with these A**holes.
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

Litebulb ripoff?
 

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 22:24:23 -0400, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Larry Jaques wrote:

I have a couple of idiots who call on a regular basis and won't take
no for an answer. I should use that on them. One guy cusses me out
for not buying, if you can believe that. Of course, that's the one
which has a bogus caller ID so I can't report him.

Yeah, I'll keep that turkey on the line as long as I can.


Note the exact time he calls, and request the phone company to tell
you where the call really came from. If you are on the Do not call list,
and in the US, you can file charges with the state attorney general's
office. Record the call, if you can. Or just tell him you record all
calls, and that you are going to report him. :)
An accusation of harassment sometimes works well.
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Gerald Miller wrote:

An accusation of harassment sometimes works well.


Before the 'do not call list' I got 45 calls from a telemarketer for
a local HVAC company in less than a week. I told her that f the calls
didn't stop, I would have my retired friends call their office all day
long with questions, tying up all their phone lines and keeping real
customers from getting through. She yelled, That's harassment! I told
her she had been harassing me, and that if I got one more call, she
would find out what harassment was really like.


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The crazy, and the insane.
The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.

Litebulb ripoff?
 

Gerald Miller wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:14:40 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 20:04:11 -0400, with neither quill nor qualm,
Gerald Miller quickly quoth:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 12:20:33 -0400, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Vaughn Simon wrote:

"David Merrill" wrote in message
news:XP8yk.282719$TT4.251190@attbi_s22...
...you don't owe them an explanation.

More than that, you don't owe them a second of your time, you don't even owe
a "duty of politeness". It is your home and your phone line.

Just hang up! If everybody did that, there would be no "do not call" lists
because nobody would bother making sales calls.


I still get calls, even though I'm on the list. They ask for another
name, and after you tell them they have the wrong number they go into
their pitch. That is why I waste as much of their time as I can before
telling them no sale.
I ask them to hang on then come back and ask if they are still there,
hang on. Kept this up for a half hour on one. Wife says I have too
much time on my hands.

I have a couple of idiots who call on a regular basis and won't take
no for an answer. I should use that on them. One guy cusses me out
for not buying, if you can believe that. Of course, that's the one
which has a bogus caller ID so I can't report him.

Yeah, I'll keep that turkey on the line as long as I can.
I used to have an Oriental who kept calling for Gerard Miller (rather
than Gerald) and kept working on him to get him to pronounce the "L"
He wanted to sell me a service plan on my furnace since he already had
a service plan on my rental water heater. I argued that there was no
service plan but he insisted that it was included in the rental, "then
why haven't you serviced it in over twenty years?" "Oh, you mean the
furnace plan is free also?" I kept giving him such a hard time he
finally gave up. Appearance of stupidity can be an asset in dealing
with these A**holes.


Sometimes screaming at them that you are disabled, and they woke you
after the only five minutes of sleep you've had in days, scares them
enough to keep them from calling back.


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There are two kinds of people on this earth:
The crazy, and the insane.
The first sign of insanity is denying that you're crazy.