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Comment Re:It's the heat that kills LEDs/CFLs (Score 1) 602

LEDs don't throw off more heat than CFLs. That would violate the laws of thermodynamics. It's just that the LEDs themselves are sensitive to the heat generated by their support components, so they must be protected. For CFLs, the light-generating part is not a solid-state component, so it doesn't need protection. The LED and CFL ballasts both generate much (or most) of the heat.

Comment Re:electricity is expensive (Score 1) 602

LEDs are only expensive if your electricity is free.

Clearly not. If my electricity is $0.01/kWh, then it will take 8.5 years just to pay for a $10 LED. Is anyone paying only a penny per kWh? No, but I just refuted your claim. FWIW, I'm paying about $0.10 a kWH-- including the delivery charges, which people forget about-- so it would take me about a year to pay for a $10 LED. A lot of people aren't getting even a year out of theirs, so you can see why they are upset.

Comment Re:bathtub curve applies (Score 1) 602

The mains switch at the panel, or the circuit fuse? If the latter, those LEDs seem to have a dangerous failure mode that causes a short circuit instead of an open. For the former, you have a problem with your service that is due to either power surges or an overload on the amp rating of your service. Either one is a bit unsafe and should be looked into.

Comment Re:I'm sold on LED bulbs... (Score 1) 602

That's the one funny thing I've noticed. Seems like the manufacturers should be slapped with a class-action lawsuit for their rating of CFLs per their equivalents. I've seen ~600 lumen bulbs labeled as "60-watt equivalent". Meanwhile, LEDs seem to be sandbagged; the best LEDs I've purchased so far were at Goodwill for a DOLLAR and even though they said 40-watt equiv, they were as bright as the 60 watt incandescents they replaced.

Comment Re:I dunno about LEDs, but CFLs don't last (Score 1) 602

I can agree that Sylvania makes a good CFL, for a CFL. Philips is OK, and GE is terrible.

Philips look good, but they only seem to last slightly longer than an incandescent. GE bulbs die within a 1,000 hours if they aren't installed screw-down, and many of them have a disgusting pinkish hue at half brightness for the first 30 seconds.

Comment With incandescents, it's two out of three (Score 1) 602

While still a cartel that should have been broken up much earlier, with incandescents it's true that out of low cost, efficiency, and long life, you get to choose two. "Long life" (now pretty much outlawed in the USA) and especially "rough service" bulbs (which are sold through a loophole) use a thicker filament. A thicker filament remains intact longer, but is less efficient. The "low cost" part comes in with the halogen bulb. Its design rejuvenates the filament so that it lasts longer, allowing for a thinner filament, but it costs more to manufacture.

Comment Re:His Dark Materials? (Score 1) 410

If you're as old as I am (41), I have to tell you that public schools are a lot different now. We had the Chronicles of Narnia in the library and watched the animated film for LWW. We also had stuff that would be banned in Catholic schools (the Judy Blume books, for example).

Also, you're the third person to put words in my mouth.

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