The Which report were about top of the range ones with 25,000 hours life and mostly dimmable.

All mine were freebies that were given out in the last 18 months by the various electrical companies. I still use 150W incandescent in the loft, and will continue to do so. Every other lamp and light in the house and garden room is CFL. But is has to be said there is a delay in full brightness, and the light is not as nice as incandescent. But, they do save a significant amount of money, and are liveable with.

A 4W candle is equivalent to an old 15W one, where would you use that?

After using the CFL for over 4 years now, I no longer notice the delay when i flip the switch. I do still notice the full power up in brightness though. And yes they do save money. When I first put them in I saved $14.00 on my monthly bill. Then National Grid raised the rates after they bougt out the local power company.
I do have some LED intalled under my kitchen cupboards though. Right now in the states the price is to high for me to replace any CFL's at the moment. The one place I might though is for my yard light. I have a CFL that pulls 40 watts and gives out the light of a 90 watt. I tried it with my motion dector socket but in cold weather it takes way to long to give usable light. So I just used it in a dusk to dwan fixture. If I can find a reasonably priced LED with the same lumems and wattage I will reinstall the motion detector socket and save money.

I was cruising links one day and ran across a company in the states who sell lights, radios and charging devices you can plug into a phone jack. Sorry I cant remember the name. You could use the phone comanys dime to recharge all your USB stuff.

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[/quote]

Old James

In the UK any power coming down the phone line to the wall jack is for ringing current. You use that for anything else and your phones won't ring upon an incoming call!

Man you guys get shafted at every turn dont you:)

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[/quote]

Old James

Not really, you'd probably lose CI as well :-)

Phone jack

Im not sure. But when you get all the scam artists calling all the time Im to the point I could care less if my phone rings:)

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[/quote]

Old James

I'm not really up on cellular networks but I have pretty good idea about bandwidth requirements in communications systems plus the support infrastructure required for cellular base stations (RF link or fibre to get the data back to the main router). So there's something about this story that doesn't quite seem right.

Apart from the rather extreme claims on cell phone base station power usage and possible power saving, there is also the NIMBY attitude to cellphone towers by some people (usually the same ones that also complain about poor reception).

Wireless network redesign could cut carbon pollution

T.A.

I'm not really up on cellular networks but I have pretty good idea about bandwidth requirements in communications systems plus the support infrastructure required for cellular base stations (RF link or fibre to get the data back to the main router). So there's something about this story that doesn't quite seem right.

Apart from the rather extreme claims on cell phone base station power usage and possible power saving, there is also the NIMBY attitude to cellphone towers by some people (usually the same ones that also complain about poor reception).

Wireless network redesign could cut carbon pollution

T.A.

Off hand I'd say anything claiming a 1000 times savings is bunk. No details. No patents. Wonder if this was supposed to run on April 1.

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Some of the latest on increasing efficiency.

Nanowires Fuel Breakthrough for Solar Energy

GE Hopes to Make Its Cloth Wind Turbine Idea Fly

Good interesting comments on lighting, thanks.

I believe the order of efficiency for light output for various types of bulb is:

• single coil incandescent
  
• double coiled incandescent
  
• halogen
  
• fluorescent tube (with always-on electrode heater current)
  
• compact fluorescent ("CFL")
  
• cold cathode fluorescent ("CCF")
  
• light emitting diodes ("LED")
  

I wonder where electroluminescent devices fit in there... Or is that light too weak a light to be useful?

I've tried all of them. I've even got a mix of halogen, CFL, CCF, and LED for the kitchen (in part for comparison but also for performance).

The recent white LED bulbs now look to outperform the CFLs for brightness, whiteness, and efficiency. They are also "instant on".

Long lifespan is also a good bonus provided the Marketing does not try to charge too much for that bonus and stifle the market...


All on our only planet,
Martin

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See new freedom: Mageia Linux
Take a look for yourself: Linux Format
The Future is what We all make IT (GPLv3)

Yes, better lighting options is a plus. However, have any of you really sat down under a CFL & tried to read for a lengthy period?

They're a joke!

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Yes, better lighting options is a plus. However, have any of you really sat down under a CFL & tried to read for a lengthy period?

They're a joke!

I have done so. I didnt have a problem. You bettter not have ruined it for me now:)

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[/quote]

Old James

Yes, better lighting options is a plus. However, have any of you really sat down under a CFL & tried to read for a lengthy period?

Sirus wot wattage are you using
Phillips makes a good 18w warm daylight one

Also fantastic for growing plants mmmm maybe I should say that hehehe

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We can't by them anymore gov banned them about 3-4 yrs ago so no choise but LED or cf?
At first they where giving everybody them but now we gota buy them

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It's mainly to do with the colour temperature of the bulb. An incandescent bulb is about 2700K, values higher than 3500K feel colder and are more suitable to workplaces. For home use try to pick a value nearer 2700K and those labelled "warm white". Most modern computer screens allow you to adjust the colour temperature as well ranging from pure white to a champagne like colour.

I have found that it often pays to go one stage higher with CFL's i.e. putting a 60w equivalent in place of an old 40w and a 100w in place of an old 60w. but there are still places where you want instant full power light such as in the loft or under the stairs, I still use incandescent for them.

You raise two valid points. The intsant on full lumem light. That why I still have two 150 Watt halogen bulbs for my outside porch lights. Someone knocks on the door I want to see who is there pronto.
And For reading when I was growing up my dad used 100 watt bulbs for reading. So when I set out on my own thats what I used. When I swithed over to CFL I just looked at the equivelent wattage was to a 100 watt Incandesent. And that is what I used.

I will start looking at LED's. in the near future. When I find the ones that will work for me I will start replaceing my CFL's when needed with them. I will look hard to find a replacement for the halogens now though.

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[/quote]

Old James

At last, some real "alternative energy".

Projects like this is where the development money should have been going in the first place, instead of "feel good" crap like wind and solar.

Wind and solar have their uses but with an average output of only 30 to 40 percent of their rated capacity are very inefficient and hardly cost effective

Outback hot-rocks test site powers up

T.A.

That's great terror Australia they finally got it up and working .Shouldn't be to hard to flog off to someone , maybe the federal Gov seeing as the control of power is still with the Greens and independants all we gotta do now is keep Abbot out off the Lodge in September and they mite have a chance

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That's good stuff!

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Ah, frackin' for heat. Same problems as frackin' for gas and oil?

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Ah, frackin' for heat. Same problems as frackin' for gas and oil?

You old cynic you :)

Not quite, no chemicals involved. Cold water in, hot water out

T.A.

Ah, frackin' for heat. Same problems as frackin' for gas and oil?

You old cynic you :)

Not quite, no chemicals involved. Cold water in, hot water out

T.A.

Well, what about the earthquakes?

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Gary I can see your prob only shit steering but it is very good science .

Simply put you drill a hole down a few miles to where there are porus rocks which are at a temp of 450c or hotter pump water in at high pressure it heats up . A second hole is drilled not to far away and the water now steam makes it's way through the rock and comes out the other pipe boiling connect a generator and you have electiricy .The rock or rock's can not be fracked it only works if the rocks are porus and in 1 piece . We have coal seam gas fracking here too and we don't like it .

Good old ozzie know how ...lol joking

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You old cynic you :)

Well, what about the earthquakes?

As it's located in one of the most geographically stable places on the planet (the centre of the Australian continent) It would be a good test case I suppose.

Innaminka is a "one horse, one dog, one pub" township with nothing but a few kangaroos and a few mobs of cattle around for hundreds of kilometres, so if it caused an earthquake nothing much would be disturbed. :)

T.A.