| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| jema |
Low energy dimmable gu10shttp://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Lighting_Menu_Index/Lamps_and_Tubes_Index/Energy_Saving_Lamps_Index/GUCFL_Lamp/index.htmlhttp://www.lowenergygu10.co.uk/index.php?cat=LOW_ENERGY_GU10_REVIEWS anyone anything to say before I wander out to buy some? |
| Barefoot Andrew |
Ooh, I shall be watching this with interest. I have 9 GU10s around my house, two of which are used a fair bit.
A. |
| RichardW |
Do you realy NEED dimmable? If you like gloom then spec lower wattage bulbs & for brighter periods have a second (third & fourth) light source from lamps & wall lights too or just have the celing lamps on multi switches. The savings on buying the cheaper low energy bulbs will pay for the other alterations first time round so come bulb change time you will be quids in. Also do not believe the wattage claims compared to normal bulbs. If you use the conversions they supply you will be going down in light output any way.
We have loads of GU10's & the rest of the house are standards low energy fittings. Richard |
| jema |
Dimmible is an extravagance and not strictly needed, but done now.
Observations... 1) For a green bulb they sure come with a lot of fiddly to open plastic packaging 
2) They don't fit the light fittings as they get too wide too soon. 3) Wire cutters can modify some light fittings 
4) They do dim over a decent range without flicker. I will comment on the light more when it is not daylight. |
| jema |
Okay they are clearly not as bright as Halogens 
But the light level is just about okay. |
| RichardW |
The big reason I like them (after the saving money bit) is at night when you turn them on you are not blinded by the full brightness, they come on to a gentle level straight away & then brighten up so your eyes can adjust to them.
Richard |
| jema |
ho hum...
I also bought a standard bulb replace dimmible and having been on less than two hours it has gone flash, fizzle pop
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| wellington womble |
What I hate about the stupid lights is the don't last five minutes - we seem to have hundreds of things, so that you can only put on what you need, but as about 50 percent of the damn things are blown at any one time, you end up with more than you strictly need on to get enough light in the right places. Anyone reccommend a kind that lasts better? |
| jema |
I know I will be trying for money back tomorrow. At £10 a pop I want bulbs that last. |
| RichardW |
My GU10's are non dimables & cost about £3.60
We still have some low energy bulbs that we bought when they first came out. How ever some of the cheap (99p) ones have gone quickly. The big name brands do seem to last better than the cheap supermarket brands but price wise the cheap ones still win out. Richard |
| James |
we've got a dimmable low energy in the nursery. Its not a GU10, just a standard bayonet fitting, bought from TLC.
We wanted a light that would be bright if we needed, or could be turned down low for when Llewellyn's asleep or we need to come in during the night. We gave up on it in the end for three reasons: 1) It hums like a electricity sub-station 2) You cannot turn it on at a low brightness. You need to turn it on at full brightness, let it warm up fully then turn it down to low. If you try to turn it on at a dim setting, it flashes and flickers like a strobe. This is a real pain in the arse for our nursery- we whanted the dimmer so we could comfort/ feed Llewellyn in the middle of the night without lots of light (just enough so we don't stub toes etc..). You cant use them for this purpose if they've got to be on full blast for 3 minutes before you dim them. 3) It doesnt have a 'smooth' dim. Its stepped in what appear to be about 4 or 5 steps. Not a big hardship, but nevertheless a little annoying when the light level you whant is between this step and that step. This is the only dimmer we have in the house, and we bought it for a specific purpose which it couldn't achieve, so we've now installed an incandescent bulb instead. If you're not fussed about the stepped nature of the dimming (which you may not notice in a larger, multiple light room), and the fact they need to be on full illumination for a few minutes prior to dimming , then they'll probably work fine. Ours probably sounded louder than it really was because I only ever heard it at 3 o'clock in the morning in a very small room- put it into a normal living room with a radio on or a study with a computer humming away and you'd not notice. The noise came from the circuitry in the base of bulb, not the dimmer. |
| jema |
This one (now replaced) and the GU10's are silent.
The tech is advancing, the question is whether it is now good enough? I only bought 5 gu10s out of the 7-10 I wanted as they only had 5. Suffice it to say they had more stock today, but I did not buy more. |
| tahir |
What brand are they? |
| jema |
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Lighting_Menu_Index/Lamps_and_Tubes_Index/Energy_Saving_Lamps_Index/GUCFL_Lamp/index.html
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/LADF20BC.html |
| tahir |
Ahh, Megaman, that's exactly why I asked. I've had lamps by them before, shockingly over packaged, surprising for a German company.
NOt very good value either |
| jema |
Well the same one has blown again I suppose one could ask whether dimmer switch is at all to blame, but it works flawlessly with a standard bulb.
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| jema |
Got a refund this time, a third try just seems like asking for punishment
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