Blowing lamps

[howy1]

I have eight spotlights in my kitchen/diner 60 watt r32 type and i am forever changing blown lamps , what could be causing this or is it just the nature of spotlights , thanks in anticipation

 

[Sam Gangee]

Jeez you're using 480 Watts to light a kitchen? That's nearly half a kiloWatt! It must be a huge kitchen. Why not use energy saver lamps and save the planet?

(Sorry, I don't know why your bulbs are blowing but I think it's a hint that you need to re-think your lighting strategy).

 

[JohnD]

1) Spotlights don't last very long

2) If you have 8 lamps then with the same MTBF you will be changing bulbs 8 times as often as a sensible person with only one lamp. And 5 times as often as someone even more sensible with 8 CFLs. And 40 times as often as someone supremely sensible with just one CFL.

 

[sm1thson]

do they ever flicker indicating a loose connection? note cheap bulbs blow more often. and if you only have one bulb in other rooms and 8 in the kitchen then you will find they blow 8 times as often. also if its on original bulbs they are all likely to blow around the same time (xxx hours) so it may be that youve had good use out of them all but there ust all at the end of their life?

edit) 2 slow again!

 

[howy1]

Thanks all for your replies , just to enlighten you i am a sensible person but like many blokes i have a wife that likes gimmicks rather than practicality if i had my way i would have one fleurecent tube .
John d can you explain what mtbf and cfls mean !
Sam gangee you are obviously a member of the green party so can you tell me if there are energy saving spotlights !
sm1thson i think your information is getting close to what i was after i understand about numbers and usage but i just feel they are packing up to soon , i have been using homebase lamps is this a no no
Thanks to you all

 

[JohnD]

mean time between failure

compact fluorescent lamp

 

[PARTPISGREAT]

howy,
I don't know if it helps - I too have the same type of spotlights (although I got away with only 4, I convinced my wife not to have the other 4). I've had them about 2 years. The bulbs go very frequently, as do a colleagues of mine who bought the same lights. I don't think it's a problem with your set-up, I think it just goes with the territory.
I too would be interested to see if there are any energy saving spotlights, I'm not aware of any.

 

[THRIPSTER]

What about we rename these 'Blowlamps'? These bulbs are about as hot and are always failing - seems apt to me.

 

[JohnD]

I have seen low-energy spotlamps, never used them but may be worth a try. I wouldn't have thought they could be as directional.

The other annoying thing about spots is that they fail often, and this will frequently trip the MCB. Given a professional test and calculation the MCB can sometimes be upgraded but it would be better if this was not needed.

 

[RF Lighting]

The one on the right is a CFL

Replace 8 light bulbs and enjoy a SAVING of £253 before you have to buy replacement compact fluorecent lamps



Buy CFLs here


Money saved calculator and explaination

 

[howy1]

I am glad i came on the forum as it seems this is a common problem , thanks for the energy saving website , one question my lamps are R63 ( I think ,should check really) will i be able to get these in low energy usage. I was thinking of getting one of those mexican bullet belts that criss cross on your chest and filling them with lamps so that i am totally prepared .
Cheers

 

[RF Lighting]

Megaman lamps do an R63 CFL lamp

http://www.megamanuk.com/products/product.php?sid=4


Part number BR1111i

Just noticed now they even have dimmable CFLs