Have had LEDs quit within that time frame also. Most vexing is having to replace one LED w/another while the fluorescents in the neighboring sockets are still burning. Quite honestly, in another house, the fluorescents (save a couple) have been running since they were put in >5+ yrs ago.

Also, remember the hub-bub of folks demanding incandescent over those new swirly ice-cream blubs (ire and desire trumps pragmatism). Hearing this, and 'those' people, knew the new bulb types were definitely going to be better.

Having high ceilings, lousy knees and a fear of heights - changing blubs every few years is a luxury.

Frankly, it was insane to go down that road in the first place, but Americans have had it drilled into their heads millions of times that the free market is always more efficient than government.

That statement is 100% true, while being completely misleading.

Incandescent light bulbs are extremely efficient... at producing heat instead of light.

Private enterprise is very efficient at creating short-term profits for their shareholders.

Yet Americans seem to think it'll somehow save tons of money so they don't have to pay their precious taxes and everyone can go out and individually buy services for 10x the price they'd pay through the government.

Classic example is GM buying up public transit in the 30s-50s and bulldozing the facilities so everyone has to buy a car. Great for GM, terrible for everyone and everything else (including, ironically, GM in the long run).

I had a 15w (100w equivalent or something) bulb that I left on in my garage for 3 years straight. It finally stopped working this year. I still like them better than incandescent lights as they definitely save energy and the average cost of a LED bulb has come down significantly over the past couple of years.

4 signs your house may be on fire:

1) You might find there is the smell of smoke or that you have difficulty breathing or seeing clearly.
2)You might hear crackling. Other sounds to look out for are fire alarms, and/or people yelling "Fire".
3) Feeling hot, perhaps even to the point of pain, even on cold days. If you experience this heat in your house and not elsewhere it may be another sign your house is on fire.
4) A spreading, bright incandescent light in places that you would not normally expect to be luminous .e.g furniture, floors, walls etc.

Am I being unfair?

Besides, everybody knows the real 4 are:
1)You can't agree which way the toilet roll goes on the holder (and/or refuse to use the holder)
2)Snoring
3)Cheat-guilt (Where one has a secret affair, succeeds in keeping it secret, but fails to forgive themselves)
4)Not laughing at my jokes.

WITCH! Quick go get a sack of ugly cats, a baker's dozen cardboard tubes, and some Chili pepper string lights... incandescent. We shall find out the source of his evil power!

>> ^Sniper007:

>> ^GeeSussFreeK:
The red ball is likely the heat glow of the object it hit, which doesn't mean an explosion, but incandescence. Lightning itself is glowing because of the incandescent effect of 30,000K temperatures on the gasses of the air + the refraction of air itself. Many of the objects in an around our houses are very rich in carbon, and carbon glows red, orange and yellow depending on the temperature. Add in the very white effect of lightning at close range and wallah, you got yourself a pretty red/white "explosion". That is my guess!

Isn't the "incandescent effect of a 30,000k temperaturre object" one portion of what comprises an "explosion"? Or to phrase it another way, if that wasn't an explosion, then what is? It seems like it was a rapid expansion of air which produced a burst of light and sound... AKA an explosion(?)


Absolutely correct, I used sloppy language, I meant it wasn't combustion (such is the meaning of explosion when we normally talk about it). Thunder is most surely the result of an explosion of air expanded by plasma. Good catch!

>> ^GeeSussFreeK:

The red ball is likely the heat glow of the object it hit, which doesn't mean an explosion, but incandescence. Lightning itself is glowing because of the incandescent effect of 30,000K temperatures on the gasses of the air + the refraction of air itself. Many of the objects in an around our houses are very rich in carbon, and carbon glows red, orange and yellow depending on the temperature. Add in the very white effect of lightning at close range and wallah, you got yourself a pretty red/white "explosion". That is my guess!


Isn't the "incandescent effect of a 30,000k temperaturre object" one portion of what comprises an "explosion"? Or to phrase it another way, if that wasn't an explosion, then what is? It seems like it was a rapid expansion of air which produced a burst of light and sound... AKA an explosion(?)

The red ball is likely the heat glow of the object it hit, which doesn't mean an explosion, but incandescence. Lightning itself is glowing because of the incandescent effect of 30,000K temperatures on the gasses of the air + the refraction of air itself. Many of the objects in an around our houses are very rich in carbon, and carbon glows red, orange and yellow depending on the temperature. Add in the very white effect of lightning at close range and wallah, you got yourself a pretty red/white "explosion". That is my guess!

♫ ♩ ♪ pyrolysis, chemiluminescence, oxidation, incandescence ♩ ♬ ♫

first the fuel loses mass
and turns to a gas

before the next change is thru
some atoms shine blue

when the process is complete
it gives off heat

extra carbon will glow
red, orange, yellow

New Millenium Cyanide Christ

I'M A CARNAL, ORGANIC ANAGRAM. HUMAN FLESH INSTEAD OF WRITTEN LETTERS.
I REARRANGE MY PATHETIC TISSUE. I INCISE. I REPLACE. I'M REFORMED.
I ERADICATE THE FAKE PRE-PRESENT ME. ELEVATE ME TO A HIGHER HUMAN FORM.
THE CHARACTERS I AM, MADE INTO A WORD COMPLETE, THEN I'LL BE THE NEW NORM.

SELF INFLICTED FRACTURES. I REPLACE MY BONES WITH BARS;
ALUMINUM BLEEDING OXIDE; THE DRUG OF GODS INTO MY POUNDING VEINS

(A HUMAN PUZZLE FOR ALL TO SCORN. NO FACE. NO BACK. DIRECTIONLESS.
MY SCARRED EDITION I'LL DISPLAY; THE ORGANIC WORD FOR NOTHINGNESS)

MY RECEIVING EYES EXCHANGED WITH FUSES; BLINDNESS INDUCED TO PREVENT DESTRUCTION.
CERAMIC BLADES IMPLANTED PAST MY RIBS TO SAVE ME FROM THE DUES OF INHALATION.
I TEAR MY WORLDLY USELESS SKIN. STAPLES TO PIN IT OVER MY EARS.
NON-RECEPTIVE OF UNGODLY SOUNDS - I DISABLE THE AUDIO-GENERATORS OF FEAR.

HEXAGONAL BOLTS TO FILL MY MOUTH, SHARPENED TO DEPLETE THE CREATOR OF ALL VIOLENCE;
WITHOUT SPEECH THERE WILL BE NO DECEIT

(MY FEET I CRUSH. THE FLESH I CUT AWAY, SO AS TO NOT PRODUCE THE SOUND OF THEIR PRESENCE ON ROTTEN GROUND)

BAPTIZED IN VITRIOLIC ACID. A FINAL TOUCH. A SMOOTHING OF FEATURES.
COMPLETION OF THE GREATEST ART; TO CAST THE GODLY CREATURES.
HUMANS, ONCE ASTRAY; MADE DIVINE. STRIPPED OF CONGENITAL FLAWS.
WE'RE INCANDESCENT REVELATIONS IN A WORLD OF DARKENED FORMS.

(CONFIDE IN MY NEW AGE DOGMA. SWALLOW THE INDOCTRINATION. YOU'LL COME TO LOVE IT HERE,
THE SUICIDAL ATMOSPHERE. LET ME INTO YOUR COMMON MIND. I'LL PLANT MY THOUGHTS INTO ITS SOIL.
WALK AMONG US SELF-MADE GODS, DEIFIED THROUGH THE PAINS OF SELF TORTURE)

DISCIPLES, COME JOIN WITH ME TO SAVE A FAILED HUMANITY. FOLLOW THE GOD OF CYANIDE INTO THE NEW ETERNITY.
BEHOLD; A SACRIFICIAL RASE A CLEANSING WORSHIPPING OF PAIN.
THE NEW MILLENIUM CHRIST HERE TO REDEEM ALL FROM LIES

(I'VE COME TO SAVE YOU ALL. I'VE COME TO LIGHT YOUR WAY)

>> ^Peroxide:

LED bulbs will soon be more affordable, and they use even less electricity than CFLs, however, they can be sort of blindingly harsh.
This one looks nice, and like they addressed the harsh light, http://www.ledsmagazine.com/news/8/8/7
>> ^notarobot:
Be careful how you change your bulbs. The 5 mg of mercury in a single CFL is enough to make as much as 50,000 litres of water undrinkable according to Canadian drinking water standerds.
not exactly http://consumerist.com/2011/08/consumer-reports-are-new-led-lightbulbs-as-good-as-the-inefficient-incandescents.html

>> ^campionidelmondo:

>> ^JiggaJonson:
>> ^blankfist:
One word: government.

By that do you mean a lot of government regulations working well to benefit the people instead of letting big businesses Cleavland-steamer every one of us into financial ruin???
If so, I agree. Government.

It's true. The Government opened up the market, which is why we now enjoy fast and cheap broadband (I pay $20/month for 50mbit plus phone).


Well you get better than me. UK's garbage for broadband and is known in europe for being that way. Popular broadband company BeThere (subsidiary of o2 i believe) offers £17.99 (that's about 30(+2?) dollars?) for maximum 24 Mbit, and what you actually get depends entirely on your local exchange, they guarantee absolutely nothing. They say up to, and they mean up to. I know people who pay for "up to" 8 Mbit and get around 2.

Oh, and it's not unlimited. Most "unlimited" broadband in the UK has fair usage policies and the majority of those boil down to a hard download cap.

The worst ones? They offer things like £7 per month but a download limit of 5 gigs per month, with 5 gig topups being another 7 quid. Rediculous things like that. People who don't read up and shop around really do get the utter shaft, and even those who DO read up and shop around don't get good deals. Most of them are even owned by the same damned company too.

They're notoriously bad at administration. When my previous provider got taken over by another company, that company "renewed" my broadband contract for 12 months for DOUBLE the price i was preiously paying. They didn't tell me about the new contract though, so when i cancelled it suddenly they charged my bank for £300 contract termination fee. I didn't have £300 so the bank issued a £20 charge. Then i made another payment (thinking i still had that extra £20) and got charged £20 AGAIN and now i started getting charged for being in arrears too.

I phoned them and it took me a few days to even get rid of the 12 month contract i'd been volunteered into, getting them to pay all the charges (and phone call charges) took a good few weeks work but i was absolutely incandescent with rage.

Er, rant over! In other words, it's not all sunshine and smiles over here, broadband in the UK stinks.

Tags for this video have been changed from 'bulb, filament, tungsten, ductile, engineering, the engineer guy' to 'incandescent, bulb, filament, tungsten, ductile, engineering, the engineer guy' - edited by kronosposeidon

The sun is a mass of incandescent gas, a gigantic nuclear furnace...

Almost all energy consumed by households is avoidable waste:
* think about the way you fry eggs. 99% of the heat from the burner is going into the air, not into the eggs. This should be solved by using small device that is well insulated on all sides and has an internal heating coil.
* Ovens have a high heat capacity and shitty insulation. More energy is wasted on heating up the oven itself than actually goes into the food. This could be solved by lining the inside of the oven with silica aerogel instead of metal. If an oven is properly insulated it will not feel very warm to the touch on the outside, even after being on for an hour.
* Most of your heating and cooling energy leaks out the windows -- if their inside surface feels significantly above or below ambient during extreme weather, your heating and cooling energy is being wasted and hemorrhaging out the windows. It would literally save energy to have a webcam on the roof and display that image on an LCD inside instead of having windows, if you live in a climate with extreme temperatures (especially in cold climates, as the energy used for the LCD would contribute to heating the house). All ventilation needs can be accomplished through a small portal with a fan (and a heat exchanger, of course).
* Hot water is produced very wastefully by just dumping energy into it instead of using a thermodynamic cycle to transfer heat and produce something cold as a byproduct. Hot water could be co-produced with cold water for AC / Refrigeration much more efficiently than doing them all separately.
* Hot water goes down the drain. This should at least go through a heat exchanger, which would dramatically lessen the amount of work that has to be done to heat up new hot water. A 7 Liter per minute showerhead putting water 30 degrees F above ambient down the drain is wasting over 8135 watts as long as it is running. However, I don't know of any houses yet designed with a heat exchanger between the shower drain water and the intake of the water heater.
* Fluorescent lights. Duh. Incandescent bulbs should be banned.
* Freezers built with the door on the top will waste much less energy to the convection of air when opened, for obvious reasons.

Here ends the lifestyle-neutral list of suggestions. The following would involve sacrificing something:

* Reduce excessive lighting -- if people wouldn't fuck up their retinas by driving just after sunrise or just before sunset, or seeing specular reflections of the sun on shiny cars and buildings outdoors, they wouldn't need such bright lights indoors. A 1 watt LED is plenty for reading. Sunlight could be used in the daytime instead of artificial lights.