Joule Thief

[gadgetmall]

It's usually not the CFL that burns out, it's the starter or the electronics in the base of the socket - I can't explain the long tubes though - I don't understand why these burn out at all - it makes no sense - There's really nothing to go bad in them.

Does someone care to explain?

They have Filaments in them to heat up the mercury Vapor . the One you see above is burnt out blackened by the broken filament . But as you notice they don't care about heat with high voltage .. / if the heater don't go the gas will eventually burn up . Ie the Flickering Fl tube .. Bu those will work also on one of our Hv circuits .. and your right 99 % of the Cls i use are burnt out electronics .. i have never seen one last 5 years .. much less one and if we were the designers of those bulbs and circuits we would be running running them with this cold electricity rather than wasting amps heating up mercury to create a conductive vapor... real wast imaging running those ballast sucking 2 amps when we can run them off 1 volt at a few milliamps and they would never go bad.

Gadget

[Pirate88179]

jadaro2600:

My non-technical explanation is......planned obsolescence.  All of mine that have actually caught fire (cfl's) were due to a malfunction in the base.  You are correct, as long as there is gas in the long tube, and the florescent material is still covering the inside of the glass, I too do not see why they would get black on the ends and no longer work efficiently.

After lighting the two 48" tubes with the AA on the Fuji, it occurs to me that maybe too much power is being run through the commercial types? OK, so mine we maybe 1/2 brightness but it was on 1.5 volts.  Have you ever seen and felt that ballast required (supposedly) to light a long 2 tube fixture?  It weighs a bunch and gets very hot...and this is on a 20 amp breaker@ 120 volts.  Something is wrong here.

So, anyway, I agree with you and also share your curiosity on this as well.

Bill

[Pirate88179]

Al:

We posted at the same time.  I agree.  I have all CFL's in my home and not one has lasted over a year, and many less than 6 months.  We can do better and guess what?  We will.  Thanks for the explanation on the filaments in the long tubes, I had no idea they were there.

Bill

[TheNOP]

It's usually not the CFL that burns out, it's the starter or the electronics in the base of the socket - I can't explain the long tubes though - I don't understand why these burn out at all - it makes no sense - There's really nothing to go bad in them.

Does someone care to explain?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorescent_lamp
-heater(prime exciter) burn up.

-the arc within the tube slowly burn the gas inside.

rubbing the tube from one side to the other will often start it up.
a higher voltage/current will do the same but gas will burn more rapidly.
a higher frequency will excite the gas more.

[resonanceman]

If you have Spirit then i assume you are a Christian and go to Church and have been saved by the Blood Of Christ  . If not you are dammed to hell .And there will be tribulation even for us that are saved .  .  No matter how Nice you are ..Sorry to be Blunt but you are not saved by your kindness and your good deeds or intentions . your are save By submitting and professing you are a sinner  to Jesus and Change and spread the word that he is coming after the tribulation which is now upon us .

Just  because     something  has been taught for   2000 years  does not mean it is  true.
The  bible has some  great   truths in it  but for the most part  our   current  religions   don't  teach  those  truths .
Our   religions  tend to teach the parts of the  bible that keep  people    submissive to their     control .


The  teachings that   are in   the bible   that lead to  finding  peace and love within  are    mentioned   ocasionally    by most religions ........
We all  know   most of them ......but  because   they are not  activly taught   people  don't  understand  their importance.
One of these  is  God  is love . 
God  is not some huge  mean  vindictive    beast   just waiting to  send us to hell for   simply  doing   what he created us to do . .
Why  would  anyone   want to spend   eternity  with   a God that is  much less  loving  and  just than the  average human? .
What parrent   would   condemn a child .............any  child to  torture  forever  for  a simple  mistake ?
Yet ...........God made us  free  to choose .......  How twisted is that?

My  truth is ...............Religion as  we kniow it  is  corrupt 
My  truth  is  .........God is  love.


gary