In Defense of the CFL: A Retrospective

It really was a bright idea.

Links 'n' stuff!
Old videos referenced:
LED bulbs that flicker, and CFLs that almost never did
GE's bizarre early attempt at a CFL

Technology Connextras (the second channel that stuff goes on sometimes):

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[TechnologyConnections]

Maybe I'm reading the room incorrectly, but a lot of people don't seem to appreciate these wonderful little pieces of lighting history. They certainly had flaws (one I overlooked here was that larger wattage equivalents required the lamp itself to be physically larger) but so does any stepping-stone technology.
I want to clarify regarding the flaws fixed by their successors that LEDs can still be prone to premature failure, but it seems more often than not that happens thanks to a manufacturing defect. If you buy a whole bunch of the same lamp perhaps after a few months some will have failed, but the rest will likely stay in operation for years. Look up the bathtub curve if you're interested in that phenomenon.
And, somehow, I missed perhaps the most important thing about them. Compared to incandescent lamps, they used 1/4 the energy! LEDs are routinely besting that today, but being able to cut lighting costs by 75% made a big difference. And when you found a sweet-spot application for a CFL, you probably didn't need to replace that lamp for years. So stop hatin' on them!

[bigclivedotcom]

The most admirable thing about CFLs was the circuitry, which managed to keep running an electrically horrible load while being baked to the point of turning brown.

[krillza]

I love how, over time, more and more CFLs remain on his table.

[Carlos-uxgv]

I'm from a poor country. My first job was near a lamp hardware store (it sold bulbs and fixtures). Every paycheck I got there and bought one or two CFLs to replace the incandescent bulbs we had at home. The change in the electric bill was measurable and it was among the first things I did to improve my parents home.

[aaronshipley]

My parents have a lamp in the main living room that, I kid you not, has been illuminated for probably 10-15 years with the same CFL. It's never turned off and has been lit for over a decade.

[joannaatkins]

You're proof that any subject can be interesting or even downright entertaining given a passionate teacher

[MeesenMan]

I like how he's gone from having 2 bulbs on his desk in the beginning to having, like, a bajillion at the end. Good stuff.

[eynorey]

TIMESTAMPS:
0:05 1 CFL bulb on set
1:08 2 CFL bulbs on set
5:04 4 CFL bulbs on set
5:39 6 CFL bulbs on set
5:51 8 CFL bulbs on set
6:24 10 CFL bulbs on set
7:15 12 CFL bulbs on set
7:54 13 CFL bulbs on set
9:26 15 CFL bulbs on set
10:06 17 CFL bulbs on set
10:37 19 CFL bulbs on set
12:19 20 CFL bulbs on set
12:48 21 CFL bulbs on set
14:12 23 CFL bulbs on set
14:53 24 CFL bulbs on set
15:00 26 CFL bulbs on set
15:54 27 CFL bulbs on set
17:43 30 CFL bulbs on set
18:21 32 CFL bulbs on set
19:02 34 CFL bulbs on set
20:19 37 CFL bulbs on set
20:45 39 CFL bulbs on set
21:18 41 CFL bulbs on set

[MmmmmmmmEarHair]

I remember growing up and feeling so excited when i could replace a normal bulb with the "fancy ones" that were better. Felt like a milestone to me or something

[ChannelSho]

"When used within their limits, they'll last quite a while"

The life lesson for everything.

[pilotprjekt]

The best use for slow starting CFLs is in the bathroom when you get up and are tired and your eyes hurt and you start your bulb and it takes 2 minutes to get bright and your eyes can adapt to that better than 0, 01 sec. LED.

[DaneeBound]

gotta love the fact that, as the video progresses the desk fills up with CF-lamps

[DaringDramis]

I have a 2 bulbs ceiling lamp in my living room and used CFL bulbs, a blue and a red, from 2002 to 2022. I've only used 4 bulbs in that 20 years period; each pair of bulbs lasted 10 years each. That lamp is lit roughly 6 hours a day in average (about 8 hours, during half the fall/winter/half the spring, and about 4 hours, during other half of spring/summer/other half of fall), so each bulb lasted 21 900 hours. The bulbs were operating fully exposed to ambient airflow. These bulbs provided a nice ambient lighting without being too strong, and fulfilled all my needs for lighting in the living room for all that time. A fun fact; when the CFLs blew out, they did it within a few days gap!

Incandescent bulbs, in comparison, were lasting only one year, with a total of 2190 hours. They were cheaper than CFL, but considering durability and energy saving, CFLs were definitely a better deal. Someday, a little "green" girl tried to teach me a lesson about the terrible threat about these CFLs because of the mercury inside. Well, 2 bulbs used every ten years having only a fume of mercury inside... No one had been harmed, but she was somehow right. The factories manufacturing these bulbs must have some great stock of mercury in the yard; as long as they handle it safe, there's no problem, but as soon someone makes a mistake and spill all that mercury in the nature, that could be a disaster.

Last year, my CFLs blew out, and they were no longer available on the shelves, so I bought 2 LED bulbs instead, having the same colors. The lighting is a tiny bit clearer that the CFL version, but nothing shocking. I've noticed there's a split second delay after turning the switch on before the light come, but again, nothing shocking there, it only clashed my little habits for a while. I have no doubt about their energy saving qualities, which are better than CFLs; let's see now if they will match CFLs in durability, but it will take a while...

[GardeningatN]

Here in the UK they tried to kill off the incandescent bulb about 10 years ago by flooding the market with really cheap cfl bulbs. They were selling 10 bulbs for £1, my dad bought £5 worth and because they last so long he still has a cupboard full of them.

[AndyGaskin]

Praise for you locking down the camera's exposure while filming lightbulbs turning on and off.

[darryl]

I love how the bulbs are multiplying with every scene cut.

I used to use enclosed CFLs in my lamp post outside. At -25c, they would take almost a half hour to get to full brightness, but they outlasted incandescent bulbs by far.

[charger]

In 1994 I installed an at the time more modern stick style cfl in a hallway. It's still working just fine 30 years later! I've never seen one of the newer ones do that.

[ronindebeatrice]

I have a newfound fondness for the lamp in my room that takes a few seconds to start. May it shine for a long time.

[sandordugalin]

Technology Connections: **attempts to get through one line of script**

Long Fluorescent Tube: "Let me sing you the song of my people."

[exobyte]

What astounds me is we had filament bulbs 'forever' and when CFLs hit, i replaced all my filament bulbs with those as they died. But by the time my CFLs started to die off, LED bulbs were here.