Replacement bulb for constant on off cycles

Has anybody found a useful replacement bulb for constant on off cycles such as with sensor lights?

I bought about 10 for $1 ea about a year ago that should last forever (blah blah) - power co subsidized. They all burned out in one or two weeks since they were apparently designed to be constantly on to work.

Did some google and Bing and found nothing. I do have a small supply of old regular bulbs - but with rentals or condos nothing seem to last.

m
Reply to
Mikie
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Compact Fluorescent will not work with constant cycling because the ballast electronics will blow out.

Normal fluorescent fixtures aren't much better - this is why you Do Not Install a Motion Sensor in office spaces or restrooms without a very long time-out period, because every start takes 15 minutes off the lamp life. You save a bit of electricity and spend a lot more on lamp changes and having the ballast replaced sooner than normal.

Now LED lamps might work, but again the driver electronics board is the limiting factor. The LED itself might be good for 50K Hours, but the electronics driving it blow up before then.

Best Bet is get the Halogena capsule lamp. That's about as good as you're going to get.

Reply to
Bruce L. Bergman (munged human readable)

Buy 130 volt bulbs.

Reply to
Michael A. Terrell

Do you need bulbs for motion detector lights?

Look for 130v "rough service" utility bulbs, Mikie. They seem to last forever. I just replaced my last one in the laundry room last month and it had been there when I moved here in Feb of 2002. I hate the new 2-second delay from the CFL. _That_ ain't stayin' fer long.

I've had more trouble with Feit brand bulbs than any other, both in CFL and incan, so be aware.

Reply to
Larry Jaques

"Michael A. Terrell" on Thu, 02 Jan 2014

20:31:06 -0500 typed in rec.crafts.metalworking the following:

Stock up - there ain't no more legally in the US.

-- pyotr filipivich "With Age comes Wisdom. Although more often, Age travels alone."

Reply to
pyotr filipivich

Hmmm... once LED's mature and become reasonable, they could be ideal for such applications.

LED's do very well with on/off cycles. As a matter of fact, strobing them via PWM (Pulse With Modulation) is the normal method of dimming... they're good for many, many millions if not many billions of cycles. They also do well in cold temperatures, even illuminating 'slightly brighter' as the mercury drops. They also come on instantly with zero warm up time.

The fly in the ointment may their integral supporting circuitry... much the same deal with CFL... the actual LED's are dependent on said circuitry.

Check these:

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Erik

Reply to
Erik

I already have over 100. :)

Reply to
Michael A. Terrell

get some rough service bulbs, of better yet traffic signal bulbs.

they run seem to run dimmer and cooler (filament temp) and don't burn out as fast.

Reply to
Cydrome Leader

Bite the bullet and replace the entire fixtures with new LED based motion floodlights. You'll save money in the long run from both power savings and no lamp replacement labor. I don't recommend putting LED lamps in the existing fixtures.

Reply to
Pete C.

Has anyone tried the 'new normal' incandescents, the lower-wattage halogens with the same light output?

Reply to
spamTHISbrp

"Michael A. Terrell" on Thu, 02 Jan 2014

20:31:06 -0500 typed in rec.crafts.metalworking the following:

Or check you local liquidator establishments. Local one has 120

60w bulbs ~$20. I'll go back next week for on Senior Discount Day.

-- pyotr filipivich "With Age comes Wisdom. Although more often, Age travels alone."

Reply to
pyotr filipivich

Amazing... I thought 'Bing' vaporized eons ago.

Erik

Reply to
Erik

Splurge, and buy 240 so you can sell some later on. :)

Reply to
Michael A. Terrell

Just got a dusin @ $2 ea at Ralph Market.

Reply to
Mikie

If you avoid the bargain-basement Chinese crap, LEDs are already there, electronics and all. Very nice since they come on full brightness at any temperature and don't burn out or vibrate to death.

Check out the RAB L-Pack lights. Guaranteed for 5 years (since you can buy them with the motion sensor installed as part of the unit, motion-sensing use is clearly supported as part of that.) If you happen to get a bad one, they are a solid American company that will be around to replace it, and will. Of course, you have to pay American prices...

Just a happy customer.

Reply to
Ecnerwal

LED's are good if you don't drive them anywhere near the max.

Half wave AC for a normal bulb is dimmer but is a 50% duty with only a diode and the existing lamp.

One problem is the bulbs are rated for 120v or 115. Electric power is now running 145v here. Just had my transformer replaced and both legs were over 140, slightly out of balance.

Higher voltage - more wattage for the same current and the same line wire.

constantly upping the voltage.

Mart> >

Reply to
Martin Eastburn

The L-Pack is rated for operation up to 277 VAC (no need to change wires, it's a smart beast.) I've tested mine on 120 and 240 (no 3-phase handy out in the boonies, so no 277 handy...)

Driver:

Reply to
Ecnerwal

Some items have a sensor to change the input from a doubler to a full wave, and have a dead band. If you try to operate in that dead band, you'll blow it up.

Reply to
Michael A. Terrell

Did some google and checked Amazon - did not find this item.

Do you have a link?

Approximate cost?

Found these:

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Wonder if they will fit standard sockets?

Reply to
Mikie

Looking at the first one, the 60W bulb, it says "medium base", which is our standard E26 socket, so they should fit. They don't give those away, do they? OBTW, those are illegal to sell in the USA today, as of Jan 1, 2014. No more incans. I wonder if city/state gov'ts have an exclusion, as they do for every farkin' thing else.

Reply to
Larry Jaques

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