I read that "normal" lightbulbs cannot be sold after today? Wish I'd stocked up as I hate the energy saving ones as they take ages to get bright.

My local sainsburys had tonnes left and there was a notice up saying they would be on sale until the stock was cleared so you might be able to get some....

It's part of the government's policy to stop us using instantly bright lights and swap to dimmer bulbs containing mercury.

It began (very quietly) last year when they stopped 150w bulbs. This year it's 100w and next year it will be 60w. When the big supermarkets got the news they stopped buying them so the 100w bulbs have practically disappeared from their shelves already, though Home Bargains still have them. The bigger bulbs are still being made and sometimes being advertised at inflated prices. 'Industrial', i.e. stronger glass and filament, bulbs should continue to be available.

They've now realised that banning mercury in barometers but allowing it in light bulbs isn't, even to them, the most sensible decision. So they're now stopping the long life bulbs we've all got tons of, in favour of yet another variation on the theme.

The claimed extra life of this type of bulb decreases rapidly if they're frequently switched on and off. If they're left on for long periods, they last longer and are then at full brightness. This of course then uses more of the electricity which they're supposed to save.

Costs of accidents owing to old people going down stairs or into the bathroom before the bulb has warmed up etc. so that they can see properly, don't seem to have been factored into any of the claimed 'savings'.

But all the G9 and G4 are on the offer too and they won't be replaced

Its because they have a new range coming in. I think they are switching from selling Osram bulbs to Philips bulbs. Our store has the new stock in our warehouse but we can't put it out until the old stock is cleared.

If I remember correctly the phasing out of 150w bulbs was continuously on the BBC1 news so I wasn't really kept a secret!

Having said this, the points you make are absolutley spot on, especially when you pointed out the H&S inplications of the energy saving bulbs taking ages to brighten up and the risk that holds for elderly people. What I can't understand is why they didn't tweak the design of these bulbs to overcome these problems before phasing out the older ones.

Hot deal BTW!

Is that prices including the lieks of the Osram low energy combined with night LED?

I stocked up and have enough 150 and 100w to do me a lifetime. Low energy bulbs are vile, maybe if they get brighter ill consider them but until then, not a chance

I believe that normal light bulbs can not be manufactured after this date in europe. Suppliers are not allowed to sell bulbs that are manufactured after this date , but are allowed to clear their stock.


P.s who ever said they were inefficient? They produce light, heat and a warm colour (making them 100% efficient in my books) :thumbsup:

Edit
also don't contain mercury

“It began very quietly” have you been living on Mars or somewhere because it certainly has not been kept a secret. As far as been dim the only thing that's dim are the people who have not got the sense to put the right size bulb for the amount of light they require , recommendations are just a guide use a higher wattage if you require a brighter light.
And as for the mercury issue ,what a load of bull, you want to see the amount of mercury pollution in our rivers and seas caused mostly by mining and burning coal, adsorbed by fish and eaten by us.
And then there's the pensioners what are we to do about all these falls they are having, I mean they never fell before compact fluorescents were introduced, pensioners trip over thier own shadow .Get a grip and stop repeating anything you here without giving it some thought,, What's the next headline, “due to the compact florescent children under 3s are now having as many falls as pensioners .LOL;-)

no offence..

Energy Savers are designed for Old people, They will be walking slowly and the time they take off their hands from switch to their walking stick it would be well light up by than..

its problem for younger generation who won't bother up till it gets warm enough thus causing more accidents

Hate energy-saving lightbulbs. Who wants to wait to be able to see? Off to stock up on energy-wasting 100 watt bulbs

They're not all that bad! Actually, if you can find an LED one to fit your requirements you'll find they're actually give better lighting than the old style bulbs (and you don't have to wait for them to warm up).

Tiny amount of mercury in energy saving lightbulbs. We can all have the same arguments all over again in a few years time when they phase out ES bulbs with LEDS.

Have they made energy saving bulbs that work properly with dimmer switches yet? I've gone through 3 (from a pack of six) energy saving bulbs with dimmer switches where the bulbs only last about a month before then went kaput. The remaining 3 from that pack have been used in non-dimmer switches and have been going strong for over a year now.

If they haven't made compatible energy saving bulbs then have they made energy saving compatible dimmer switches?

The type of arguments heard as electricity started replacing Gas, only a Century later :-(

The mercury issue doesn't stack up for me, but that said, there is a good deal more substance in that issue than all of the others you make, put together.

The slower warm-up is not so noticeable on many newer models of these lamps, and in any case is ideal for the elderly who can't cope with the rapid adjustment of the Iris when sudden bright lighting is switched on as younger people can! This I see as a positive BENEFIT.
The reduction of the need for old and disabled people to climb step ladders to change bulbs will undoubtedly save far more accidents than those falling down stairs resulting from the slower warm-up - after all, the elderly move more slowly, so they are not going to be ABLE to rush into the slightly darker room as the light warms up, and in the fractions of a second following, the increase in brightness is going to be plenty to allow them to see as the iris in their eye slowly closes or opens to adjust from the brightness or darkness of the previous room.

If you leave lamps on more than 5 times as long as standard bulbs, then of course they will use more power, that's not any sort of argument, and sounds plain silly. If you are regularly in and out of a room, you leave bulbs on whatever type they are, if you are leaving for longer, you turn them off. Any other behaviour sounds like OCD to me.

It's all about common sense making energy savings, not making extreme arguments either FOR or against them, but that isn't the Daily Mail way of doing things, I know how the vast majority of self thinking people will see it though, and to be honest I am not overly bothered about the effect on the planet, I will be long dead by the time it makes enough difference, but I am more concerned about the effect on my electricity bill NOW, as will most other people on this site! My North-East facing living room, within the distinct shadow of trees means I need to use lighting there a lot more than average, but it's reassuring to know that it's costing me a shed-load less than using filament lamps :-)

ES bulbs being phased out?

I think not!

ES stands for Edison Screw... the fitting on the bulb, as opposed to the more usual BC type we use here - Bayonet Cap! :whistling:

You just haven't looked then.
There are MUCH more powerful models around than the equivalent to 150W! I see no great benefit to using them though.

There is also the odd solution to lower brightness = use more of them! Most people have table lamps, and you can fill in dark corners or shadows far better with more than one lamp than you can with one brighter lamp, which in any case ACCENTUATES the shadows and dark corners! Look at the way modern lighting designers light up buildings - ever see one of those flash pads in magazines lit with a bare bulb in the middle of the ceiling? No!

Using two lamps instead of one might use a bit more power than just one, but it still uses a load less than a filament lamp.

I've been using energy bulbs since 1995 - mainly to save money on electricity bills - not a bad thing with the way energy prices are going up & up! Energy saving bulbs are fine once they warm up but I do try to find 20 or 25W ones - 9W & 11W are pathetic & only fit to use in a cupboard!

Probably because they warn you NOT to use dimmer switches with them!

There are bulbs around which are suitable for dimming: eg. http://www.energybulbs.co.uk/products/Dimmable+Light+Bulbs/Low+Energy+Dimmable+Stick/Megaman+Low+Energy+Dimming+11W+Lilliput/1875539496?options=2067416391:1607448322

also low energy Dimmer switches: eg. http://www.fastlec.co.uk/1-gang-2-way-66w-cfl-low-energy-dimmer-p-5422.html

Unfortunately not ultra cheap options, but as I have suggested before, light levels can be adjusted by using more than one table lamp, with appropriate lower powered lamps in them, which allow you to mix and match lighting levels around the room, rather than adjust the one central lighting level.