I've got a problem. I happen to carry the distinction of being the one responsible for changing lights. Much as that's a problem in itself, the biggest problem is.....the front porch light (surprisingly, it's not a stairway light, eh?), which happens to be a hanging, upside-down, enclosed fixture. And they put two screws in the thing, so it's almost impossible for a single person to replace the bulb thus inserted. Really quite remarkable how no one thought of this.
Besides modifying it, which I may consider because it's just that bad, in the mean time I need something that'll last. We've already tried the "ten gajillion hour" CFLs, which died in all of, you know it, three months. I'm guessing something high voltage (130V+?) and incandescent. Any recommendations?
Tim
--
Deep Friar: a very philosophical monk.
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A 230 volt incandescent, or a 120 volt one with a diode in series.
I find that, in general, CFs last a long time if run continuously, but die when cycled. So a 5 or 7-watt CF might be left on 24/7 and last longer and use less net power than an incendescent run at lower voltage.
There are some screw-in LEDs available now. I asume they're reliable.
a) - wide temperature range, outdoor: Philips 15 watt "Outdoor". My experience is that they mosty last more than a year in outdoor enclosed fixtures in/near Philadelphia.
b) - as far as I know, the "ultimate" high temperature environment CFL: Philips 15 watt "Marathon" triple-arch
That one may run dim in cold weather, even if it is enclosed.
Be patient with warmup times for wide temperature range CFLs, especially in weather cold enough to depend on an enclosure. That can be quite a few minutes.
The longest life common variety of incandescent I know of (other than indicator lamps for electronic equipment) is "traffic signal lamps". Most are rated to last an average of 8,000 hours. Keep in mind that they produce about 65% as much light as "standard" incandescents of the same wattage. They also mostly come in oddball wattages such as 117 and 92 watts.
There are 130V versions of some of these - designed to last 8,000 hours at 130V.
You may have to get them by the case.
Also, check the fixture's wattage rating. If there is none, it can easily be 60 watts.
Incandescent with a series diode, preferably with the incandescent of a vibration resistant / "Rough Service"/"industrial service" type. And I would have some overkill choice of diode so that it lasts through most of the line voltage surges - as in at least a 1KV one rated a few amps.
Be prepared for low light output. Also, power consumption is reduced about 40% rather than 50% since the filament's resistance has a positive temperature coefficient. Furthermore, it may be prudent to choose a lamp whose wattage does not exceed the fixture's rating, without relying on the diode not failing short to stay within the rating of the fixture.
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