Compact Fluorescent Lifetime report #4

As previously mentioned, I've tried to keep track of CFL bulbs I used and how long they have lasted. Some have outlived some of the newer LED lights I now buy, which is related to the reduction of manufacturing cost by the makers of them. My early LEDs are still running from 2011, including the famous L-prize bulb won by Philips, in a torchiere conversion I did a long time ago and still use. This bulb was used for a several hours each day from 2008-2011, pretty much not used for two years, then was used for a short time daily and at most an hour or two weekly from 2013-2021 in the laundry room in a horizontal position. So, it probably lasted about 5000 hours. The bulb warranty was set as "guaranteed for 5 years at 4 hours each day" and labeled as 8000hrs.

CFL lifetime report #3

As seen previously, a series of CFLs I used starting around 2008 onwards failed at varying lifetimes. I report a third failure, of a Nvision 14W installed in June of 2011. It failed in May of 2018. That's just about 7 years of roughly 3-4 hrs of use daily. The lifetime estimate ranges around 8000 hours for that one.

CFL lifetime report #2

A third CFL failed in my torchiere conversion I did back in the winter of 2008. I used this light about 7 hours a day consistently until mid 2011, then for about 4 hours daily since then, which gave a lifetime of this compact fluorescent bulb from n:vision of about 11000 hours. I'm starting to evaluate and switch to LED bulbs as circumstances warrant--I went out and bought the Philips L-prize winning 10W EnduraLED bulb as a birthday present for myself. Whether to get more is a good question given its cost of $40 (it currently is cheaper to buy them at a big box store like Home Depot than online). I really do like the 92 CRI; the question is it that sufficient enough reason to buy it versus the previous generation of 80 CRI AmbientLED? The cost of electricity isn't a reason: 10W for the Endura versus 12.5W for the Ambient means a couple of dollars a year if left on 24/7. The lumen ouput might be--only 800 for the AmbientLED versus a bountiful 930 lumens for the EnduraLED. If I went by cost only for 80-ish CRI the CFLs still win for the short-term. But I am tempted by color accuracy, which is somewhat important for me, at least in food prep and photography viewing. None of this moves into the realm of other home lighting, which I'm running into the questions of dimmers, recessed cans, appliance bulbs, and the aesthetics of bathroom fixtures. And not to mention essentially lighting doesn't really cost that much for me annually, compared to other costs.