Re: All Fluorescent Light Bulbs are Not Alike

I've probably installed 20,000+ of these Compact Fluorescents Lights (CFLs) over the last few years and have been personally using them for about 16 years. I have some that have replaceable glass bulbs that have lasted more than 10 years.

For long life and optimal performance I would recommend:
Use them where you usually leave the light on for at least 1 hour or more. (The average cfl should last 8-10,000 hours of burn time or years and years in that situation).
Don't use them in bathrooms because they will burn out quickly (less than 6 months) because of "on and off" cycling burns their electronics out.
If you have two light fixtures with separate switchs in the bathroom, place a cfl in the socket that is left on for more than 30 minutes at a time.
All fluorescent tubes and CFLs lamps have small amounts of mercury and the ballasts contain some heavy metals so please use them where they will last the longest and request that utilities/stores that sell them to recycle them properly.

LED lights are even more efficient and last longer but are much more expensive per lumen for a hardwired fixture.
Battery powered LEDs and LED Christmas Lights are OK for specific applications or experimental applications.

I would stick to CFLs for now until LED prices and technology improves.

probably more than you wanted to Know?
energy conservation tech and Oregon's #1 cfl installer (as of 2005)