LIGHTING
  • NEW AND BETTER BULBS ARE ON THE MARKET DUE TO ENERGY POLICY ACT OF 1992 (EPACT).
  • TUBE-, GLOBE- & RING-SHAPED COMPACT FLUORESCENT BULBS WILL REPLACE OLD PEAR-SHAPED BULBS.
  • NOTE: PANASONIC BULB NOT MUCH BIGGER THAN STANDARD INCANDESCENT BULB. 16-WATT PANASONIC ELECTRONIC LIGHT CAPSULE REPLACES 60-WATT INCANDESCENT AND LASTS 13 TIMES LONGER. PRODUCES WARM OR COOL LIGHT. (800) 999-2226.
  • CAUTION: WON’T WORK BELOW 13-DEGREES F.
  • FAMILIAR FUNNEL-SHAPED SPOT/FLOOD LIGHTS (PAR-38) AND SOME INCANDESCENT REFLECTOR LAMPS (R-30 & R-40) ARE HISTORY TO BE REPLACED BY HALOGEN BULBS.
  • THERE WILL BE NO MORE FAMILIAR WATTAGE RATINGS, I.E., 40, 60, 75, AND 100 WATTS. INSTEAD YOU’LL FIND 11, 13, 22, AND OTHER UNFAMILIAR WATTAGE RATINGS, BUT PACKAGING WILL SPECIFY THE FLUORESCENT EQUIVALENT TO THE INCANDESCENT WATTAGE YOU’RE REPLACING.

LUMENS - THE MEASURE OF THE ACTUAL LIGHT OUTPUT OF A BULB NOT WATTAGE. SO LEARN TO LOOK FOR LUMENS. THE LARGER THE NUMBER OF LUMENS, THE MORE LIGHT PRODUCED.

NEW BULBS WILL COST 4 TO 5 TIMES MORE THAN OLD BULBS. 

  • FLUORESCENTS - $12 - $20.
  • HALOGEN - $5 - $10
  • RECESSED COMPACT FLUORESCENT - $25 - $30

HOWEVER:
  • INCANDESCENT BULB LIFE SPAN APPROX. 1000 HOURS
  • COMPACT FLUORESCENT BULB LIFE SPAN APPROX. 9000 - 10,000 HOURS
  • AND FLUORESCENT BULBS USE LESS ENERGY.
  • HALOGEN BULB LIFE IS 2-3 TIMES LONGER THAN PAR-38 AND R-REFLECTOR BULBS THEY REPLACE.
  • CAUTIONS: 
    1.FREQUENT ON/OFF SWITCHING WILL SHORTEN COMPACT FLUORESCENT BULB LIFE.
    2. DON’T USE DIMMER SWITCH WITH COMPACT FLUORESCENT BULB UNLESS DIMMER IS ENGINEERED SPECIFICALLY FOR THAT PURPOSE. INCANDESCENT BULB DIMMER WILL DAMAGE BALLAST (COMPONENT THAT STARTS THE FLUORESCENT BULB). THIS WILL SHORTEN LIFE OF FLUORESCENT BULB BY AS MUCH AS HALF.
    3. HARP EXTENDERS OR LARGER HARPS ARE AVAILABLE TO ACCOMMODATE THE LARGER     FLUORESCENT BULBS.
    4. DON’T USE COMPACT FLUORESCENT BULB WHERE TEMPERATURE WILL GET BELOW 60 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. FLUORESCENT’S WILL FLICKER AND NOT BE EFFICIENT.
    5. DON’T USE HALOGEN BULB IF OUTER GLASS IS CRACKED OR BROKEN.
    6. COLORS OF SKIN, FABRICS, AND FURNITURE WILL BE "COOLER" WITH FLUORESCENT THAN WITH INCANDESCENT LIGHTING. DON’T DESPAIR. TECHNOLOGY’S GETTING BETTER ALL THE TIME. NOTE: PANASONIC "ELECTRONIC LIGHT CAPSULE" ABOVE.

TRACK LIGHTING: AVAILABLE IN 120 VOLT UNITS AND LOW VOLTAGE (12 VOLT) HALOGEN FIXTURES WITH TRANSFORMERS THAT PACK MORE "PUNCH" BY FOCUSING ILLUMINATION ON SPECIFIC OBJECT.

CAUTION: EACH MANUFACTURER HAS TRACK DESIGNED FOR ITS FIXTURES. DON’T TRY TO MIX BRANDS OR MODIFY FIXTURES TO INTERMIX.

CAUTION: SOME LOW-VOLTAGE TRANSFORMERS REQUIRE A SPECIAL DIMMER.