FAQs
Incandescent lamps are often used to light flowering plants since they are generally strong. However, these lamps also give off extensive heat, which could in fact damage your plants. This includes reflector lamps.
To avoid extreme heat, use Ecocell's compact fluorescent reflector lamp. It provides clear light with less heat than the incandescent reflector lamp. It also uses only 20 watts of electricity, has a 6000 hour average lifespan, and a Cool White colour (6400K) suitable for flowering plants.
Can CFLs be used in totally enclosed fixtures?
Yes. The life of CFLs will be reduced if they are operated at higher than normal temperatures. Therefore, they can be used in fixtures that are totally enclosed, including vapor-tight fittings, as long as you do not use a high power CFL, and the temperature outside the fixture is not too high.
Can I use a CFL in applications where I will be turning the lights on and off frequently?
Compact fluorescent light bulbs work best if they are left on for over 15 minutes at a time. CFLs can take up to 3 minutes to warm up. The average person will not notice when a CFL heats up, but this is needed for the lamp to shine at its brightest. Frequently switching them on and off will shorten the lifespan of the product. If the life of the lamp is shortened significantly, you will not save money (this includes the money you expect to save by using less energy as well as in shortening the life of the CFL lamp).
Do CFLs work on dimmers?
Most screw-based CFLs do not work with dimmers which are designed for incandescent lamps. These CFLs will have a label on the lamp or the packaging stating "Not for use with dimmers”. However, certain screw-based CFLs are designed to work with incandescent lamp dimmers. These CFLs will be labeled "dimmable" on the lamp or the packaging. However, due to differences between different brands of dimmers, not all CFLs that can dim work with every type of incandescent dimmer.
Doesn't disposal of mercury-based products harm the environment?
Yes, mercury is a hazardous material. CFLs should be recycled instead of being thrown out with your everyday trash. However, most CFLs will offset mercury that would normally be released into the environment. For example, coal contains mercury which is released into the environment when the coal is burned to produce electrical power.
So when you switch on your lights, which are generally powered by coal, and you operate 100 Watt incandescent lamps for 10,000 hours, Eskom will release between 40 mg and 70 mg mercury into the environment. If, instead of the 100-watt incandescent lamp, you use a 25-watt CFL, the power plant mercury emissions would drop to between 10 and 18 mg over the same 10,000 hour period. You can see that the amount of mercury released into the environment is far less than that of an incandescent lamp left on for the same amount of time.
CFLs should be recycled instead of thrown away with the normal trash because they contain mercury. However, even if a large number of CFLs are disposed of in rubbish dumps instead of being recycled, they will not increase the amount of mercury in the waste stream.
