Can y'all please take up a love fund for me? Challenge!

[Marshmallow Man]

We have 3400 sq ft. 5 kids and NO A/C. We do averaging and our average bill is 244.00 We do have 2 fridges and 2 freezers. There's also a sportsman incubator running 24/7. During the summer the garden has water on for 1 1/2 hours and the pump runs the whole time. All bulbs are CFL's. Usually 2 TV's running. During the winter the heat stays at 66 and it is propane. Same with the water heater and stove top.

It would be a lot lower without the kids. Maybe I could sell them on Craigslist. LOL

 

[Wildsky]

Our house leaks something terrible! We spend a fortune on electricity and I have tried everything to get it down, and it just doesn't work - I swear we must have a drain somewhere... its just no joke.

They installed a new meter a little while ago - and then it shot up even more. I just am at a loss, I've turned off everything possible, and still our bill is so laughable - an embarassment for sure... I won't even SAY how bad.

 

[big brown horse]

Our house leaks something terrible! We spend a fortune on electricity and I have tried everything to get it down, and it just doesn't work - I swear we must have a drain somewhere... its just no joke.

They installed a new meter a little while ago - and then it shot up even more. I just am at a loss, I've turned off everything possible, and still our bill is so laughable - an embarassment for sure... I won't even SAY how bad.

I feel your pain. That is exactly how I felt..."How much more can I turn off?" And yup we had all cfl lightbulbs too...we never turned them on though.

And when I ony used 19 days of power in a month (hurricane Ike wiped out my power for 11 days in Sept...and yes I'm still scarred) and my bill came out almost as high as the month of August I think I started to cry.

 

[Blackbird]

Ok, now I have a question about CFL light bulbs. HOW am I supposed to dispose of them?? Friday night one down here in the basement started flickering and went off for a couple seconds, then caught fire on the outside, melting some of the plastic. I had to get an oven mitt to take it out. The thing isn't even a year old! They have mercury in them, don't they?

 

[Javamama]

CFL's I'm gonna rant here a little...OK, buying lightbulbs is truly one of the things I despise most. I still have a hatred for CFL bulbs. Our house doesn't get good natural light, so most of our living area lights on all day. I had to buy the 100 watt (23watt? I think) equivalents to create the same light effect that regular bulbs have, and they ware pretty pricey, and most don't fit in my light fixtures so I have to look for just the right shape. And then they don't last but maybe 6 months! I am spending way more than I could ever save on energy!

Merle, I double bag them in a ziplock (yay for environment:/) and take them to Lowes or wherever I see a place that takes them. I had one break on me as I was unscrewing it from a ceiling fixture. The whole bulb portion just broke off when I started to twist it. I ran and got my ziplocks and some newspaper to grip it with and sealed it all up right there at the ceiling and said a prayer.
And before we knew they were toxic, I broke one on the living room carpet. My kids were babies at the time. I try not to think about it too much. The carpet has since been replaced at least.

Replacing windows was the best thing we did. Not only does it prevent major air leakage, the new windows drown out so much of the noise - we live on a very busy road and have neighbors that re-enact sporting events, crowd noise and all Doesn't even compare to our chickens.

 

[Javamama]

Question - does anybody have a light fixture that makes CFL bulbs hum? I have a couple that I can't stand to use them in because of the noise. Should I get the fixture replaced? This house is about 35 years old.

 

[lorihadams]

Anyone tried led lightbulbs yet?

Hubby hates CFLs, I snuck one in each one of the kids' bedroom lamps but they are pink when they first light up and then they get brighter as they are on longer. I've seen the led lightbulbs but haven't tried them yet.

 

[big brown horse]

I found that if you put them in a socket that gets turned off and on frequently like our old porch light used to, they burn out really fast.

I have a couple that take a sec to turn on after the switch is switched.

 

[Blackbird]

That reminds me, Java. Last month when we where in the barn doing chores my mom was loading up the hay bunk and accidentally hit the light with the pitch fork handle, shattered glass all over us. I picked up the bits with my bare hands and threw them away. :/ Damn it all anyway.

 

[xpc]

I picked up the bits with my bare hands and threw them away. :/ Damn it all anyway.

Look up the origins of "Mad as a Hatter" to see what you look forward to.

I played with mercury quite a bit 30 years ago and still have several pounds in a jar. Touching it or eating it isn't as bad as breathing it, and believe it to be an accumulative heavy metal poison like lead and why they warn about eating too much fish in a short amount of time.

I now only have CFLs in safe from breakage areas as I have broken many of them here during my remodel. I also don't use them in areas that don't get used for less than 15 minutes like my spare rooms where I seldom go and in/out quickly.

I still have about a dozen in service from 2004, they are in optimal location like table lamps and wall sconces that are open top so the heat can dissipate. I don't use them in vertical down fixtures because it heats up the ballast base and burns out faster, the bulb cement seems to get loose and separate easier too.

Though easier said then done and often forgotten you should only handle the CFL by its base and not the bulb, use a sandwich bag to envelope while installing or removing if skittish but think the threat is a little over blown. If you broke 20 of them at once I may be concerned.