# Score! Four Dozen Incandescent 60 W!
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [March 23, 2015, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727 "2015-03-23T00:07:25Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/1 "2015-03-23T00:07:25Z")
And, no, I’m not going to tell you where I got them. I’m not going to rat out my “supplier.”
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### Author:  [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/2 "2015-03-23T00:41:13Z")
i have some recent 60w equivalent LED. i like the light and get close to them while they are on.
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### Author:  [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/3 "2015-03-23T01:26:36Z")
> [@johnpost](#):
>
> i have some recent 60w equivalent LED. i like the light and get close to them while they are on.
Cree LEDs (available at Home Depot) are the best. I’ll never care about incandescents again.
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### Author:  [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/4 "2015-03-23T05:01:05Z")
I have a shelf full of NOS (New Old Stock) 60, 75 and 100W incandescents. They’ll never get used, and will all eventually be thrown out when I die. LEDs are better in every respect, IMHO.
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/5 "2015-03-23T05:24:36Z")
Are LED’s dimmable?
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### Author:  [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/6 "2015-03-23T06:20:36Z")
California, always ahead of the game, banned incandescents a year before the rest of the country did. For some months before that went into effect, the big-box hardware stores were selling incandescent bulbs like hot cakes. They had entire aisles of them, from horizon to horizon. They were flying off the shelves.
I got my lifetime supply of incandescent bulbs while the getting was still good.
LED’s will be so much better, when the price comes down to something reasonable. I’ve got a couple that I got just to see how they work. But if I ever need more, I’ll be using the incandescents until LED’s get cheaper. Anything but CFL’s!
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### Author:  [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/7 "2015-03-23T07:29:02Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> Are LED’s dimmable?
Some are. Some aren’t. If they are, different brands give different results. And they only work with certain dimmer technologies. Most manufacturers have lists of compatible dimmers on their web sites. [Example (pdf).](http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fcreebulb.com%2FContent%2Fdownloads%2Fproduct_info%2Fcree_dimmer_compatibility.pdf&ei=wr4PVfuKN9OcyATAyYKoDQ&usg=AFQjCNHdWcKSUDM4CeTWkMYvEaxajb_lZA&bvm=bv.88528373,d.aWw)
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### Author:  [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/8 "2015-03-23T07:38:22Z")
> [@beowulff](#):
>
> I have a shelf full of NOS (New Old Stock) 60, 75 and 100W incandescents. They’ll never get used, and will all eventually be thrown out when I die. LEDs are better in every respect, IMHO.
Yeah, I stocked up, too. But only to have on hand for fully enclosed fixtures. Then Switch came out with their new line of affordable LEDs for fully enclosed fixtures. Then Switch went out of business. Then Cree said that their bulbs (except the 100w) were OK for fully enclosed fixtures.
I’ve just removed the covers from some fixtures. I love the LEDs. Now I too have a few boxes filled with miscellaneous incandescents that someone will have to throw out when I die.
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### Author:  [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/9 "2015-03-23T11:42:27Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> Are LED’s dimmable?
The ones I have are dimmable. The problem for me was they didn’t fit in one lamp so I had to use eco-incandescent bulbs. Those are available everywhere, it’s not a problem to find incandescent bulbs.
> **[Household - Eco-Incandescent Light Bulbs - The Home Depot](https://www.homedepot.com/b/Lighting-Ceiling-Fans-Light-Bulbs-Eco-Incandescent-Light-Bulbs/Household/N-5yc1vZc8geZ1z0xeui)**
>
> Get free shipping on qualified Household Eco-Incandescent Light Bulbs products or Buy Online Pick Up in Store today in the Lighting & Ceiling Fans Department.
I’m not sure why people think that they are off the market. They only deserve use in a few tiny applications where nothing else will do.
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### Author:  [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/10 "2015-03-23T11:48:46Z")
Incandescents are at best 2% efficient at doing their intended job. toss 'em in the dustbin of history.
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### Author:  [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/11 "2015-03-23T12:07:29Z")
> [@Telemark](#):
>
> The ones I have are dimmable. The problem for me was they didn’t fit in one lamp so I had to use eco-incandescent bulbs. Those are available everywhere, it’s not a problem to find incandescent bulbs.
>
> [http://www.homedepot.com/b/Electrical-Light-Bulbs-Eco-Incandescent-Light-Bulbs/Household/N-5yc1vZc8geZ1z0xeui](http://www.homedepot.com/b/Electrical-Light-Bulbs-Eco-Incandescent-Light-Bulbs/Household/N-5yc1vZc8geZ1z0xeui)
>
> I’m not sure why people think that they are off the market. They only deserve use in a few tiny applications where nothing else will do.
Isn’t eco-incandescent just a new name for what we’ve always called halogen bulbs? Or is there some difference?
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### Author:  [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/12 "2015-03-23T12:09:51Z")
The variety store on the corner gas half a dozen packs of incandescent bulbs in three different watts, what’s the big deal exactly?
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/13 "2015-03-23T13:00:06Z")
> [@Chefguy](#):
>
> Cree LEDs (available at Home Depot) are the best. I’ll never care about incandescents again.
I’m slowly replacing everything in the house with LEDs as the cost comes down, and state subsidies for common sizes has helped. We have three banks of PAR30 floods, one of which is used alla time, and it was worth $20 a bulb to replace. The other two waited until the price dropped. A 5-bulb chandelier had to wait until small-base bulbs weren’t $20 each; with a CT subsidy, they were $6 - a no brainer.
I was buying pretty much any brand until the last set of reflectors came up and HD had Crees at a fair price. Not only will I buy no other brand unless a reliable review compares them to Cree and shows a clear improvement, but I will probably be replacing some of the earlier LEDs with Cree as time and opportunity go by. They are the gold standard for a good reason… and now they’re in an affordable range, too.
Keep your hot glowing wires, folks. As a designer, I am VERY sensitive to light quality, and after a decade of grumbing at CFLs and other substitutes, I have no problem at all with good LED replacements. And while I’m not prone to Prius-think, I know that if every incandescent lighting bulb in the country were swapped out for LEDs, we’d have a markedly different energy needs curve. There’s little else that can be done so cheaply, with so much effect and so little downside.
(Except in feeding one’s Luddism. 😃 )
It is too bad that most brands of LED have monitoring devices built in, but privacy is a thing of the past anyway.
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### Author:  [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/14 "2015-03-23T13:02:13Z")
> [@elbows](#):
>
> The variety store on the corner gas half a dozen packs of incandescent bulbs in three different watts, what’s the big deal exactly?
The big deal is that many people think the Energy Independence Act of 2007 banned incandescent light bulbs, but it didn’t. The most common incandescents, like the popular 75 W overhead light incandescent, are a lot less common now, but all of the following bulbs are exempt from the 2007 efficiency standards:
Source: [http://www.bulbsdepot.com/blog/lighting-exemptions.html](http://www.bulbsdepot.com/blog/lighting-exemptions.html)
> [@](#):
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> Appliance bulbs
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> High wattage 150 and 200 watt bulbs
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> Rough service bulbs
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> Vibration service bulbs
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> Shatter-resistant bulbs
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> Black lights
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> Yellow bug lights
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> Infrared lamps
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> Plant grow lights
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> Silver bowl bulbs with a reflective coating
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> Outdoor post lights less than 100 watts
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> All nightlights
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> Candelabra bulbs less than 60 watts
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/15 "2015-03-23T13:03:18Z")
> [@elbows](#):
>
> The variety store on the corner gas half a dozen packs of incandescent bulbs in three different watts, what’s the big deal exactly?
Well, first of all, you’re Canadian.
Second, the US banned inefficient 100W bulbs a couple of years ago - not all incandescent, not all “100W bulbs,” just ones that did not meet a reasonably modern efficiency standard. Since it wasn’t worth retooling to manufacture high-efficiency incandescents (think: buggy whips made from modern synthetic materials), they were effectively “banned” - and people freaked out.
The “ban” is rolling back to smaller sizes, and the freak-out continues.
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### Author:  [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/16 "2015-03-23T13:04:26Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#):
>
> It is too bad that most brands of LED have monitoring devices built in, but privacy is a thing of the past anyway.
Could you elaborate a little on this?
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/17 "2015-03-23T13:30:06Z")
> [@wevets](#):
>
> Could you elaborate a little on this?
Not really. I’ve probably said too much as it is.
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### Author:  [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/18 "2015-03-23T15:03:38Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#):
>
> Not really. I’ve probably said too much as it is.
Aha! Fnord.
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### Author:  [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/19 "2015-03-23T15:22:12Z")
Cree has a type of bulb 4Flow Filament Design which has the same shape and look of an incandescent bulb, is light weight, 3 year warranty and 25000 hour lifetime. these are 40W and 60W replacement, both daylight and soft white, both dimmable.
here is a document (PDF) on Consumer Bulb and Flood Lighting Dimmer Compatibility
[http://creebulb.com/Content/downloads/product\_info/cree\_dimmer\_compatibility.pdf](http://creebulb.com/Content/downloads/product_info/cree_dimmer_compatibility.pdf)
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### Author:  [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)
#### Post date: [March 23, 2015, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/score-four-dozen-incandescent-60-w/715727/20 "2015-03-23T15:29:58Z")
> [@johnpost](#):
>
> Cree has a type of bulb 4Flow Filament Design which has the same shape and look of an incandescent bulb, is light weight, 3 year warranty and 25000 hour lifetime. these are 40W and 60W replacement, both daylight and soft white, both dimmable.
Unfortunately I need a 100W equiv and the Cree 100W bulbs don’t fit in my lamp. ☹
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