CFL Burns Home Down

[Phil Allison]

"Eeyore"

Terry Given wrote:

Phil is quite right. these should be able to be plugged by any person
into any fitting without any risk of fire. lots of people *cant* read.
ESL for a start, the truly illiterate etc. And I bet illiterate people
have lightbulbs too.

it is quite remarkable that dimmer operation and the resultant fire
safety issue is *not* covered by relevant standards. I suspect the
standards will eventually catch up though.

I find this a tricky one to form a strong opinion on. Early adopters of
CFL like myself KNEW you couldn't dim them.

Now they're being sold alongside the frozen foods in supermarkets,
sometimes for less than an incandescent, you're reaching a different
'audience'.

I'd have though a prominent "not suitable for dimmers" on the pack
ought
to fix it except for the totally insane.

** But then you ARE totally insane.

Cos those words are merely usage advice - not a safety warning at all
!!

No printed warning could ever be adequate to cover the risk of house fire
and toxic fumes that goes with CFLs that are not dimmer safe.


Fire and smoke risk come from non-adherence to standards.

** BOLLOCKS.




....... Phil

 

[Mik DaDik]

Phil Allison wrote:

** See news story:

http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_121093606.html

This USA home owner did not do anything silly or wrong here.

Hi Phil, ALL,

Yes we need to be aware about this...

My missus put one in my daughters room (fitted with a dimmer) after the
bulb stopped working.. Of course it didnt work so she told me.. I said
`You cant plug the CFL bulbs into a socket connected to a dimmer switch'.

As I walked into my daughter's room to replace the CFL there was a very
loud exploding noise, which scared the crap out of me, as my wife had
left the switch turned on.. a fair thing to do, one assumes its not
working why worry..

The CFL did not catch fire or even show signs of damage (strange
considering the noise it made when it blew).

Now to me it was well known not to use a CFL in a dimmer socket but I
was not prepared for the near catastrophic result of doing so I always
thought they just wont work.

So beware...we may have lost a house or worse our daughter because of
this simple oversight

Mik

 

[ian field]

"Mik DaDik" <monkeymik@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:g8lmpe$rqi$1@aioe.org...

Phil Allison wrote:
** See news story:

http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_121093606.html

This USA home owner did not do anything silly or wrong here.


Hi Phil, ALL,

Yes we need to be aware about this...

My missus put one in my daughters room (fitted with a dimmer) after the
bulb stopped working.. Of course it didnt work so she told me.. I said
`You cant plug the CFL bulbs into a socket connected to a dimmer switch'.

As I walked into my daughter's room to replace the CFL there was a very
loud exploding noise, which scared the crap out of me, as my wife had left
the switch turned on.. a fair thing to do, one assumes its not working why
worry..

The CFL did not catch fire or even show signs of damage (strange
considering the noise it made when it blew).

Now to me it was well known not to use a CFL in a dimmer socket but I was
not prepared for the near catastrophic result of doing so I always thought
they just wont work.

So beware...we may have lost a house or worse our daughter because of this
simple oversight

Mik

All the CFLs I've had apart were fitted with a thermal fuse or a fusible
resistor on the AC side of the bridge rectifier, over the years I've had a
few fail - which they usually do quietly and without incident.

The situation may be very different in the US because they only have half
the voltage to play with, maybe they use a voltage doubling rectifier with 2
electro's but whatever they do the design must be different in some way.

 

[Phil Allison]

"Eeysore"

Phil Allison wrote:

** See news story:

http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_121093606.html

This USA home owner did not do anything silly or wrong here.

There is simply NO SAFETY warning, anywhere AT ALL to suggest a CFL
might burn your home to the ground - maybe several years after you
install
it.

The lack of compulsory fire safety standards for CFL is an outrage - as
is
their inherent incompatibility with so many fittings and housings.

It would be covered in the USA by UL standards.

** Shame how they are NOT COMPULSORY even in the USA !!!!

If cheapskate importers choose to sell unapproved CFLs then THEY should
pay the
bill. And be prosecuted and if necessary placed in insolvency and
completely
shut down.

** As usual - Stevenson has not the faintest idea what he is crapping on
about.

No compulsory labelling, warnings or fire safety standards for CFLs exist.

They are sold like any other electronic product - with EMC approval, basic
electrical safety and little else.




...... Phil

 

[Eeyore]

Phil Allison wrote:

"Eeysore"
Phil Allison wrote

** Never heard of CRT monitors or TV sets burning home down ??

Actually I haven't. As in NEVER. But this is the UK ! The home of BS. (
British Standards). And the fused plug !

** Well you have now.

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/2008/07/17/faulty-tv-set-led-to-fatal-coventry-fire-92746-21356939/

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/insurance/household-insurance/article.html?in_article_id=404453&in_page_id=34

http://exactproductsinc.com/WordPress/?p=942

It is one of the common causes of house fires, since the plastic cases of
most TVs and PC monitors are highly flammable PLUS give off toxic fumes
when burnt.

Hence the dead toddler in the first story.

Sorry, did you dig up these stories from the 70s

** Read the damn dates on the stories

- you congenital, monumental bloody ASS !!

July, 2008 October, 2005 August, 2008 !!!!

It's a FLAMMABLE PLASTIC FIRE !!

Only takes ONE HOT RESISTOR to initiate !!!

For god's sake man - get real.

Ok, reading the report, the fire was described as 'small'. That might meet IEC regs conceivably as long as it was
self-extinguishing.

What killed the child was *smoke* and I know of no regulations anywhere covering that for electrical appliances.

Time for a review ?

Graham