I found this scary thing when I came home 2nite.PICS

I went to our family Xmas party earlier today.When I left out I turned on the porch light.We have installed compact flouresant lights through out our house.They are 13 watt GE,same out put as a standard 60 watt bulb.These bulbs are supposed to last for a long time and not produce as much heat as a standard bulb.This week I have changed 6.They have only been in 1.5 years.Any way.The scary thing is,when they blow they melt and nearly burned my house down.The worst one was in my porch light.I am becoming scared of these new style energy saving bulbs.Here's the bulb that scared me.

I would send an email and copy of that pic to GE

Let us know if they respond

Captain Ahab said:

I would send an email and copy of that pic to GE

Let us know if they respond

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X2

Wow! Thank goodness, this could of been worse.

Dang! I have some of those in my end table lamps. They've been there about a year now. I'm gonna check them out for signs of failure. Thanks for posting the heads-up and pics!

Just sent an email to there complaint dept.I'm not sure what they may do.I'm not feeling to secure with their CFL bulbs any more.So I doubt that I will use those again.I have used mostly GE bulbs in all my houses.I really like the cost savings but they're not worth the cost of my property.So I think I'll go back to the good ole standard bulbs for now.They seem to last longer and no issues when they do blow out.I just don't understand what could have happen to cause so many to blow.The electrical work has been checked in my house recently.The main breaker in the breaker box tripped and wouldn't reset.Turned out to just be a faulty breaker that had corroded inside.My fixtures in my house are rated for two 60 watt bulbs(120 watts total per fixture).I have no dimmer switches because of another scary incident.Kind of has me worried about the electrical work in my house.I'll just have to wait and see what GE comes back with.If they even respond.

Wow! that is scarey, glad nothing bad happened. Let us know what they say.

I have these in all the fixtures in my house.The ones I have are Sylvania and in the few years Ive had them I havent had a problem. Let us know what they say so if this is a problem with this type of bulb Its not worth the risk.

Most CFL's can be installed in any operating position however, there are some that state on the base what position they can and can not be operated in. Double check to make sure yours were installed in an approved manner before shootin off letters to the manufacturer

Is it true they have Mercury in those?

They supposedly do have mercury in them, but I really have no idea. CFL's are marketed as a green product, but if they do have mercury in them, they are far from it. The best replacement of incandescent bulbs would be LED bulbs, but the price of them are ridiculous. All bulbs in my house are CFL, and many of them have been installed for a few years and we have had no problems. Regardless, that is pretty scary to have that happening in your house. When I am finally able to buy/build a house I plan to put a sprinkler system in, while they can be pricey, water damage will rarely exceed fire damage. Stupid OSHA classes I had in college :lol:

This is according to the Energystar website FAQ section on CFL's

www.energystar.gov said:

Do CFLs contain mercury?
CFLs contain a very small amount of mercury sealed within the glass tubing – an average of 4 milligrams – about
the amount that would cover the tip of a ballpoint pen. By comparison, older thermometers contain about 500
milligrams of mercury – an amount equal to the mercury in 125 CFLs. Mercury is an essential part of CFLs; it
allows the bulb to be an efficient light source. No mercury is released when the bulbs are intact (not broken) or in
use.
Most makers of light bulbs have reduced mercury in their fluorescent lighting products. Thanks to technology
advances and a commitment from members of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, the average
mercury content in CFLs has dropped at least 20 percent in the past year. Some manufacturers have even made
further reductions, dropping mercury content to 1.4 – 2.5 milligrams per light bulb.

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https://www.energystar.gov/ia/partners/promotions/change_light/downloads/Fact_Sheet_Mercury.pdf

flounderhead59 said:

Most CFL's can be installed in any operating position however, there are some that state on the base what position they can and can not be operated in. Double check to make sure yours were installed in an approved manner before shootin off letters to the manufacturer

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I did.When was an industrial maintence tech I replaced 10's of thousands of them in 5 different buildings.I read everything that came with them.Couldn't afford to pay for burning down an office building with 3000 employees.

FishingBuds said:

Is it true they have Mercury in those?

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Yes,a couple milliliters.Just enough to be vaporized when the power is switched on.

The same thing happened to one of mine and this is the responce GE sent back.



Dear Mr. Smith,

Thank you for contacting GE Lighting. I am happy to assist you.

I am sorry to hear that you have experienced a problem with one of our
products and want to assure you that feedback on product quality is
important to us.

In certain circumstances with very low probability, a traditional CFL may
smoke and emit a "melting plastic"-like odor at the end of its life. It
may happen because the lamp voltage is increased, and the ballast still
sustains the discharge thus overheating the lamp. Arcing could occur
inside the tube at the end of life and appear to be a "fire". Our
products are UL listed and the plastic housing is made of a material
designed not to sustain combustion.

This incident is not generally dangerous, and we want to assure you that
product quality and safety are of utmost importance to us.

We will forward your concern to our product service department for review
if you will follow up with a complete mailing address.

Someone may contact you for further details regarding this experience and
information on the bulb in question. Our Product Services department may
choose to provide you with coupons for replacement of the bulb(s), or
replace the product. Please keep the bulb(s), which may be needed for
examination. If this is the case, you will be sent a prepaid mailer or
shipping label for the return.

I apologize for the inconvenience. Please let us know if we can be of
further assistance.


Sincerely,
Steve
Internet Response Team

Thanks Ben2go!!!!! :x Guess what I'm doing the rest of the night?????My wife just got home and I showed her your post and now I'm changing every light bulb (like you and I have) in my house.

I'm just picking on you, but I am changing the bulbs. It's not worth the risk to me!!!!!!!!!!

You're welcome.
Thanks for posting the response you got from GE.I haven't gotten a response yet, but it's only been 24 hours.I haven't replaced all the bulbs yet but I will be this weekend.