GE 47448 12/23/29-Watt CFL (50/100/150-Watt equivalent) Energy Smart Spiral 3-Way Light Bulb
by GE
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of GE 47448 12/23/29-Watt CFL (50/100/150-Watt equivalent) Energy Smart Spiral 3-Way Light Bulb
Customer Review: Yes, it's bigger, so measure first...
Summary: 4 Stars
I've now bought a few of these CFLs and am quite happy with the purchase. They're longer than typical incandescents, which means that you may not be able to use them in all lamps, and in other lamps you may have to work a little.
We used these in two Stiefel lamps successfully, although we had to remove the harp (this is easy) to screw in the bulb. Once the bulb was seated, the harp went back on just fine.
You can also get harp extenders for use with large bulbs such as this, so that may be an alternative. It's worth it to get the energy savings.
One unexpected bonus: we used to experience some intermittency (flickering) due to heating of the contacts with incandescents - an annoying and potentially dangerous situation. Because of the lower current draw and lower heat generation of CFLs, this has gone away.
The reason I took off a star is that the vendor (Ace) took a long time to ship, and I had to call them because the shipment apparently never left their company (although I received a shipment notice, a trace indicated that pickup never occurred). They ended up "re-shipping". If you buy it there, keep an eye on the shipment.
Customer Review: Not suitable for my 3-way touch lamps
Summary: 4 Stars
I was really hoping to use these in my 3-way touch lamps that I use most frequently, but my lamps work with normal 1 filament bulbs by dimming them and these 3-way CFLs didn't work right (instead of 3 light levels I would only get one). This is not the fault of the bulbs, I just thought I would mention it.
The bulbs themselves, when in the correct fixtures, work fine. There is a brief pause (maybe half a second) between turning on the lamp and when the CFL turns on, but otherwise the transitions are quick and the light level is steady. I do however, think the difference between the levels is less than in a standard 3-way incandescent bulb.
One note about the light color. Another reviewer had mentioned that the color of the bulb's light was objectionable, but I think it is pretty comparable to a "soft white" bulb (which is yellowish), which is how these are advertised. They definitely aren't meant to, nor are they advertised to, have the same color profile as a full spectrum bulb.
Customer Review: Working great so far
Summary: 4 Stars
When screwing these 3-way CFL's into my lamps for the first time, I couldn't help but notice how they were slightly taller then the blubs they replaced. But, luckily, they just fit, so I didn't have to get bigger harps for my two lamps to get around the height problem. In any case, make sure that your lamp can take a 6.3" CFL, because you might have to upgrade the harps in your lamp to compensate for the slightly bigger height.
Anyway, I got these to replace two Sylvania 3-way CFL's that crapped out on me. They're working great so far. They give off a soft & warm white light, not the ugly bright type that standard CFL's give off. Will update this review with a progress report in a couple of months.
BTW: I've read a couple of reviews that suggest users of 3-way CFL bulbs should, on a somewhat regular basis, use all three settings on the bulbs to try to prevent the flicker problem and ensure the bulbs themselves have a long life. Try it. It can't hurt.
Customer Review: Excellent replacement for floor lamps
Summary: 4 Stars
These CFL bulbs are great for floor lamps where you can use a lamp shade of your choice to tone down the harsher light. However, even without the shade, the light is much better than your typical flurescent tubes, so it's a thumbs up for me. Also, the 3 way light does work well! Go green and go easy on your electricity bill.Customer Review: Larger than a standard incandescent bulb
Summary: 3 Stars
Just want folks to be aware that these measure approximately 6.5" in length, or about an inch longer than a typical-sized incandescent bulb (like 60 or 100 W variety). I was interested in getting one of these to replace the 50/100/150 W incandescent bulb in my living room lamp (the tall, free-standing kind), but found it to be too long as it comes out of the top by about an inch. For now I am waiting for a company to come out with a CFL 50/100/150 equivalent that matches up in size better.