: I converted to CFLs many years ago. The color is a bit strange,
: slight greenish tinge, but you get used to it. I don't think it
: made much difference to the power bill, but they last a lot
: longer. Yesterday I replaced the one in the laundry: it was an
: old type that I haven't seen in the stores for years, must have
: been more than 10 yeears old and used almost every day. That's
: an unbelievable price though, never seen anything close in
: Canada. They contain Mercury and other nasty stuff so don't toss
: 'em in the garbage - some of the larger hardware stores have a
: box for recycling them. You can get the outdoor ones these days
: that will light in Winter, but when I first used CFLs outdoors I
: used to turn them on in October and leave them on until April
: cos they wouldn't light up in the cold.

I've got sorta amber colored ones outside, they work fine even when it's 20 below, though they do take a little while to get bright when it's really cold. Have had them in the shop and in the garage since I bought this place.

I though havn't had them last as long as published, have had to replace several. In the US at least the incandescent bulbs start to become unavailable in about 3 months. So...keeping them isn't a long term option.

Bill H.