55Watt CFL bulbs

[Abs]

Hi!

I'm looking for 55Watt CFL bulbs like these:

http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/55watrtopbu.html


I can't find similar bulbs here in Europe, I've only seen
23Watt CFL bulbs maximum. Does anyone know where can I buy
these bulbs here in Europe ?


Thanks in advance

 

[Andrew Gabriel]

Hi!

I'm looking for 55Watt CFL bulbs like these:

http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/55watrtopbu.html


I can't find similar bulbs here in Europe, I've only seen
23Watt CFL bulbs maximum. Does anyone know where can I buy
these bulbs here in Europe ?

Highest I've seen in the UK is 30W (at Homebase).

 

[Victor Roberts]

Hi!

I'm looking for 55Watt CFL bulbs like these:

http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/55watrtopbu.html


I can't find similar bulbs here in Europe, I've only seen
23Watt CFL bulbs maximum. Does anyone know where can I buy
these bulbs here in Europe ?

If you can't get CFLs in that shape, you should be able to get 55-watt
2D or circline lamps that use adapters with screw bases.

--
Vic Roberts
http://www.RobertsResearchInc.com
To reply via e-mail:
replace xxx with vdr in the Reply to: address
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[Andrew Gabriel]

If you can't get CFLs in that shape, you should be able to get 55-watt
2D or circline lamps that use adapters with screw bases.

The adapters are not common here. I have one for a 10W 2D lamp
which I bought many years ago, but I haven't seen them since.
Circline lamps were never particularly common in UK and I don't
think I've seen them elsewhere in Europe, and I've certainly
never seen the lampholder adapters for them here.

The large Circline lamps were used in the 1960's in the UK,
where is was quite common to use a filament lamp in the middle
which was also the ballast. Nowadays, they tend to be viewed
as as one of the more grotty bits of 1960's design.

 

[Victor Roberts]

The adapters are not common here. I have one for a 10W 2D lamp
which I bought many years ago, but I haven't seen them since.
Circline lamps were never particularly common in UK and I don't
think I've seen them elsewhere in Europe, and I've certainly
never seen the lampholder adapters for them here.

The large Circline lamps were used in the 1960's in the UK,
where is was quite common to use a filament lamp in the middle
which was also the ballast. Nowadays, they tend to be viewed
as as one of the more grotty bits of 1960's design.

Sorry. I meant the new T5 circline lamps that were designed to compete
with the Thorn/GE 2D. I still don't know if anyone makes screw-in
230-volt adapters for these.

--
Vic Roberts
http://www.RobertsResearchInc.com
To reply via e-mail:
replace xxx with vdr in the Reply to: address
or use e-mail address listed at the Web site.

 

[Andrew Gabriel]

Sorry. I meant the new T5 circline lamps that were designed to compete
with the Thorn/GE 2D.

I haven't seen any of those in the UK.

 

[Abs]

En/na Christian Koch ha escrit:

I don't know of any CFL with integrated ballast above 25 Watts here in
Europe. But this does not mean anything ;-)

The reason may be the PFC regulation of the European Union. I have read
in a german newsgroup that electronic ballasts above 25 Watts must
implement power factor correction. PFC seems to expensive for integrated
ballasts so higher wattage CFLs are only available outside Europe.

An introduction to PFC: <http://www.edn.com/article/CA46463.html>

Christian.

But, those higher wattage CFLs available in the US can work in
european lamps ?

 

[Victor Roberts]

I haven't seen any of those in the UK.

The 2D certainly must be available in the UK. It was invented by Thorn
in Leicester before GE bought them. Also see the similar Philips PL-Q
Pro lamps in their UK catalogue.

--
Vic Roberts
http://www.RobertsResearchInc.com
To reply via e-mail:
replace xxx with vdr in the Reply to: address
or use e-mail address listed at the Web site.

 

[Andrew Gabriel]

The 2D certainly must be available in the UK. It was invented by Thorn
in Leicester before GE bought them. Also see the similar Philips PL-Q
Pro lamps in their UK catalogue.

Sorry, loads of 2D's in the UK.
I meant I've not seen any T5 circline lamps.

 

[Zak]

http://store.tabletopstudio-store.com/55watrtopbu.html

That is a nice one! However there are soem possibilities on
http://www.megaman.de (look in the PDF catalog), the largest of which
takes 4 plug-in tubes of 13 watts for a total of 52 watts.

The whole thing isn't small: 89 mm diameter and 225 mm total length.
There is a 30 watt CFL as well, but both are more-or-less in the 'stick'
shape.

Interesting supplier: the 12 volt CFLs are theirs too.


Thomas

 

[Andrew Gabriel]

No... but can you still buy dual bulb adaptors, the kind that let you
put 2 bulbs in one socket? I mean without the 2 round pin mains socket
thats held with string

I don't think so. These things became illegal to sell sometime
in the early 1970's because they couldn't claim to conform to
a relevant British Standard, which became a requirement for all
electrical accessories.

 

[Nick Hull]

AIUI, the lamp uses significantly less power when starting (and when
failed), and it will be exposed to nearly double the line voltage then.

I don't think there is a cheaper alternative than a 55W autotransformer,
unless maybe a fixed setting 'dimmer'.

Would it be possible to use a series capacitor with a voltage limiting
zener? Sized to take the starting load but cut off when running.