Lighting Controls and Compact Fluorescent Lamps

Lighting control selection is critical to achieving the rated life for your fluorescents, and to avoiding potential fire hazards. Turning on a lamp shortens its life, no matter what kind of lamp it is. When you pay $20 for a lamp, you want to turn it on as few times as possible. So you typically use high quality compact fluorescents (CFs) in places where the light will be on for extended periods: kitchens, dining areas, living rooms, some bathrooms, work areas, desks, outdoor lighting with extended run times. (Current building codes require fluorescents in closets for fire safety reasons, and in bathrooms and kitchens for energy conservation reasons.) If you use anything besides a standard switch to control a fluorescent light, the following information will help you select a compatible lighting control.

Using a dimmer with a CF can cause a fire! Never use a non-dimmable fluorescent in a circuit with a dimmer, even at full brightness. There are several CFs currently available which are compatible with household incandescent dimmers, so read the package carefully.

Motion sensors are not generally used with fluorescents because the frequent on/off switching will shorten the lamp life, and because in cold weather outdoor CFs will not provide full light levels until they warm up. Inexpensive magnetic-ballast PL-tube CFs can be used for these on/off outdoor applications, but they may need an enclosed fixture to provide enough light in sub-freezing weather. (The lumen output of fluorescents is quite temperature dependent.) Some electronic-ballast indoor fluorescents will work fine outdoors, but you probably can't use them economically with a motion sensor control.

Compact fluorescents and photocontrols are an excellent combination if the proper photocontrol is used. You have to use a photo control which is rated for use with fluorescents or inductive loads. A cheap photocontrol is basically a light-controlled dimmer, and can cause the same fire hazard as a household dimmer connected to a CF.

Lastly, mechanical timers are fine with any compact fluorescent, but many electronic timers will get into a harmonics war with electronically ballasted CFs, and either the timer or the lamp will die in battle. If you use an electronic timer, use a magnetically ballasted CF.

It is unfortunate that so many caveats apply to the use of controls with fluorescents, but failure to observe them can create fire hazards or at least an expensive learning process. Despite these few limitations on control selection, CFs are long lasting, high quality, economical light sources for a home.

Copyright Alan Van Zuuk