Gallery of Lights

Unrelated Stuff => Forum Games => Topic started by: GEsoftwhite100watts on September 16, 2013, 10:08:00 PM

Title: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on September 16, 2013, 10:08:00 PM
Little idea I had for a game...each player tells a little-known (So far) fact about themselves. 
Like this...
Player 1: (Random thing)
Player 2: (Replies to that, and adds their own piece of trivia)
and so on...

I'll start:

I'm (Sorta) a boat owner...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on September 22, 2013, 12:17:15 PM
I have about 53 F40 lamps in storage and not in use last I counted...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 05, 2013, 09:43:22 PM
In my house the washer and dryer are located in the bathroom...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 06, 2013, 04:03:24 PM
When I was born I had jet black hair but that fell out (which is normal for babies I was told) then i got bright blonde hair at the normal age to grow hair and then it turned a light brown color by the time I was in grade school. In the sunlight my hair appears dirty blonde but it's really a mix of all different shades of brown. When I get a haircut some of the hairs are dark, almost black, others are really light brown, others medium brown. So I have like tri-tone hair or something lol...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Model25FanForever on November 06, 2013, 04:24:51 PM
I love C7 Mini Incandescent multi-color Christmas lights.

My hair was bright blonde then blonde then dirty brown. It still is but some of it still grows blonde lol
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 06, 2013, 08:41:16 PM
I LOVE C7s and C9s too!
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 07, 2013, 04:47:18 PM
We've never used the C7 Christmas lights and I've never seen a home use them. :(

---

I'm growing out my facial hair for No-Shave November. :P I'm gonna look like a hobo by the end of the month lol.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Model25FanForever on November 08, 2013, 07:23:13 AM
I like the Incandescent C7's and C9's they may die faster but they give off way better color than the LED lights. You never seen them in use at all?  :o I don't want a beard so im not participating in no shave November :P
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 08, 2013, 05:02:38 PM
Yeah the LEDs flicker and it looks so unnatural. Plus the LEDs don't give off that warm inviting color that the incandescents give off.

Iwasn't going to do no-shave november but my friends kept telling me i should so i figured what the heck lol. I'll ge getting rid of it come december though... everyone keeps telling me i look "badass" with facial hair lol. I'm not sure yet if i quite like the look lol.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Model25FanForever on November 08, 2013, 06:38:15 PM
Once C7 and C9 LEDs burn out there are no replacement bulbs available for them. All the blue on our icicle lights are dead. Blue LED's never seem to live at my house. Yeah they are cold when you put your face on them. (only I would be random enough to do that)

I don't like the feeling of facial hair  :(

Well if I ever wanted to grow one I want it to be fancy and classy  :D

Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 08, 2013, 09:25:09 PM
I like the vivid colors of LED lights but as for "welcoming-ness" I prefer C7s.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 08, 2013, 11:13:47 PM
i LOVE Reese's Peanutbutter Cups :D
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 09, 2013, 12:04:04 AM
Me too! I like Kit-Kat and Twix too...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Model25FanForever on November 09, 2013, 11:42:06 AM
kit kat and cookies n cream =  8) O0
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 19, 2013, 05:21:53 PM
It get REALLY depressed sometimes. Suicidal even sometimes. Right now I'm depressed but it's more of a stress/confusion depressed rather than a sad depressed. I'm trying to make sense of some things I've found out about someone and it's a little agonizing... I tend to overthing things a lot though, especially when it comes to people of the opposite gender lol. I need not say more. :P
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 19, 2013, 09:15:02 PM
That's typical during teenage years apparently...you'll get over it. 
This might cheer you up...I'm going to try and work on getting a couple 80s Power Lighting Products from the house my honorary granfather lived in.  One even has a Norelco lamp but it's EOL unfortunately.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 19, 2013, 10:47:10 PM
ahh well it cheered me up a little. ;D is it RS or PH?
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 19, 2013, 11:33:43 PM
Your standard dim crappy LPF rapid start ballasts...common in all shoplights from the 80s up until recently. Those are VERY cold-natured and dim in general...same with the LOA type ballasts...compared to a nice 1970s or older shoplight with a full-power .80 amp HPF ballast they're pathetic.  I think these ones are from the 80s-90s and might be the same as some that were permanently installed at my mother's house and had Philips F40CWs made at the old Norelco plant in Lynn, Massachusetts, just like the one in that preheat fixture in your aunt and uncle's basement.  (Any updates on getting that lamp and any other fixtures?)
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 21, 2013, 08:09:47 PM
ahh I see. Yeah the full power ballasts have unbeatable quality. Nope no update of my aunt's and uncle's basement. i haven't seen them recently. The fixtures are all still up and the lamps are stuck up in between the bridging between the joists. I think the only fixtures with lamps are the WWII era light and the one I gave them new lamps and starters for. The basement is their last concern (well, besides the fact that they got a new sunk pump installed since the old one wasn't working well and the dain pipe for it dumped out right outside the house, meaning when there was a lot of rain, the water just seeped back into the basement after being drained out so basically it was an endless cycle).

I'll let you guys know when there are any updates. 8) :) as for now, the fixtures are safe and sound hanging in their basement.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 21, 2013, 08:36:14 PM
Oh nice...
Did you guys know that I (sorta) own a 72' boat?
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 21, 2013, 08:38:43 PM
ahh no i didn't. Is it yours soley or is it your family's?
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 21, 2013, 10:58:05 PM
1/2 my family's...well myself and one other relative actually.  I have some interesting boat electrical stories to share...
This boat was built in 1940.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 24, 2013, 08:35:58 PM
oh wow. Vintage watercraft. 8) does it have frosted rough service 130V 100W incandescent lamps for that nice vintage atmosphere?
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 24, 2013, 09:05:28 PM
LOL no it doesn't.  Although, before the fire and sinking at the dock (Neither under my watch LOL) it had all these vintage Mazda-Lookalike (They apparently made some lamps like this up until the 90s I guess) GE 34 volt inside-frost bulbs.  (32VDC battery system before 12v became common in situations like this so I guess a 32v equivalent of a 130v extended-life lamp.  There were 15w ones as well as 50w and 100w ones...those 100w ones were a HUGE envelope, I think A-23 even! There's still one there, in a currently disconnected fixture I need to save...I'll post a pic.
Fixtures looked like this...http://www.lighting-gallery.net/gallery/displayimage.php?album=2350&pos=21&pid=63820
And the etch on some of those bulbs was like this one...http://www.lighting-gallery.net/gallery/displayimage.php?album=2337&pos=3&pid=81348
If I remember the bases were aluminum.  There were even some NOS ones still in their sleeves as of March 2012...they aren't there now though. Most of said fixtures are now Lithiona 2XF32T8 vaportight ones with Sylvania 6500K Octrons.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 24, 2013, 09:39:10 PM
ahh yeah that's right, boats don't have 120V duh lol. At Battleship Cove in Massachusetts the boas had been upgraded with 120V grid electricity since the bost is a permanently docked museum along with it's smaller sister ships. so the lamps are all 120V. The ship was made into a museum decades ago. There's one fixture with a top mounted ballast; a WWII era fixture with 34W altos in it. I didn't see starters and i saw what looked like starter sockets on top of the fixture so I guess it was converted to RS.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 25, 2013, 09:35:34 PM
Probably, especially if it had 34w Altos which haven't been made for some time now.
Mine does, but from a generator...nothing is 32v anymore; 120v or 12VDC.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on November 27, 2013, 10:07:08 PM
yeah the altos had those black spots in them and LOTS of them too.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 27, 2013, 10:16:59 PM
Oh yeah the Moldy Alto Syndrome!
I like 5000K-6500K fluorescent lighting the best.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 12, 2013, 06:27:15 PM
Ugh. I've been trying to ask a girl to the winter dance for the past two weeks but every time I see her I just freak out and back out. Today was the first day I actually had some confidence but there wasn't a point in the day when she wasn't with her friends. I can't ask her out if she's with friends; she's gotta be alone. I keep telling myself every day "Okay, TODAY I'm GOING to ask her out. That's IT. TODAY." but every day I come home angry at myself for not asking her out. I've talked to her before and she's really nice so I just don't get why I'm so intimidated by her. :-\

anyway, I'm testing out a different color temperature in my closet light. I stuck in the Philips Alto Kitchen & Bath lamp. I was going to use one of the Sylvania WW lamps but it looks so pink. The 3500K lamp wasn't cutting it for me either. I'll leave the soft white lamp in there and see how it affects my morning compared to the cool white lol.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 13, 2013, 12:54:08 AM
Did you try the 3500K for a few days?
Just an idea, try a 6500K lamp (if you have one) just to see what that does...or stick one of your streetlights on an appliance timer! I'd try that with my 400w MH but if I haven't started the generator yet in the morning when it'd be waking me up I don't want to put that extra strain on my (already low by then) batteries.  But I bet that'd get me up!
I just thought...if you ever have to do a science symposium project the closet-light-color one might be a good, very original idea for one!
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 13, 2013, 06:59:28 PM
ugh well the warm white lamp kept me feeling nice and warm but I couldn't get into gear with it so the cool white is going back lol. I don;t have a daylight 20W lamp.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 13, 2013, 08:13:31 PM
Interesting...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 15, 2013, 11:45:30 AM
Yeah the cool white works much better. I noticed that the ballast was a lot louder with the Alto than with any of the other lamps (which all happen to be full mercury). All I could come up with was "Hmm. Interesting." lol. it makes me wonder if less mercury in the lamps makes the ballast work harder. It was in my closet (about 67-71 degrees this time of year; there's a thermometer in my room) and was warm enough.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 17, 2013, 08:55:59 PM
As far as I know "Eco" lamps shouldn't hurt (especially vintage) ballasts unless maybe it went really mercury starved and was left like that for a long time if the light was on all day or something...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 21, 2013, 04:00:34 PM
yeah i don't know why the ballast reacted that way. I even checked to make sure nothing else was vibrating, etc.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 21, 2013, 08:35:05 PM
Sometimes things like that will happen though...for whatever reason my Sears shoplight hums loudly while those stupid mercury-starved Sylvania Cool White Plus lamps warm up.  Then it's pretty quiet. (That ballast is fairly silent in general, despite having overheated and lost tar from 34  watt energy savers in it's previous life). 
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 21, 2013, 10:19:06 PM
yeah maybe ballasts have lamp preferences lol. I know I don't really like Altos too much. They never seem to last and are dimmer than other lamps. The non-alto Philips lamps are still pretty good so i don't get why they don't see that altos are killing their reputation. Philips seems more like a bargain brand nowadays rather a quality company. they seem to care more about having the lowest price over quality. Their high CRI non-alto fluorescents and LEDs are very good but they're also expensive. once they find a way to cheap-a-fy them then they might not be as good. GE fluorescents are pretty good. even the ecolux tubes aren't bad. plus they're high CRI and bright too. Sylvania lamps are pretty good too but i heard their T8s are pretty bad on IS ballasts, though IS ballasts and bi-pin lamps don't go good together anyways.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 22, 2013, 09:37:42 PM
Really? Full-wattage Altos seem pretty bright to me except the crappy 34w energy saver ones which they don't make anymore anyway!
I like GE Ecolux lamps except for that green etch; I'd rather have the green ends actually! Sylvania T12s are pretty good except for their warmup issue.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 23, 2013, 12:53:16 PM
The altos aren't really dim, but the GE Starcoat SP lamps are brighter. Those non-alto Philips NATURAL LIGHT ~5000K lamps are really dim compared to a cool white plus Alto too. I went over my granparents last night for an early xmas party and didn't need to change any tubes. The newest lamps are from 2012 and are Alto CWP lamps. before that are non-alto 5000K high-CRI lamps (only two of them). before that are daylight altos from 2008. the earliest lamps are the original lamps, which are unbranded (but made my philips) 1996 F34T12/CW/EW Econ-o-watt tubes. there are about 12 of them left, which isn't bad out of 32 lamps.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 23, 2013, 08:45:05 PM
Is that in the basement you got your infamous electric shock in?
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 23, 2013, 10:26:21 PM
yep. i didn't get shocked this year lol. i got a nifty little electrical book based on the NEC that explains a lot of household wiring that will come in really handy for any projects i might need to do.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: joe_347V on December 24, 2013, 04:00:42 AM
I have one of those too but it's based off the Ontario Code instead of the NEC. It's a older edition though.

Oh and one of those NSTs really give a nasty shock. I got shocked by it a few years back.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 24, 2013, 10:10:03 AM
do you know if a fluorscent ballast can give a bad shock? I've wondered if removing the tubes with the fixture on would shock the fixture if one end of the tube was in the socket and the other end touched the fixture body (I'm thinking about those troffers lol).
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 24, 2013, 06:17:14 PM
Possibly...I doubt it though since it wouldn't be lit if only one end was connected...but I'm not sure.
I have a couple old home wiring books I picked up at a rumage sale, one's from 1962 and the other is I think from the early 80s.  They're a little dated for sure nowadays but it's still good information for things like wiring 3-way switches, etc.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 24, 2013, 08:12:37 PM
yeah stuff like wiring 3-way switches doesn't change. Just stuff like the type of wire that can be used, etc.

Ugh I had the biggest PITS problem today with iTunes. Apparently I needed to enter my security questions, which i didn't know the answers to so they wouldn't let me make any song purchases. I ended up having to call them and register my brother's iPod under my name to (somehow) prove that I was really me. I was LOGGED IN with the CORRECT username and password so WHY are you questioning my identity? I'm buying songs. It's not like I'm logging into a bank account. :8)

anyways, they finally reset them for me and now i have them written down so I never lose them lol.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 24, 2013, 08:17:57 PM
LOL I don't even remember my password for this site so occasionally I have to reset it.  So yep Jospeh, it's really me! LOL
I have often considered devoting a whole little notebook to passwords, etc.  But what if someone  ELSE finds it?...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 24, 2013, 09:48:19 PM
that's why i don't write them down. I have a microsoft word document that has all my passwords somewhere on my computer. It might be worth it to find it lol. It's encripted but i remember the password, it's "westinghousetypeov25" since that's what it says on my OV-25, which was what i typed into google and found David F's website and then the LG. Then when this site was formed I joined here too. Google Chrome remembers my passwords so if i get logged out the username and password is already typed out so all i need to do is click the sign in button. iTunes isn't run off of the internet though so it doesn't remember my log-in info. The apple support site does though.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 25, 2013, 02:20:18 PM
Yeah I like Chrome for that reason!
That GE Chroma 50 is still hanging in there...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 26, 2013, 08:20:42 PM
yeah some people don't like google chrome because google supposedly has access to what sites you visit. I don't care if google sees what sites i go on. it's like the Obama administration and listening in on phone calls. If you want to listen to me talk to Grandma go for it lol. it's not like actual people look at every site or listen to every phone call. they look for trends and if they're suspicious of something them they look. Do I agree that the governemnt has a right to be so nosey? No. But would I prefer this over a bombing attack? YES! You're lucky since you're way up there in Alaska. No Terrorists are going to bother trying to attack you guys.


See? that's the quality of good old USA made full-mercury lamps that were made before any of the lamp-affecting energy standards. I'm debating whether or not to blow $40 on a pack of 10 Sylvania Design 50 F40T12/5000K lamps. I heard they're the best F40T12 out there nowadays but is it worth the 40 bucks over the 20 bucks it costs for 10 Sylvania CWP lamps...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 26, 2013, 08:40:05 PM
I intentionally mess up my last name when creating an account or corresponding with people I've never met in person (yes, including you LOL) just to make it harder for a hacker or something.  I don't think they listen in on phone calls but the phone company keeps your records anyway so what's the big deal? A log of all the calls and their minutes and to what number comes with my phone bill each month so....
I know someone who used to joke about terrorists with friends over the phone thinking they might be being bugged...they'd shout things like "AL-QUAIDA!"
But yeah, if it saves lives then I'm all for it...personally I think censorship and spying is okay during wartime, etc. if it saves lives.

Do it! You'll really like the 5000K color and 90CRI! I like them...they might be called "Daylight Full Spectrum" but it's the same thing.  I have an older Design 50 from '93 IIRC whose etch is marked "Rapid Start" in italics if that helps.  It's the one in my gallery.
I also have a few GE Chroma 50 lamps...only two work though and a third is currently on an electronic instant-start T8 ballast squeezing out the last few hours.
But yeah...who's going to care when they hear me talking to my mother about how her lung cancer treatment is going...it's not anything shocking, so...or watching us blah blah blah about fluorescent lights in this thread...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 26, 2013, 08:52:28 PM
Ahh yeah well my full name is Mike McCann (in case you didn't know where McCann Lighting came from lol). I'm not really afraid of being hacked.

Hmm, well it's really going to kill me but since i have enough giftcard money to easily cover it I guess I might as well go for it... I'd just hate to spend 40 bucks on only 10 bulbs. If it was a case of 25 or something I'd easily spend the money. Eh, I guess I'll have to walk into Lowes and buy them really fast before i have time to change my mind lol.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 26, 2013, 08:55:30 PM
I thought about blowing off 80-some perfectly good dollars on a case of THIRTY Philips Daylight Deluxe Altos.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 26, 2013, 10:04:26 PM
lol i would never. not even on full mercury tubes lol. that's over $2.50 a tube! that's just me though. i'm frugal lol
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 26, 2013, 10:18:44 PM
Not as bad as the $11.50 a lamp someone on LG paid...remember that post?
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 27, 2013, 12:00:25 AM
no i don't remember. they paid $11.50ea for F40s? I wouldn't even pay that for T12 HO 8fts. The only fluorescent lamp i'd buy for more than 10 bucks a lamp are T17s (and that's dirt cheap so i guess i'll never get my hands on new T17s lol).

For HIDs i won't pay more than 30 bucks a lamp unless it's vintage. for street lights i won't pay more than 100 bucks (not including shipping) for an NOS/ new light. I'd never pay that much for a used light unless it was rare or really vintage. I don't know how much i'd be willing to spend on fluorescent fixtures though. all of mine were either free or very discounted from the restore...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 27, 2013, 01:22:05 PM
The only fluorescent lamps I have ever purchased weren't coming out of my coffers but they were pretty cheap.  The two pairs of Sylvania Cool White Plus were 4-something dollars each for a 2-pack and I don't remember the "Buyer's Choice" sylvania-made F40/CWX's price but I'm sure it wasn't too bad.
All my fixtures have been free...the MH highbays came with the house, the Electripak yardblaster came from a friend, the Sears shoplight came from a an old friend's house a former teacher used to own that was going to be demolished (and since has), and the two Metalux/Gibson troffers came from my school.   Like I said, all were free.  I have a few other non-HID or fluorescent lights I'm not going to list though.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 27, 2013, 02:49:17 PM
ahh my most expensive fixture was my M-400 but i only payed the shipping (which was like 55 bucks). The light itself was $85. the HPS M-250R1 was like 80. The M-250R1 that's MV was about the same price and it came with two mounting arms (but no lens).

At Benny's Hardware I can get two packs of the Sylvania F40T12/CWP 70CRI lamps for $3 per 2 pack. So that's totally reasonable considering a 2-pack of GE F40T12 cool whites are $9.98.  :o :8)
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 27, 2013, 04:01:24 PM
Yeah despite the warmup issue those CWPs are good lamps. 
At that Home Depot the Daylight Deluxe was the cheapest actually!
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 27, 2013, 04:06:26 PM
doesn't HD sell Philips lamps though? Altos are bad for your health. i have no scientific evidence of this so jsut take my word on it lol :P
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 27, 2013, 08:32:53 PM
Yeah they sell Philips.
LOL I actually really like those green ends, I think they look cool in an older fixture unless you're seeing them through a diffuser then it seems weird...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 27, 2013, 09:32:01 PM
I like the Alto's green ends after I paint them black lol. Then they look like vintage blackenders. ;D with the green etch tough there's nothign you can do about it though. It doesn't bug me though but I know it bugs you. Just like the green ends don't bug you but the bug me lol. They don't bug me with most rapid start fixtures but seeing an alto on a Preheater is just weird... lol
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 27, 2013, 10:07:33 PM
Yeah I guess...but then again it says, "Still going with lots of hours to boot!" about the fixture.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 27, 2013, 11:02:45 PM
yeah it also says the fixture is well taken care of too since altos weren't around before the 90s, meaning the preheaters were atleast relamped in the last 15-ish years... did philips start the low mercury eco movement?
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 28, 2013, 02:41:37 PM
Possibly.  I think the first Altos were circa '97-ish and were only 34w T12 at first.  I have a pair of non-Alto Home Light Cool lamps that came with my current house that date to June 1999 I think (9F).
I think the only low-mercury lamps in my house are some GE Ecolux 3500K F32T8s.  On my boat there's some 6500K and 4100K Sylvania Octrons but that's IT!
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 28, 2013, 03:42:23 PM
Ahh well i have 3 full mercury Philips 34W T12s from 1997 so i guess they were from one of the last full mercury batches.

My brother's closet light has a GE F20T12/D (maybe /DX) EcoLux lamp and my 1973 RS fixture has a pair of EcoLux 4100K GEs and the 1950s preheater in my laundry room has a pair of 3500K GE EcoLux lamps. The only full mercury linear fluorescent lamps in service at my house is my closet light F20T12/CW Canadian Sylvania (original to the house), my parents' closet light F20T12/CW American Sylvania, the F30T12 undercabinet light that's mounted to the wall with a Sylvania lamp, and my F20T12 preheat undercabinet light with a late 80s 3500K GENERAL (GE) ELECTRIC lamp. The reason I'm using it instead of a newer lamp is because it has a bad pin on one end so I want to use it up before the pin gets too damaged to the point where it won't work.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 28, 2013, 07:10:42 PM
Ahh I see...is it in the same room as the 3500K Ecolux lamps in the '50s long-john preheater?
The closet lamp is likely just a plain D as I think 2' lamps are exempt from the regulations that affect F40s and F96s.
The full mercury linear lamps in service right now are...
A '91-'94 GE-made ACE F40CW and a Sylvania Cool White Plus in a Lithiona wraparound in the garage on a Radionic LPF ballast
The Sears shoplight in there with the GE Bonusline ballast and Sylvania Cool White Plus lamps
A cheap Lithiona shoplight also out there with some pre-Alto "cool" Philips Home Light lamps
In the other shop, an 80s shoplight with some GE Mainlighters on an LPF ballast
In my room, the 3-lamp troffer with 3 GE Plant&Aquarium lamps (Yes it's got plants under it)
The other 2-lamp troffer with a Universal Therm-O-Matic ballast and a GE Residential Light lamp and a Sylvania Workshop F40 lamp.
I don't think the lamp-cooker shoplight counts...
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 28, 2013, 08:14:13 PM
the 3500K F20T12 is in the F20 undercabient light which is in the utility room with the cool white lamps in the RS 1973 fixture. the F30T12 undercabinet light has a cool white lamp and is in the laundry room with the 1950s preheater, which has the 3500K lamps.

yeah it's a little mis-matched lol. I like the warmer colored tubes in the laundry room plus they're brighter. All my F30 tubes are cool white though. when i firsy installed the f20 undercabinet light it had a cool white ecolux. And to futher mismatch things, the 4ft light in the laundry room is preheat and the F30 light is RS. the 4ft light in the utility room is RS an the 2ft undercabinet light is preheat lol.

ahh you seem to have more fixtures in service than i do (well of course you do lol. Right now i only have four lol. after tomorrow I'll have six though. 8)
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on December 29, 2013, 09:17:54 PM
To further mismatch things at my house, there's umpteen cases of fixtures that are newer than the lamps in them! Except for the Sears light.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on December 29, 2013, 09:38:11 PM
my F20T12 preheat undercabinet light has a lamp that's older than it. (i took out the GENERAL (GE) ELECTRIC SP35 F20T12 and stuck that in the Western Electric spec'ed light). It's one of my 30 Sylvania F20T12/WW lamps from 1986. The undercabinet light is (was) NOS from I think the late 90s-early 2000s and is very well built.

I think that's my only fixture with lamps older than itself.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on January 04, 2014, 08:24:46 PM
I'm going to be around that M-400A and Regent yardlight with the Lifeguard lamp come this Tuesday...I'll try to get pics.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: Mike on January 04, 2014, 09:01:58 PM
Wo-hoo! Can you get pics of the side, bottom, top, a shot with the refractor door open, and a show of the ballast and the inside?

JI made a video showing how to open up the M-400A since i know you said you had trouble with the latch last time. I posted it on the LG. I made the video with my M-250A but the M-400 and M-400A also used the same latch.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on January 04, 2014, 10:17:21 PM
I saw that vid...maybe I'll even have to get a vid of the /DX Lifeguard firing up!
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on April 06, 2015, 09:26:22 PM
The oldest linear fluorescent lamp I have is a May 1977 GE F40CW Mainlighter, made at the Jackson, Mississippi factory, which I found in the trash behind the Port Alexander city hall building in 2013.  It's heavily used but still works.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on April 18, 2015, 11:21:59 AM
My newest linear fluorescent lamp is currently a 2013 Sylvania F40/Daylight Full Spectrum
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on September 26, 2015, 01:41:49 PM
There's no cell phone service at my house.
Title: Re: Random Pieces of Trivia About Yourself...
Post by: GEsoftwhite100watts on November 28, 2015, 10:39:00 PM
I'm a fifth-generaiton native Californian.