Energy saving light fittings (G24 bulbs)

andrew-b

When we moved house last year we inherited 3 pairs of wall lights (2 bulbs each) in the lounge, and a ceiling light (3 bulbs) above the dining table. They all take 60W SES golfball bulbs though we currently have standard 40W bulbs in them. I think we must replace one bulb every other week on average (and that's quality bulbs not "cheapie" ones).

In the spirit of money saving i would like to significantly lower the amount of energy used ..whilst keeping the same level of light (before anyone suggest dimmer switches!) and still looking stylish.

Now the obvious solution would be to purchase energy saving bulbs...however after hunting hard i have yet to find an energy saving bulb with a SES fitting that doesn't hideously protrude over the top of the lamp shades (the shades are upward pointing wine-glass shaped white glass). Even the shortest one's are still 3-4 centimetres taller than a standard SES golfball bulb.

I'm now considering replacing the light fittings with a similar style of energy saving lights. From researching online i've discovered wall lights described as low energy with "electronic ballast" that take 10W G24 bulbs (light output equivalent to 60W). However these cost from £30 for a single bulb wall light and £70 for a 3-bulb ceiling light - so would set me back £160 which sounds expensive to me.

Can anyone suggest a cheaper source for these light fittings? Ideally i'd like to replace the wall lights with similar 2 bulb one's to maintain a similar level of light and as yet i haven't found any anywhere!

andrew-b

Here's the sort of thing i'm looking for:

Wall light

Ceiling pendant

Am i expecting too much to find these cheaper elsewhere? Maybe it would be simpler just to buy a huge bulk of tungsten SES golfball bulbs before the government decide to ban them altogether!

Jamsyke

Sylvania's new range of "Mini Lynx Fast Start" are very compact and the 11w comes in an SES, this is equivalent to 55w according to their literature. The total length of the lamp is around 90mm, compared to 75mm for a golfball lamp, I think this is the nearest you'll get.
Any round/shaped types of this size are going to be a lower wattage.

I don't imagine you'd find them retail, so either ask your local wholesaler or search for them online (even if you don't find the exact item, anybody who does other Sylvania products should be able to order them).

andrew-b

I just measured it and unfortunately even 90mm bulbs will still protrude over the top of the shades by about a centimetre. There is a light bulb shop on ebay whom i've bought sylvania bulbs from in the past selling the 90mm energy saving bulbs. Thanks for the suggestion!

Andy