Look at this guys! actually really scary!
http://www.spartantailgate.com/forums/msu-red-cedar-message-board/259664-warning-about-compact-flourescent-bulbs-my-house-fire.html

That's why I don't use spirally bulbs. Incandescent or linear fluorescent only for me. And to think the government wants to push these deathtraps on us.

someone needs to join this forum to tell them and explain more and say that this is not the only report......we need to make the lighting pages well known so we can actually help about CFL!

Yep, if they would improve the ballasts, then they wouldn't catch on fire!

@RCM442: I think it is not as feasible to improve them so, such fires would be eliminated and at the same time fit them into so small base.
These fires are linked to the voltage doubler circuity in the front end, what does limit the input current so, the fuse does not blow up when the inverter part is severely overloaded or fail. As consequence, doubler capacitors overheat and cause this fire.
Low wattage (what suffice with 160V on the DC bus, so don't need the doubler, so use only bridge) or 230V versions do not exhibit such failure mode, as when the inverter fail, there flow plenty of current (in fact mains short circuity current; the bridge rectifier does not limit the current, unlike capacitors in the the doubler do) to reliably blow out the fuse and disconnect the lamp from the mains.

The only reliably working concept for 120V mains would be using a PFC stage to boost the DC bus to required ~300V (where is again nothing to limit the fault current, so the fuse blow quickly), but at first it would be expensive and at second, it would not fit into the small lamp ballast box.

Wow! That is pretty scary! It looks like a TCP brand CFL which some of the older ones are known fire hazards.

whatever the design burning,smoke,fire,ect at end of life is totally unacceptable regardless of cause.
these compromises are made to make a cheap product.
unfortunately too many folks buy on price alone so that is why dangerous stuff survives on the market.
at least until enough incidents occur to warrent a recall.
the tech exists to fail a lamp at eol by electronic and mechanical means.no excuse to have these events regardless of the abuse.like enclosed fixtures,dimmers,ect!

@toomanybulbs:
Rigidly speaking, your condition is not possible to meet on any equipment. You might always find an abuse-mode, when it end up by fire or other dangerous situation. So you have to place some limits, what users are responsible to observe, some of them are (assumed as) obvious, some are not as much (and those have to be present in the manual - e.g. in the form of few symbols and short text on the package). People should be simply responsible enough when using anything.

What is real issue, then "green" activist say everywhere, then "any incandescents might be replaced by CFL", while in reality the use of CFL's is very limited: No dimmers, thermal limitations,...
And what is worse, manufacturers often "forgot" to mention these limitations, or simply neglect them.

In reality it is not feasible to make safe integrated CFL for 120V and rated power >15W (problems with the input doubler impedance interfering with fusing). On 11W and below and for 230V (only bridge rectifier) it is difficult (evaluate all failure modes and ensure none of them lead to long-time dissipative states). And all that assuming no abuse from users, only "normal" EOL behavior.

If that quack didn't leave the bulb on 24-7 that wouldn't have happend.

If that quack didn't leave the bulb on 24-7 that wouldn't have happend.

Actually, there are cases where 24/7 is necessary because a switch may not be easy to find in the dark in certain places, or to be used as a constant source where there is no daylight at all.

Quote from: streetlight98 on June 22, 2010, 05:44:26 PM

If that quack didn't leave the bulb on 24-7 that wouldn't have happend.

Actually, there are cases where 24/7 is necessary because a switch may not be easy to find in the dark in certain places, or to be used as a constant source where there is no daylight at all.

Actually the 24/7 is be the best operation scheme in terms of burning hours lifetime: Only one start per life... The issue with integrated CFL's is their (ballast, but as it is integrated, the whole "lamp" as well) EOL failure mode and generally very short life in lot of originally incandescent applications (with higher temperatures during operation).
The main one to blame are institutions promoting CFL's as an universal incandescent replacements and CFL makers to ensure, then users know where to use them and where don't (and what protection is required in order to contain the failure mode in a safe matter)...