Thursday, April 12, 2012

Rant

I'm replacing light bulbs in the kitchen, and notice that the burned out ones are the new fangled CFL ones.  You know, the ones that cost four times as much, but "last ten times longer".  Except they last the same.  Thank you, Congress!

And it seems that the new "energy efficient" front loading washing machines - you know, the ones that cost twice as much as the old top loaders - seems they don't get your clothes clean.  Well, that's what Consumer Reports says.  Thanks, Congress!

And it's been years since the toilet would actually flush in a reliable way.  And a further benefit of these "low flow" toilets is that there's not enough volume going through the sewers, and so the sewers all need maintenance, and so property taxes go up.  Thanks, Congress!

Our Congress: making sure that we're dirty, in the dark, and can't even take a dump in peace.

We now return you to a less ranty normal blog schedule ...

22 comments:

New Jovian Thunderbolt said...

The terlet flushes fine. You just have to do it 3 times and use 5.5 gallons rather than the one time 5 gallons you used before.

drjim said...

After seeing the same thing with the CFL's I've bought, I started keeping the receipt, and writing the date installed, and where, on the bulb with a Sharpie.
if it doesn't match the "life" listed on the box, I take it back for a new one.
The first time I did this, the dummy behind the "Customer Service" counter refused, until I showed him that the number of days since I purchased the bulb, times 24 hours, didn't even come close to the "life" of the bulb as printed on the box, and that would have been if I had left it turned ON for the entire time since I purchased the bulb!
Lowe's and Home Depot seem pretty good about giving store credit for these obviously defective products.

New Jovian Thunderbolt said...

You know there was a REASON 80 years ago they made the terlet tank that big. They figure out it took that much water to flush away the necessary leavings. It still does. Much more grounded in reality in them days.

Anonymous said...

All done to please the Peoples Republic of Kalifornia.

kahr40 said...

They won't be satisfied until we're living in huts and crapping in a hole. Congress: the opposite of progress.

SiGraybeard said...

On the CFL lifetime thing, there was some chatter about this in IEEE Spectrum (IIRC). There are two competing explanations: crappy design (parts with no design margin), and crappy design (bad thermal effects).

The second version points out that the bulbs work better in vertical fixture with the electronics in the bottom, so heat rises away from the circuitry. I have several in my house, and one fixture with the light "upside down" (hanging from the ceiling in the garage) burned out two successively within a couple of months. Way too little time. I've gone back to old fashioned incandescent bulbs in that fixture

This tends to support the crappy design theory - instead of the other crappy design theory.

Dave H said...

Too bad we can't install a low-flow Congress.

drjim said...

I agree about the life span of these things.
The ones we had mounted base up had very short lives. The ones mounted horizontally lasted somewhat longer, and the ones mounted base down lasted the longest.
But they still died "early" according to the claims of life expectancy on the box.

Phssthpok said...

Don't get me started on the EPA and low speed cold fired diesel engines.

I somehow stumbled across a yoututbe video of a home built, 20hp aircooled v-twin diesel MOTORCYCLE getting 100+mph and top speed 75+ (faster than I'd ever need). I decided to look into building one myself, only to find out that the EPA has banned the import of ANY diesel that does not meet 'tier three' diesel emissions requirements, regardless if it's for a stationary installation (water pump, generator, etc) or motive power (car, motorcycle).

ASM826 said...

You don't have a life time supply of 100w bulbs?

Might be time for a mirror rant and then a decision to at least stock up on the 60s this year while you can.

ASM826 said...

And an old toilet, too.

Bob said...

Supposedly the formulation of dishwashing detergent has been changed for environmentalist reasons, resulting in dishes that aren't very clean at the end of the washing cycle. For all I know, they've done the same to laundry detergent.

Old NFO said...

I installed the BIg toilets before the 1.5 gal ones were mandated, and I just bought two cases of incandescent bulbs... And I bought the last model top-loader... :-) Hopefully they will all last until I'm gone!

Brad_in_IL said...

ASM,

I have two closet shelves stocked full of 60watt incandescent 12 packs.

Gray, in addition to crappy design tolerances, don't forget crappy manufacturing tolerances to cut line costs.

Brad

Ruth said...

Bob, that is correct, both for dishwasher soap and clothes-washing soaps. Unfortunetly.

Roger said...

Here in Tamarac Florida (Ft. Lauderdale) they mandated low flow toilets and instituted water use regulations. Three years later, they were "forced" to raise the cost of water because the lower water use caused a shortfall in revenue to the water department.

MaddMedic said...

Pssst..
I may know someone with a supply of "real" light bulbs...you know the ones that work and light up a room!
Meet me behind the mumblemumblemumble and we'll make a deal...

Borepatch said...

I wonder what old toilets cost at antique stores?

Borepatch said...

MaddMedic wins the Internets!

Ken said...

There are good websites that can help one fix one's own (older, working) appliances, and sell the parts at good prices. If I, who am no great shakes as a mechanic, can tear down a gas dryer and put it back together so that it works and doesn't burn down the house, replace the igniter in a wall-mounted gas oven, and perform various small repairs on a dishwasher, the more capable can do so as well.

BobG said...

"If it ain't broke, we'll fix it until it is."
- Federal government

Anonymous said...

The sewer pipes for houses built before the 1970s were installed with a gradient out to the street sewer sufficient to move the lumps along provided there was 5 gallons of water involved.

With less water, the, um, stuff doesn't get as far along the pipe and as a result, clogs are more likely.

The short-term solution is to do as that old school joke, ("flush twice, it's a long way to the kitchen") says. The real solution is to reclaim control over the government.