CERS recommends best buys among 7 brands of tubelights

Ahmedabad, July 24 (UNI) City-based Consumer Education and Research Society (CERS), in its findings on the extended life test of samples of seven brands of 36 watt tubelights, has recommended Bajaj, Osram and Surya HBT Slimlite as the 'Best Buys' among the seven brands sold across the country.

The seven brands tested for extended life were Philips Slimlite, Surya HBT Slimlite, Crompton Super Saver XLR-36, Wipro Slimlite, Bajaj, Anchor Slimline and Osram.

Earlier, CERS had tested the same seven brands of 36W tubelights as per IS:2418 upto a life of 2000 hours and found samples of all brands conformed to the standards. Since it was not mentioned on the tubelights or their packing about declared life, CERS correspondence with the manufacturers revealed that the rated life is 5000 hours.

Hence, CERS lab tested ten samples each of seven brands of tubelights for two IS parameters, one Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) prameter and four additional parameters. The test was in two parts -- the first upto 3500 hours and the second upto 5000 hours.

CERS release said with the objective to provide more information to the consumers, it had conducted four additional tests on the tubelights involved life test, the adverage lumen maintenance, average efficacy and blackening of the ends upto 5000 hours.

CERS has conveyed the test findings to the manufacturers for their views and comments in which Osram informed that its internal reports match our test results while Crompton provided an explanation on its claim of extra life ring, extra life, extra light and extra efficacy.

However, CERS contends that all the brands test had a life of 5000 hours and that Crompton has compared light output and efficacy of its 36 W tubelights with its 40 W tubelights and not with other brands of 36 W tubelights.

CERS also tested 36 W Philips Slimlite tubelight marked with rated lumen 2450. But Philips informed that it has stopped manufacturing the 36 W Slimlite tubelight brand which, otherwise, placed second in the rank, the release added.

UNI