Triacs work fine if applied correctly. Recently I compared small SCRs against small triacs (~16A). Specs like i2t and dv/dt were similar so I gave up the thought of using two scrs instead of one triac. When you look at devices like the Semikron SKKT41 vs something like a BTA41-600 there is no comparison in performance or price. The semikron is an order of magbitude better in most specs and in price. Like most things in life, you get what you pay for. I would like to put semikron devices in all of my light dimmers as they almost never fail, but my customers don't want to pay the price. That is not to say the BTA41 is unreliable, but it is difficult to provide enough protection so it survives light bulbs blowing.