What You Need to Know about Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
Only an approximate of 6% of Americans are using compact fluorescent light bulbs. And that’s a lot of loss when it comes to energy conservation.
Tim Malooney of the Hoosier Environmental Council is one of the proponents of the use of compact fluorescent light bulbs due to the following reasons:
- the environment will benefit from the reduction of coal consumption
- consumers will save more money if compact fluorescent light bulbs are used in the long term
Here’s the math that will prove the money saving efficiency of these bulbs:
It would take you 5.3 regular bulbs to get 8000 hours of use versus the fluorescent lights. One bulb would last you 8000 hours. Still, the regular bulbs are cheaper at $2.88 versus $3.75 for the fluorescents, but the savings comes in the energy.
A normal 60 watt bulb over the 8000 hours will cost you $48.00 in electricity. But the lower wattage on the fluorescent bulb for that same 8000 hours will only cost you $12. That’s $36 for the life of the bulb.
However, there’s just one precaution that’s required. These compact fluorescent bulbs contain some Mercury so disposal needs to be done properly. Wear gloves and make sure the proper waste management people gets hold of it.
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Great info, Noel! Hubby and I switched to efficiency bulbs about 3 years ago and have noticed a dramatic decrease in our electric bill.
And, come to think of it, I don’t actually remember the last time we needed to change any of the bulbs. We moved in between and just brought them with us, and I don’t think I’ve purchased any more after the first batch. Wow! But now I know how to dispose of them when they do finally keel over, so thanks. :]
kk
I just hate the light that those bulbs produce. I can’t bring myself to use them. I guess I really need to though, maybe you get used to it?
There’s actually 4 colors to choose from.
* “Warm white” or “Soft white” (2700 K – 3000 K) provides a light very similar to that of an incandescent bulb, somewhat yellow in appearance;
* “White”, “Bright White”, or “Medium White” (3500 K) bulbs produce a yellowish-white light, whiter than an incandescent bulb still but on the warm side;
* “Cool white” (4100 K) bulbs emit more of a pure white tone; and
* “Daylight” (5000 K – 6500 K) is slightly bluish-white.
What I like most if I need the incandescent light effect is the “soft white”.
I have been in the lighting business for 20 years and have witnessed the evolution of the CFL. What I have found that the key to liking the light is directly associated to the brand bulb you buy. It is all about color temperature. Some brands cast a “white” light that is not easy on the eyes – what you want to look for are bulbs that truly produce 2700K.
We sell nearly every brand out there but I can absolutely say that what you want in your house is TCP brand. TCP is the largest producer of CFL’s in the world and from our experience as a distributor; we believe they are the closest to producing true 2700K. Whether you buy them from us is your choice but it makes me sick when I go into someone’s house and their yellow walls turned green – simply because of the color temp that the CFL produce.
Another option is Cold Cathode technology. These are lower wattage bulbs that produce a nice yellow light and come in a variety of designs. They work great in lamps that you want to leave on all the time. I have them in lamps in our house and they never go off… and I can unscrew them at any point with our burning my hand. They take a while to warm up but they are great for the environment and they cast a good light. Here is a link if you want to check them out.
http://www.soslightbulbs.com/shop/customer/home.php?cat=1703
We all want everyone to convert to CFL’s or LED’s or even the newest technology Cold Cathode Lamps BUT we all need to have a good experience when we plug them in AND actually like the light output. If any of you need or want to learn more go to http://www.soslightbulbs.com then click the home icon in the center of the page – we have put some pretty informative stuff on there, even a energy savings calculator.
I know that this sounds like I am selling BUT I want everyone to have a good experience with a conversion to low wattage CFL’s whether or not they buy them from SOS is really up to you. I think Home Depot is carrying a decent line of CFL’s that we have tested if you would prefer to buy them there. What is ultimately important is that we all try to conserve where we can and be less dependant on power companies to produce more and more energy through environmentally unfriendly means such as coal plants.
http://www.SOSLightBulbs.com
Great advice! There are CFLs in a variety of shapes and sizes now. We put together a guide to compact fluorescent lights to help you find bulbs you’ll be happy with. It includes where you can buy each bulb, photos to compare it with the incancdescent version it’s meant to replace and user reviews.
That sounds great… we just need to embrace the change and point people to the right product choices so they will be happy once they put them in their home.
Jason
http://www.SOSLightbulbs.com
Maybe because of the old wiring in the rented house (or maybe not), but for me, these bulbs burn out just as fast a regular bulbs. So, not only do I get hosed at checkout initially, I get pay through the nose again if I replace it with another CFL, *AND* if I choose to dispose of this hazardous waste properly, the city charges me a disposal fee of $2.50/bulb on top of everything else!
So in the end, the burned out bulbs get chucked in the trash (so much for greener bulbs, eh), and get replaced with “normal” bulbs.