Tip o’ the Day: A Bright Idea
Have you heard this one before? "A light bulb walks into a bar…" Wait, that's not right. Let's try it again, "What's bright and light and white all over?" Okay, we're not the best joke tellers in the world, but we do know the punchline: CFL.
Switching over to compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) is one of those solutions that is so simple and so effective, we all just need to do it. Says EnergyStar.gov, if we all change just one incandescent bulb to a CFL, "we would save enough energy to light more than 2.5 million homes for a year and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of nearly 800,000 cars."
Sometimes there is a solution so simple, that we've just got to do it. Yes, CFL bulbs cost a little more, but they also last much longer and use a quarter of the energy. This means that you will save money on your electricity bill - around $30/year per bulb.
If you haven't made the switch yet, use today as your opportunity to do so. Some hints:
- Since CFLs last so long, they are great for hard to reach places. Imagine not having to change the bulb for 5 years!
- CFLs don't generate heat like incandescents do, so they won't make you cool the room any more than is absolutely necessary.
- CFLs do take a minute to warm up, so they are not as useful in closets or areas that a light is usually on for just a few seconds.
- You'll receive the biggest impact on your energy bill by replacing the lights you use the most often and for the longest period of time.
Rebecca says: I never wanted to switch because I remembered the CFLs from years ago in my grandparent's house. It felt like a fluorescent bulb with a very cold tone to the color of the light. Now, it is almost impossible to tell the difference. Plus, when else can you have the light on and think, "I'm saving energy right now?"
CFL Resources:
Tags: bulb, cfl, compact, fluorescent, light
February 3rd, 2007 at 9:12 am
(Insert somewhat humorous essay I sent y'all regarding CFL's and some of their design issues here)
Love 'em, but they drive we crazy!
February 3rd, 2007 at 10:38 pm
Classic California = Just ban the old incandescents! Californians are thinking about outlawing incandescents in favor of CFLs by 2012! California Could Outlaw Traditional Lightbulbs by 2012
February 10th, 2007 at 4:49 am
not to be critical.. i think. okay, a little critical.
it is true that CFLs are very efficient in the conversion of energy to light and are comparably cheap but.. they are also made with mercury, i've heard. the wikipedia article also says this, but i do not have a lot of knowledge on the topic and therefore can not verify this to be accurate information. if it is, however, they pose an environmental hazard as most people fail to recycle properly.
aside from this, CFLs look pretty ugly and emit a very strange, unhealthy color of light. the lighting may promote productivity in some situations, but let's face it, it's a pretty freaky color that reminds you of an office which i personally hate.
i personally recommend LED lighting, though relatively new as a source of light. LED bulbs are made of several of the small LEDs you usually see to produce light. i believe these are somewhat safer to dispose of, though they do not offer as great of conversion of energy as CFLs do. these do not have as warm of a color as incandescent bulbs, but are still more pleasant than CFLs. they have a high initial cost, but the savings in energy and ability to last long-term allows them to pay for themselves, as well as help the environment by saving in heat emissions.
let me know if any of this is wrong. i don't actively study or read articles on green energy often.
February 10th, 2007 at 2:55 pm
Regarding the CFL/Mercury issue, I'll quote Seth Godin (who references an article on Treehugger):
"It can't be the environmental impact. CF bulbs actually reduce the amount of mercury in the environment, because even though there's a tiny amount of mercury vapor in each bulb, the amount of coal production they cut down more than makes up for it. Add to that the hundreds of pounds of greenhouse gases they reduce… (if you had to buy and bring home the gases with each purchase, I think it would make a difference in the the relative sales)."
February 11th, 2007 at 10:47 pm
thanks for the info. i'll have to stand by my ugly CFL statement still, but i guess they're not as bad as i thought. also, going back to wikipedia, there's definitely something i missed. there's a handy little chart depicting the difference in mercury emissions levels.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:CFL_bulb_mercury_use_environment.svg
my mistake.