For a long time, we have known about compact fluorescent light bulbs. However, for a long time they were hard to get and quite expensive. In the old days (you know a couple of years ago) these gems only came in one strength. They were ugly and often didn’t fit in a regular lamp with a shade. To make matters worse, you can’t just throw them away. That has all changed!
These handy little guys are available at nearly every major retailer these days. They use a lot less energy and save you money. While these bulbs are more expensive per unit, they will pay for themselves in no time. Major retailers and home stores are now recycling them. They come in many different wattages, sizes and shapes. They also come in lots of color temperatures, from soft and warm to a colder, bluer daylight tone.
Spiral CFL
Beyond all that, here is why I love them. I live in a Victorian home. We have some older wiring, some newer. We also have minor power surges. My conventional bulbs were bowing out all the time. And when one went, they all seemed to go. With high ceilings and chandelier fixtures, I was endlessly dragging out the ladder and unscrewing the fixture covers to replace the bulbs. I have changed out nearly every light bulb to compact fluorescent, and I haven’t had to change a bulb since. I even bought extra, as I was so used to running out and I haven’t opened a new pack. The last bulb I changed out was in January, and the first was more than a year ago. We also kept the house on the darker side. Modern bulbs draw more energy than when this place was wired. Lamps, too, are rated for bulb wattage. CFL’s draw a lot less wattage of energy for the same brightness. With these babies, I can put in any strength I want. Now, I use a single bright bulb drawing less energy than one lower wattage conventional bulb, and I have the light of two or three-and they are only getting better. Energy Star rated bulbs use75% less energy! They are cooler as well, so I don’t have to worry about the lampshade being too close to the bulb.
According to the Energy Star website:
If every American home replaced just one light bulb with an ENERGY STAR qualified bulb, we would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year, more than $600 million in annual energy costs, and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of more than 800,000 cars.
Think about it-it is an easy way to help offset that SUV that the guy across the street has running while it is warming up…
Tags: compact fluorescents, Energy Star, Go Green
we’re totally those other guys w/ the SUV (well…just Aaron). we’re starting to phase out all our conventional bulbs…slowly but surely, they’ll be replaced with the CFLs as the old bulbs burn out.
yay for your blog! i’m going to add it to my blog-o-rama