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From Natural Life Magazine, May/June
2007
Ask Natural Life:
Shedding Light on Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
by Wendy Priesnitz
Q:
I
keep hearing that various places are going to ban incandescent light
bulbs. But I am aware of some problems with those compact
fluorescent bulbs that seem to be all the rage right now…and they’re
also quite expensive. Could you please sort through the confusion
and hype about them and any other possible alternatives?
A:
Incandescent bulbs are actually small heaters that produce a little
light on the side, wasting a lot of energy and creating a lot of
pollution. According to the Rocky Mountain Institute, residential,
commercial, industrial and municipal lighting uses 22 percent of all
the electricity generated. In the U.S. alone, lighting accounts for
about 39 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions from electric
generating plants. So we’re not surprised that many governments are
talking about trying to switch consumers from incandescents to other
carbon neutral technologies.
The primary alternative at the
moment does seem to be compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs.) However,
while they do save a significant amount of energy – they use
approximately one quarter of the energy used by incandescent bulbs –
they are far from the perfect alternative that some of the rhetoric
might suggest. So we’ll examine both the pros and cons of CFLs, then
take a look at some other alternatives.
Not Those Buzzing Tubes
Those ubiquitous, headache-inducing, glaring and buzzing tubes found
in offices and stores have gone compact and – dare we say it? –
upscale. And they’ve lost most of their annoying qualities. If
you’re lucky, you’ll find compact fluorescents that rival the warm
light of traditional bulbs and that don’t buzz. But depending upon
where you live, you may need quite a lot of patience and
determination, in addition to luck, because the selection can be
spotty and not always match your needs. There are large differences
in terms of quality of light, cost and turn-on time among different
manufacturers, even for bulbs that appear identical.
Some of these differences are due to poor
manufacturing. Since CFLs are relatively high in cost compared to
incandescents, there is an opportunity for marginal manufacturers to
sell cheaper, lower quality bulbs.
One of the ways that can surface is in the quality
of light: Incandescent filaments emit the full spectrum of light,
but most fluorescent lamps don’t. Manufacturers must create a
mixture of different phosphors in a CFL in order to approximate the
warmth of daylight or incandescent light. However, that increases
cost, so you might find that the less expensive bulbs emit a colder,
more glaring light, which can be inappropriate for some residential
uses.
Some people worry about the health effects –
including fatigue – of living without the full light spectrum.
Full-spectrum CFLs are now available, which mimic natural light and
have all the energy-saving benefits of regular CFLs. Of course, they
are more expensive than regular CFLs.
Deciding which one to buy can be a bit tricky.
Incandescent bulbs are known by how much power it takes to light
them – a 40-watt bulb is on the dim side and uses less power; a
100-watt bulb is bright and uses a lot of juice. Energy-saving CFLs
provide much more light per watt. To get a CFL with the right amount
of light, choose one that...
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Wendy Priesnitz is the Editor of
Natural Life Magazine and a journalist with over 30 years of
journalism experience. She has also authored nine
books.
Read her
blog.
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