"But there could be hope for those wanting to keep using the incandescent variety ? as retailers have found a loophole which allows them to get around the new rules. The EU directive banning the 40W bulb, which comes into force on September 1, refers only to those meant for 'household lamps', meaning shops can continue to supply bulbs intended for 'industrial use' ?.
get around=20
What happens if you have a home-office and the garage is your shop?
"KNOCK! KNOCK!, UN Energy Police! Open Up!" "We know from our energy scans that you have contraband light bulbs in use in your home, OPEN UP NOW! or we will crash through your door!" ^_^
TDD
CFLs now work so well theres no reason to use incadecents for most applications. I am looking at LED bulbs for some applications
Utter nonsense.
Not there yet.
LED lighting is improving all the time and I think the technology will be the standard within a decade. There is not the mercury pollution problem with them but someone will find that LED lights cause you to grow a third eye or some such nonsense. ^_^
TDD
Incandescents are the best for news group circle-jerking. No question about it.
You are the expert.
The local DOLLAR STORE has LED night lights which draw about .3 watts, for a dollar. They put out almost as much light as the
4 or 7 watt incandescents, and last a lot longer. I am impressed by the high brightness versions of LEDs, and hope for the price to come down for the larger models. I currently use CFLs throughout the house and, although I really railed against the government as an initial reaction, I am very happy with being able to reach up and unscrew a bulb without burning my hands..... It may be a couple bucks more up front, but the decreased load on my air conditioning together with the decreased electric cost for lighting makes it a good business decision.
Actually, technology will prevail. We probably don't need not stinking law. CFLs are actually pretty good and are getting better. LED stuff has come a long way and will continue to improve. I built a new home 3 years ago and installed all CFLs. However, there was one place where they were a dismal failure ... over the bathroom mirror. Either they started out so dim or took so long to to even come on. So, they are now incandescent. I'd bet if they were replace today, I'd find something that would be ok. But, they don't get that much use anyway ... in the grand scheme of things it won't change much. I would like to replace the light that are on every night, with LEDs, but they are just not there yet.
Agree, I haven't bought incandescent household bulbs in years. "heybub" will milk this for years to come with his important announcements though...
We had some new offices and a conference room added and used LED lighting and I am really impressed how far they have come along.
We just had some additional office space constructed and used LED lighting. I am impressed how well it works and how pleasing the light output is.
Get some newer CFLs. The new ones come on so quickly that I don't notice a difference.
If CFL is such a good decision, people will make the decision on their own. Not having to be forced by government mandate. The choice should be left to consumers, not to government dictates from above.
The USA is supposed to be the land of the free, not the land of the government dictates.
Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus
although I really railed against the government as an initial reaction, I am very happy with being able to reach up and unscrew a bulb without burning my hands..... It may be a couple bucks more up front, but the decreased load on my air conditioning together with the decreased electric cost for lighting makes it a good business decision.
It's all silly. Those countries -including the U.S. and Canada - which phased or are phasing out standard incandescent bulbs have always had exceptions for rough service, decorative, appliance and other incandescent bulbs.
As I read the laws, incandescent bulbs will be around a lot longer than most of us particularly now that at least one company has introduced halogen bulbs that meet the new standards. The so called "2X" bulb puts out 1600 lumens, draws 50 watts (instead of 100) and is rated for 1500 hours life.
See:
I agree. There are a few "sweet spots" for home use of LEDs already -- replacements for "can" downlights is one. Prices are coming down, they're dimmable and the quality of light is fine. Power per unit usually drops from 65 to 10 or 12 watts after changing.
Energy Police? Haven't seen any, haven't heard of any and even the paranoid bulb-worriers are coming up dry.
Tomsic
Also, you can get CFLs that give you WHITE light, rather than the dirty yellow of incandescents.
The SUN is a dirty yellow and the eyes of all creatures are adapted to it.
"HeyBub" wrote
A "rough service" bulb is typically a bulb with a filament designed for a higher voltage than its ultimate use, for instance 265 volts in Europe instead of 240, or 125 volts in the USA instead of 110 volts. This means that the filament burns dimmer and lasts far longer because it's not burning as hot. It also means that it gives off more heat and less light, and thus is less efficient as a lamp.
Another workaround that they're doing in Australia is selling incandescent bulbs as "heat lamps" instead of as lights.
"bob haller" wrote
For most, but not for all. An incandescent lamp puts out light across the full spectrum. A CFL puts out 3 or 4 distinct bands of color (which you can easily see with a refracting lens). This difference may look okay to the eye at first, but try using a CFL to look at your face in the mirror. Instead of looking the picture of health you look ill and ghostly because CFLs are horrible on skin tones. CFLs are also poor for existing light photography.
A couple other things I don't like about CFLs is that they start up dim and then gradually brighten, making them a nuisance in a low-light or totally dark room. And then they tend to smell with an "electric smell" which is also annoying.
Lastly, when they burn out they do it with a flourish. Instead of a bright flash and a pop as incandescents do, a CFL usually smokes and gives off a bad smell when it burns out. The white base also becomes discolored with smoke. There is nothing wrong with the way these burn out -- they're designed to burn out exactly the way I said, but they're frightening to people unaccustomed to seeing them burn out.
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