Green is Universal: Incandescent Light Bulb

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Incandescent Light Bulb - RIP?

Posted at 05:58 PM on November 05, 2007 comments (5)

By Al Boline, SciFi.com

bulb Incandescent light bulb, ye who sprang from the loins of Thomas Edison, thy days are numbered. Already you've been banned in Australia starting in 2010. Now similar moves are being contemplated in Canada and the European Union. Has the nanny state run amok once again?

This guy at shoutwire.com thinks so. He acknowledges the advantages of compact fluorescent lighting - the main alternative to incandescents, at least for the time being - including energy savings and flexibility in color temperature. But he also offers a long list of cons: They don't produce a focused beam of light, don't work well in extreme temperatures, can't be battery-powered, pose a waste-disposal challenge due to mercury content, are too bulky for some light fixtures, don't quite duplicate the golden glow of incandescents, and have higher sticker prices (though they're cheaper to run). And, uh, they can't be used to incubate an egg or keep your lizard warm, because they run cool.

Follow the link below for a few issues he missed - and how a ban in the U.S. could work. (Disclosure: NBC Universal is owned by GE, which manufacturers light bulbs of all kinds.)

I'd add a few more negatives: Compact fluorescents aren't approved for use in places with high humidity (like your bathroom). Some of them don't work with dimmers. And some people claim their flickering can produce physical distress, though others call that a myth, pointing out that modern fluorescents cycle much faster than the eye or brain can process.

Having said that, I agree that incandescents should be banned. I've replaced 75% of the bulbs in my home and office with compact fluorescents and use the latter 95% of the time. They light my desk by day and my reading by night. Because they dissipate less energy in the form of heat, fluorescents use one-quarter as much energy as incandescents, thereby reducing global-warming gases and saving me money every month. They offset their initial cost by lasting much longer, and I enjoy my chosen color temperature of 4,100 kelvins, the hue of late-afternoon sunlight. Oh, and if you don't like fluorescents, you might try LED lights instead. There may even be a new breed of energy-saving incandescents from General Electric by the time the Australians pull the trigger.

So I'm in favor of the ban as long as it allows exceptions, so old-style incandescents can be used where they're still appropriate. Climate change is a real threat and we need to modify our behavior. If people respond by acting like babies - "I can't use my urine-colored luminescent space heaters anymore? Wahhh!" - maybe the nanny state isn't such a bad idea after all.

Al Boline
blog.scifi.com/tech/

comments

Posted by: Jefrey Rassas on November 6, 2007 09:21 AM

I appreciate the post/article but it is important to add that each CFL contains roughly 5mg of mercury. CFL's like any other bulbs will have a lifespan and ultimately burn out. When this happens they must be disposed of properly otherwise the mercury will find its way into the city dumps ultimately posing a much more substantial problem to our health and environment than the small traces of metal found in other bulb types.

Posted by: Ted on November 6, 2007 09:36 AM

CFL are great. I replaced my old light bulbs with them and have been thrilled with the results.

Posted by: David Curry on November 6, 2007 12:46 PM

In our rush to go green let us not forget the rule of unintended consequences. So, Australia has banned the incandescent light bulb, these lighting devices are being replaced with compact fluorescent devices. These compact flourecent devices are mostly made in China which has, at best, very weak environmental enforcement. Additionally these compact fluorescent devices contain small amounts of mercury. So let us compare:

Incandecent bulbs are comprised of steel, copper, tungsten and an inert gas.

Compact fluorescent devices are comprised of steel, copper, plastic (derived from oil), glass and small amounts of mercury 6mg. Also the compact fluorescent devices cantain a small circuit board containing over a dozen elctronic components (no doubt utilizing lead solder!) Think about our present disposal broblems with electronics such as computers!

These fluorescent devices are far from the green product they are promoted to be. Another cause celeb gone global.

Posted by: Ashley on November 28, 2007 03:04 PM

It is important to be aware of the mercury in CFLs. However, they are still helpful to the environment. Much of the mercury in the air currently comes from burning fuels, which are used to produce electricity in the US. CFLs use 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs and can last up to 10 times longer. With those numbers, the amount of electricity used can be cut down dramatically using CFLs. It is important to recycle CFLs, but since they last almost 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs it won't be that difficult to take this one small step. There is more information to answer questions on the subject here:

http://www.nvisioncfl.com/mercury.aspx

Posted by: David on December 26, 2007 03:12 PM

You guys crack me up. I am stockpiling incandescents until people finally awaken to the environmental catastrophe that billions of broken CVs will create.

It seems that people are generally slow to catch onto what they have done..but eventually, after much unintended damage, the 'uh-oh' moment finally arrives.

Get your superfund wallets open friends. Where will the money to cleanup these mercury tainted water tables and dumps come from? GE? Don't bet on it. This is just more feel-good legislation written by corporate special interest groups that in total will cause far more problems then they purportedly will solve.

If you thought Love Canal was something, just wait till you see this nightmare develop.