My longtime readers know that I’ve harped on talked to you about this before, but somebody did the math and found that by replacing the incandescent bulbs in their home to CFLs (compact fluorescent lamps) , they were saving $15.98 per billing period or $575.25 over the life of the bulbs (about seven years). They even slanted the numbers in such a way to figure on the extremely conservative side of any possible savings and still they came out with these figures.1 When you add in the benefits to the environment of CFLs, you’d have to be really stupid or stubborn not to switch.
Believe it or not, I’ve actually ran across some people on the blogosphere coming out against CFLs. These are the same people who seem to think global warming is a hoax. They’ve said that "radical environmentalists" are using fear-based tactics to sell CFLs and make a profit. Furthermore, there have been "investigative" new stories claiming that CFLs are bad for the environment because they contain mercury and that environmentalists are trying to hide this.
Let’s get the facts straight: CFLs do contain mercury, but it is an amount less than 1% of the mercury found in the average home thermometer. Furthermore, in many cases use of CFLs will offset mercury that would otherwise be introduced into the environment from other sources. For example, coal contains mercury and this mercury is released into the environment when coal is burned to produce electricity. Since CFLs use less electricity, less coal is burned, and less mercury released.2
Nevertheless, CFLs do need to be disposed of properly, and in most communities these days, that is an easy thing to do. No one is trying to hide the fact that CFLs contain mercury. In fact, it’s usually the so-called "radical environmentalists" making people aware that the bulbs should not be thrown in the regular trash. You can find out how to recycle a CFL bulb in your area here.
Lastly, I’ve heard some people complain "I don’t like the light from CFLs." Here’s the thing: just like incandescent bulbs, CFLs come in a variety of brightness-levels and brands. I had to experiment with a couple different brands and types until I found ones I liked. In particular, I found the CFLs from the company most associated with lightbulbs, GE, to be not to my liking. I instead went with the ones I found at Home Depot (I forget the brand). I used the soft white ones in the majority of my home, and the brighter ones in the bathrooms.
Well, I’ll get off my soapbox now. I know that many of my readers have already changed to CFLs in their homes, and I know the other readers will do the right thing.
For those of you unfamiliar with CFLs, here’s an excellent short video giving you an introduction in plain English:
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