In Which I Express Concerns
So CFL's (compact fluorescent light bulbs) really aren't so green after all. Apparently Home Depot is experiencing a very high rate of return on them since they don't last near as long as advertised - sometimes not even as long as the incandescents they're supposed to replace. There are at least three reasons for this:
1. When they are used "upside down" in a ceiling fixture rather than in a table lamp configuration, they tend to "cook" themselves.
2. Fluorescent don't cope well being turned on and off several times a day, or being turned on for only short periods of time, the way most homes use them.
3. Finally, they don't cope very well with cold weather - like, say, most of Canada has for at least half the year. There is even anecdotal evidence that homes that have made a complete switch to CFLs have compensated up turning up their thermostats, effectively cancelling out any energy savings from the CFLs.
In addition, CFLs have mercury in them! Yes, it's enclosed and has "less mercury than an average home thermometer" but a) most homes only have one thermometer and at LEAST 10 light sockets (generally more) and b) a lot of folks any more use digital thermometers that don't have any mercury at all. In Europe, CFLs are banned from landfills, but here there is no such protection, even though people are "encouraged" to recycle them through programs such as that run by Home Depot. Maybe a CFL won't release mercury while it's in use, but as soon it goes into a trash compactor or gets bulldozed in a landfill ...
And experts say that if you accidentally drop one at home, you should immediately open all the windows and use rubber gloves while you sweep up (not vacuum!) the shards. Uh huh. That makes me feel REALLY safe.
And then there's the disturbing little problem that vast majority of CFLs are made in China and must be shipped here, which means any potential energy savings by the consumer are over-shadowed by the amount of energy expended to get them to the consumer.
One things I didn't know until today was the other problem CFLs have. They create harmonics which can disrupt radio frequencies (including those used for cellphones and WiFi), create feedback loops in power grids (solar panel power is especially susceptible) and trigger migraines. Joyful. Of course, I should have made the connection. I don't really get migraines, but I do get headaches trying to read by fluorescent light, and feel poorly when I spend extended periods in fluorescent-only environments; especially if the ballast is a little off.
And yet, the US is planning on banning incandescents by 2012. That's only four years away. I don't think it's a wise plan. Yes, incandescents use a lot of energy. Yes, LEDs *might* be better than either incandescents or CFLs. However, looking for a "magic bullet" in a product is not going make the bigger issue go away. We need to wean ourselves from the over dependence on electric light: build homes that use natural light, build *offices* that allow for the use of natural light, adjust our schedules to take as much advantage of daylight as possible, cut down on the use of floodlights and other "scattershot" approaches to outdoor lighting, and finally, do what folks have been saying since the '70s: if you're not using it, turn it off.
1. When they are used "upside down" in a ceiling fixture rather than in a table lamp configuration, they tend to "cook" themselves.
2. Fluorescent don't cope well being turned on and off several times a day, or being turned on for only short periods of time, the way most homes use them.
3. Finally, they don't cope very well with cold weather - like, say, most of Canada has for at least half the year. There is even anecdotal evidence that homes that have made a complete switch to CFLs have compensated up turning up their thermostats, effectively cancelling out any energy savings from the CFLs.
In addition, CFLs have mercury in them! Yes, it's enclosed and has "less mercury than an average home thermometer" but a) most homes only have one thermometer and at LEAST 10 light sockets (generally more) and b) a lot of folks any more use digital thermometers that don't have any mercury at all. In Europe, CFLs are banned from landfills, but here there is no such protection, even though people are "encouraged" to recycle them through programs such as that run by Home Depot. Maybe a CFL won't release mercury while it's in use, but as soon it goes into a trash compactor or gets bulldozed in a landfill ...
And experts say that if you accidentally drop one at home, you should immediately open all the windows and use rubber gloves while you sweep up (not vacuum!) the shards. Uh huh. That makes me feel REALLY safe.
And then there's the disturbing little problem that vast majority of CFLs are made in China and must be shipped here, which means any potential energy savings by the consumer are over-shadowed by the amount of energy expended to get them to the consumer.
One things I didn't know until today was the other problem CFLs have. They create harmonics which can disrupt radio frequencies (including those used for cellphones and WiFi), create feedback loops in power grids (solar panel power is especially susceptible) and trigger migraines. Joyful. Of course, I should have made the connection. I don't really get migraines, but I do get headaches trying to read by fluorescent light, and feel poorly when I spend extended periods in fluorescent-only environments; especially if the ballast is a little off.
And yet, the US is planning on banning incandescents by 2012. That's only four years away. I don't think it's a wise plan. Yes, incandescents use a lot of energy. Yes, LEDs *might* be better than either incandescents or CFLs. However, looking for a "magic bullet" in a product is not going make the bigger issue go away. We need to wean ourselves from the over dependence on electric light: build homes that use natural light, build *offices* that allow for the use of natural light, adjust our schedules to take as much advantage of daylight as possible, cut down on the use of floodlights and other "scattershot" approaches to outdoor lighting, and finally, do what folks have been saying since the '70s: if you're not using it, turn it off.