Save Money with Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
Reducing your lightbulbs will reduce your energy consumption.
November/December 2006
By Natural Home Staff
How many people does it take to screw in a light bulb and save the planet?
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Just one: you.
Replacing a single 75-watt incandescent bulb with a 20-watt compact fluorescent bulb (CFL) will reduce your electricity consumption by roughly 550 kilowatt-hours over the bulb's life. That translates to 1,300 pounds less carbon dioxide and 20 pounds less sulfur dioxide released into the atmosphere. Multiply that by all the bulbs in your home, then by all the homes in your neighborhood-think of the savings.
Getting Started
1. Change any bulbs that burn many hours: hallways, kitchens, porches.
2. Begin with bulbs that are difficult to change. Switching to a CFL means you won't have to change it again for five to seven years.
3. Test a brand and bulb model before you purchase replacements for all your lights. Better quality CFLs produce no noticeable flicker; lesser quality bulbs may flicker or delay at startup.
4. Purchase CFLs in the 2700 Kelvin range if you want the light to approximate the yellow color you're accustomed to from incandescent bulbs. (The color temperature of light is rated in degrees Kelvin, or "K.")
5. Bulbs on dimming circuits or three-way lamps require CFLs specifically designed for those purposes. Using a standard CFL in a dimming circuit is a fire hazard.
CFL Bulb Benefits
Use less electricity: A typical CFL bulb uses 66 to 75 percent less electricity to produce the same amount of light as a comparable incandescent light bulb.