How do you feel about regular light bulbs being banned?

It is a good thing that you have stocked up, since 60-watt incandescent light bulbs will officially be verboten in the US as of next January 1...

 

1.) Well I guess this is an oppertunity for the free market to be creative and step in with a sollution. They said it was impossible to land a man on the moon as well. But they did it anyways. Dont get me wrong. I hear what your saying, and I do agree that the regulations were put in place to put a tight rope around incandecents ( which emmit I believe something like 60% of their energy in the form of heat. what a waste )

2.) I made the change from incandecents to CFL's. I honestly can not notice a single difference at all.




An

 

Good for you, but don't assume everyone else feels the same. There is a small but significant portion of the population that can't stand CFL light:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x6LNTdMVaU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIp7BZCSi_I

 

New options might emerge, but they will also be much more expensive. A 60-watt equivalent LED bulb, for example, costs 40 US dollars just for one of them.
We can also see what happened with CFL's, which were not dimmable. New versions emerged that could be dimmed became available, but they cost a whole lot more. Most people do not want to pay 18 dollars for a dimmable CFL when they could have just bought a fifty cent regular light bulb. And even these "dimmable" CFL's can only be dimmed about 50-60% before they start losing most of their brightness and efficiency. No one is going to be willing to pay 100 dollars for a bulb that solves all the problems and has excellent light. Most people will probably settle with the regular CFL's, despite all their problems.

What many people do not realise about the new energy efficient bulbs is that they will be paying more money for more light.
With the old incandescent bulbs, the same bulb cost the same, regardless of whether it was a 30 Watt or a 100 Watt bulb.

For those people who hate CFL's, they will have to buy two LED bulbs for every old 100 Watt bulb they replace, because no LED bulb is actually available that puts out the same ammount of light as a 100 Watt incandescent light bulb. That's going to be a very expensive initial cost. I know this because I actually bought a custom order "110 Watt equivalent" LED bulb through the internet. It only put out as much light as a 65 Watt bulb when compared under a regular lamp shade. The deception was that it did put out as much light as a 110 Watt incandescent — just only when measured in one direction!

Maybe energy costs are rising because your utility company is subsidizing energy efficient products and CFL's in the local stores. Another reason for the higher costs may be that they are not allowed to build a coal power plant. Or maybe immigration of fueling population growth and the electric supply has become overburdened.

 

Maybe energy costs are rising because your utility company is subsidizing energy efficient products and CFL's in the local stores. My utility company, for example, recently got approval to raise its rates to fund a trading scheme to promote energy efficient household appliances. My mother just got a discounted new refrigerator from the program (but of course she is really paying for all of it in the form of higher electric bills)

Uility companies subsidizing CFL's, passing costs on to their captive customers in the form of high price of electricity (remember, utility companies are granted a government monopoly and don't face competition)
http://greenwashinglamps.wordpress.com/category/incandescent-ban/cfl-subsidies/

Your electric bills may also be rising because the utility has to generate more power to compensate for the waste in the transmission lines created by the poor power factors of the "energy efficient" bulbs.
One study from New Zealnd suggested that it costs the utility company 5 dollars just to put in new capacitors to correct the power factor for every new CFL bulb that is used.

In other words, the price of electricity is going up because of all these new CFL bulbs!

 

Well it has no effect on my generator and all my lights are the HE type.

 

I think the free market should be allowed to function. If a good energy-conserving bulb can be produced and marketed, let it be. CFLs contain mercury, so they're not exactly a good replacement for the old bulbs if the environment is our concern.

 

i don’t care

 

who cares about some stupid light bulbs? are you that petty?

 

I honestly don't care, I just want some consistency.

I am just sick and tired of ideology being used against the American people, while those pulling the strings get to have their cake and eat it too!

If we are a free market society with no exceptions, then lets end all the tax breaks, and loop holes.

If we believe in regulation when the facts demand it, then lets do that.

It seems like they use our beliefs to make sure they fully screw us, and get no regulation, and a rigged system!

 

Our economy is quite defunct. It already can't function without our bloated government redistributing money all over the place, and even that isn't working out.

 

It all starts with the banks and capital allocation my friend.

 

Well, yeah, but then the government forms the rest of that big Fail Machine.

Why are we paying interest to private bankers for our own currency? Currency that they've borrowed into existence? It doesn't get any freaking dumber than that.

 

Sure it does, when the rational for giving the zero interest loans was to spur economic growth, but you combined investment banking and commercial banking together. So while at one time those zero interest loans partly went to small business growth, we now have a system where all the zero interest loans are going to the banking casino, because why make a 25k small business loan that returns 5K over 6 years, when instead you could bet it on a swap, and get twice the return in 1/4th the time.

I mean sure, you are more likely to lose betting on the swap, but why would you care?

You are a banker that gets paid based on how much you profit the company, with no penalty for losing money.

One may think this is insane to not pay bankers based on both losses, and profit, but this assumes it was the banks money that was lost, which after TARP we all know isn't the case.

 

"President George W. Bush’s war on incandescent light bulbs"

http://rescuetruth.com/energy/president-george-w-bushs-war-on-incandescent-light-bulbs/

"Note to Fox News: George W. Bush Banned Incandescent Light Bulbs"

http://www.politicususa.com/bush-light-bulb-ban.html


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I like the tax idea, we did it with cigarettes, so it's already proved constitutional I guess

then again the government can tell you what kinda plants you plant in your garden, so guess that has a proven record of being accepted by the public too

 

I don't think Bush really knew what he was signing. And I really doubt he had any idea that the efficiency mandate would ban incandescent light bulbs.

The energy efficiency mandate was buried deep inside a many pages of legislation. I have tried to read the whole Act, but the wording is so obtuse, and the law ridiculously complex. Realistically, the President just does not have time read through this type of thing. You can see how long and complex it is:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-110hr6enr/pdf/BILLS-110hr6enr.pdf

Here are the two provisions which will be used to ban incandescent light bulbs:

(ii) INTERMEDIATE BASE INCANDESCENT LAMPS.—
An intermediate base incandescent lamp shall not
exceed 40 rated watts.

(v) BACKSTOP REQUIREMENT.—
[. . . ]
if the final rule does not
produce savings that are greater than or equal to the
savings from a minimum efficacy standard of 45
lumens per watt, effective beginning January 1, 2020,
the Secretary shall prohibit the sale of any general
service lamp that does not meet a minimum efficacy
standard of 45 lumens per watt.

Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, Title III: Energy Savings Though Improved Standards for Appliance and Lighting,
B. Lighting Energy Efficiency

 

I am sure someone probably wrote Bush's speeches for him, but he did read them, at least as he was saying them....

"President Bush Signs H.R. 6, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 "

http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/12/20071219-6.html

"The bill also includes revisions to improve energy efficiency in lighting and appliances."


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Well, here is where I stop reading.

Didn't watch the video, but not surprised that a Paul equates light bulbs to abortion.

...the nut doesn't fall far from the tree.

 

It's a bit pointless really, although I voted to approve the ban. Americans are already destroying the environment with their gas guzzling pick up trucks so why bother banning incandescent light bulbs?

 

I am against the goverment telling what to buy of anything. Do I have to buy a GM car since we own so much of their stock. We have problems that they should be able to solve but so far that have failed. Perhaps in addtion to a new president we need a new congress.

 

I have to agree with governments doing this.
I went away from the older, far less efficient bulbs years before the change in the law.
The new ones produced far better light and cost far less to operate.
I'm moving to all LED now they're available at a reasonable price.

Quite why anyone would want to use old, expensive and inefficient technology when better is available, is beyond my understanding.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of new and old?

Old. Less and worse light, cost a comparative fortune to run.
New. Lower bills, more light and you need to change less as they last a lot longer (in general)
LED - I don't know how often you have to change them as I've not had to yet and my oldest is 4 years old. They hardly even register on the electricity meter. great, even, totally flicker free light.

You have to be stupid to want 100 year old technology when the new is so much better.

 

Just because you think the new bulbs are better does not mean everyone else does.
Environmentalists often have the mentality that just because they are happy changing something in their home to help the environment, everyone else should be forced to also.

Like I said, each type of light bulb gives off a different type of light. I have tried switching out some of my bulbs in my house with LED bulbs. The "warm white" LED's just do not give off the same type of light as the old incandescent bulbs. It has an orangish-purplish tint that looks off, and it also makes the colors in my house also look more dull and greyish (because of the discontinuous spectrum). For reading or doing paperwork, I really need an incandescent (or halogen) to concentrate. It is just more difficult for me to concentrate with an LED bulb, for some reason.

Like I already mentioned, my skin has some sensitivity issues. Those CFL lights irritate my skin and make it feel sore after about 15-20 minutes, probably because of the UV radiation that leaks out. There are special CFL bulbs with UV filters, but these are more expensive and still do not filter out all of the UV (and the filter also further reduces efficiency a little).

There are several disadvantages with CFL's, and they may not really be appropriate for all situations. Putting them near vibration or fans, or putting them inside an enclosed fixture can greatly reduce their lifetime. CFL's may only give off a very low level of light when it is very cold, so they may not be suitable for outside lighting in colder climates. And similarly, CFL's cannot be used inside many home appliances because of the heat or vibration. Normal CFL's also cannot be dimmed; they do not function properly (flicker or turning off) when put on a dimmer, and this also makes them burn out much faster. There are dimmable CFL's available, but these are much more expensive. Even including energy savings, it may be cheaper to use incandescent bulbs on a dimmer than a dimmable CFL bulb. CFL bulbs also lose 30% of their brightness over their rated lifespan. If the CFL bulb is used beyond its rated lifespan, the light will be even dimmer. Cheaper CFL bulbs can lose their brightness much faster, some of the inferior quality ones can even lose 40% of their light output after only 6 months of use. Cheaper CFL bulbs may also present a fire danger, especially if installed in a bathroom fan or enclosed fixture. In some cases CFL bulbs have exploded and/or shot out flames. It is also recommended to use a UV filtered CFL if they are being used close to ones face, as a reading light, or next to ones bed.

The main disadvantage with LED's is just their high initial expense (although their energy saving will eventually pay for themselves (assuming the bulb is not stolen).
LED's also lose 30% of their light output over the course of their life span (which is much longer, typically 14 years). So some people have suggested moving your LED to another location where you need less light after many years when the LED has become dimmer. The LED chip will burn out faster if it overheats, and this is why LED's have big cooling fins. These cooling fins can make it difficult to fit the LED bulb into many lamps and fixtures, which were designed for regular light bulbs. Putting an LED bulb in an enclosed fixture (such as a ceiling globe) can also reduce its lifespan. Regular LED's also do not do a good job of illuminating red or teal colored objects in a room, so if you have furniture with these colors, or artwork in the room, the current LED bulbs may not be the best choice.

The new bulbs also come with new disadvantages and problems. If someone really wants to use incandescent bulbs in their home or workplace, there should be a way that they can be allowed to do it. Forcing efficiency mandates, while good intentioned, was not really the fairest or best thought out way to get people to use less electricity.

 

I like the increased efficiency of the new bulbs yet think this matter should have been left to the individual states to decide, and honestly do not care very much whether people make the change. There are much bigger fish to fry - namely our use of staggering amounts of oil and coal to generate energy, lack of adequate recycling facilities in many locales, and the public's ongoing qualms about heavily investing in nuclear power.

 

It doesnt matter weather you think they are better or not. The fact remains that old incandeceant light bulbs are completley and entirely inefficiant. They actually bleed more energy into heat form than light form. And in an era when natural resources are getting harder and harder to obtain and refine, our nation should be doing everything it can to lower power consumption. And sometimes that means using something that MIGHT ( imo it DOESNT, in fact, I honestly cannot tell a difference AT ALL between old and new lightbulbs ) put out a SLIGHLTY less pleasing light to you, in return for a what.... 400% more efficiant? Oh darn... no... not that...

I know you dont like the government telling you what to do, and you feel that you should be able to hog as much power as you want when you want, cause, by golly, your a red blooded tax paying american darnit, and as long as I have money for what I want, I am entitled to have what I want! Cause thats what being a rugged individualistic American means right?!?!?