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175 Comments
- Wreckage, on 07/20/2009, -2/+383 letters can save us all.
L E D
They just need to start mass producing them and bring the price down. - mostie, on 07/20/2009, -12/+44Now I'm being told what kind of light bulbs I have to use?
- thegoldenshovel, on 07/20/2009, -0/+26LED light bulbs are the way to go, but they're just so darn expensive.
- scoottie, on 07/20/2009, -11/+27You mean ramming regulations through without putting any thought into them or even reading them is not the the best way of doing it?
- ricksite, on 07/20/2009, -1/+16Fluorescent tubes have mercury in them too. People are kinda acting like this is a new problem. I can only imagine how many fluorescent tubes are thrown away everyday.
- duewydo, on 07/20/2009, -3/+15I don't know why they want to mandate CFLs now when LED bulbs are right around the corner and should be more efficient and eco-friendly than CFLs. Wait and do it right, LEDs should last longer, be brighter and be way less toxic, probably even easier to recycle then a standard light bulb...
- Rufunki, on 07/20/2009, -0/+11What is D then a number?
LED is - Light Emitting Diode.... - Scottamus, on 07/20/2009, -2/+13a CFL pollutes much less mercury than an incandescent bulb juiced by a coal plant does. Even if the CFL is landfilled.
http://www.energystar.gov/ia/partners/promotions/c ...
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/ab/CFL_ ... - niradg, on 07/20/2009, -2/+12next thing you know they'll be taking away your personal nuclear reactor and bioweapon factory.
- funhouse1970, on 07/20/2009, -18/+28Welcome to the Green Nanny State!
- ChronicColonic, on 07/20/2009, -7/+16Is too.
- Rndm_Tngnt, on 07/20/2009, -1/+10How were they making you sick?
- Gemfinder, on 07/20/2009, -2/+11In four years, CFLs will probably be on the way out.
People know there's mercury in them (BTW, there's mercury in smoke detectors, too), and LED lightbulbs are hitting the market.
It should go noted that LEDs save even *more* energy, last at least as long as CFLs, look like incandescent bulbs on the outside, don't flicker, don't hum or buzz, and don't contain mercury. - zbeast, on 07/20/2009, -1/+10Have you priced an LED light bulb...
It's more like it's a around the corner and about a mile away. - Presbyterian, on 07/20/2009, -1/+9Funny how alot of technology is always "around the corner"...
- colinnwn, on 07/20/2009, -1/+9No one has mandated CFLs, they mandated better electrical performance than current incandescents. Phillips is trying to license new incandescent technology that will meet the new federal requirements. CFLs don't last forever and don't require a massive investment of funds or infrastructure since most are based on the standard light bulb base. CFLs contain a small amount of toxic material, but less mercury than the equivalent mercury in coal belched into the environment to run an incandescent. So there is no reason not to switch to CFL now, and whatever improvement comes next.
- scoottie, on 07/20/2009, -14/+22It might not be but the man made part of it is since the earth warms and cools by itself.
- niradg, on 07/20/2009, -9/+17buried for being from the washington times, the personal news outlet of an insane cult leader.
- Brooks007, on 07/20/2009, -1/+8yes please enlighten us...
- megaton, on 07/20/2009, -0/+7(BTW, I don't regularly throw away my smoke detector. (There are also radioactive materials in it! *gasp!*))
- MWeather, on 07/20/2009, -4/+11"Now I'm being told what kind of light bulbs I have to use?"
They're applying standards already applied to other electrical devices. No other device that wastes 90% of the energy it consumes is allowed to be sold. - colinnwn, on 07/20/2009, -1/+7To my knowledge there is NO mercury in smoke detectors (other than a small amount in solder of all electronics in non ROHS countries). I think you are getting confused about the tiny amount of the radioactive element Americium in smoke detectors. Throwing them away is a non-issue if they are broken.
LED energy usage is higher or lower versus CFL depending on the doping technology used. They generally last MUCH longer than CFL when properly engineered. They may look like incandescent bulbs on the outside (shoot you can even do this with CFLs) but the light is much different, tending to be whiter and more focused rather than yellower and diffuse. LEDs may also flicker if they use cheap AC>DC single wave transformer. Take a good look at cheap Christmas lights. - mgraves81, on 07/20/2009, -7/+12@MWeather
Umm actually temperatures are in a cooling trend right now. - darkmagician777, on 07/20/2009, -0/+5Simply put - consumers want to be able to toss the compact light bulb in the trash no worries. How the manufacture gets there is not the consumer problem. Instead of relying on the consumer to properly dispose of the light bulb - how bout make them without Mercury or stop making compact florescent all together and go L.E.D.!
Government should regulate the manufacture and remove any toxic and all toxic levels to the consumer. Where is the government regulation to protect the consumer from so called toxic expose. - TJ11240, on 07/20/2009, -7/+12There's a net reduction in mercury pollution because CFLs use 1/4 of the power of incandescents. Less fossil fuel use. People need to look at the whole picture.
- jetboyterp, on 07/20/2009, -16/+21Man-made global warming is a hoax.
- Rotzooi, on 07/20/2009, -1/+6FUD
- magamiako, on 07/20/2009, -1/+6I think the point of the matter that nobody has seemed to make here is that the "anti-change" people (the conservatives that stick to their incandescent bulbs no matter what) don't care about how little or how much mercury either bulb puts out. But rather where this mercury is ultimately located.
Fact: CFL Mercury Amount < Mercury Amount relased by burning more coal to power incandescent bulbs
Fact: CFL Mercury goes in home, Incandescent Mercury goes into environment/incinerator/space/dev/null (WHO THE HELL KNOWS BUT IT'S NOT IN MY HOUSE!)
And I think that's the point that they are trying to make. Nevermind the fact that the mercury eventually gets released into streams and rivers, which gets absorbed by the fish they eat either. It's more or less like they don't give a ***** unless it immediately affects them.
Other CFL/Flourescent facts:
-Your schools, doctor's offices, hospitals, fish tanks, reptile lighting, and workplaces ALL use flourescent lighting.
The real reason why they even bother to oppose this pretty much comes down to money. A CFL bulb costs more $ than your average incandescent. Not to mention the bulbs are "weird looking", so they don't quite understand it. It's new, it's something that came out during their lifetimes and not something that's "been there since they were born." They're scared of it.
The reason why they don't care about the hospitals and schools using fluorescent lighting or CFL bulbs is because it's out of sight and out of mind. They're not making the purchasing decision.
It's also something they oppose on ideology. They're not opposed to fluorescent bulbs because everyone else uses them. They're opposed to CFL bulbs because "libtards" are "pushing them to require them". - solecize, on 07/20/2009, -0/+5What waste- I like to cook my eggs on a 120 watt bulb while I read.
- TJ11240, on 07/20/2009, -0/+5Shouldn't you be over with the people who are pissed about wiretapping?
- inactive, on 07/20/2009, -0/+5LED's are in use just about everywhere right now. He's talking about cost efficiency. Check out the brake lights on the next new car you see.
Just like global warming, LEDs are real. - chesterogilvie, on 07/20/2009, -11/+15But it's a GLOBAL EMERGENCY! We must act now, NOW. No time to read the bills!
- funhouse1970, on 07/20/2009, -27/+31This bulb is the perfect analogy to the whole manmade global warming hoax. It is actually bad for the environment because it contains mercury -- any breakage and your house is a toxic spill zone.
- PityDaFool, on 07/20/2009, -1/+5Only problem is you can't dim CFLs. So much for mood lighting.
I love CFLs and gladly choose to use them 90% of the time, but you shouldn't outlaw the other 10% where incandescent bulbs are needed. - blapierre, on 07/20/2009, -4/+8You don't need higher wattage CFLs. Watt for watt, CFL's produce about 4 times more lumens. A 100 watt CFL would be equivalent to a 500 watt incandescent, which would be blinding.
- Zomgondo, on 07/20/2009, -0/+4Don't you go throwing your scientific evidence around like it makes you right or something! Everyone knows the truth has a liberal bias!!!!!!!
- SkippyDoorknob, on 07/20/2009, -0/+3No one mentioned it because that's wrong.
Here's the steps to take according to the Environmental Protection Agency:
http://www.epa.gov/mercury/spills/index.htm#fluore ...
I can't seem to find the part about calling a Hazmat team or tearing out carpet. - brenisa, on 07/21/2009, -1/+4CFLs were a huge waste for me. And I wanted them to work. I put them in my house and within months they gave off seizure producing flickering light or blew out and all of them had to be removed. I took them all out and went back to incandescent lights, which lasted longer and looked better. CFLs are a scam.
Besides, the lights in the house are not your biggest expense. It's the heat and air conditioning that uses all the power. - DeathToaster, on 07/20/2009, -1/+4What if I don't want a CFL? They have poor color rendering and can't be dimmed.
- katana0182, on 07/23/2009, -0/+3Incandescent bulbs can be sold past 2020; they just have to be as efficient as CFLs. So tell the inventors to get to work.
BTW: If you're really serious about wanting to reduce mercury, get rid of the coal-burning monstrosities that spew megatons of mercury, CO2, and 100 times more radiation than a nuclear power plant does into the atmosphere. And stop fudging around with windmills and solar panels, because they don't work enough of the time to make a difference.
There is only one type of power generation that can replace coal, works all the time, everywhere, doesn't depend on nature to make its energy, doesn't emit CO2, doesn't emit mercury, in fact, it doesn't emit anything except for a few tons of solid waste a year, which can be turned into new fuel by applying a simple chemical process. France uses it nearly exclusively, and France has one of the cleanest environments AND the cheapest electricity of any of the industrialized countries. France also doesn't have to cut their carbon emissions nearly as much as everyone else does.
Guess what that is. - inactive, on 07/20/2009, -1/+4It's retarded. CFL's aren't suitable for everywhere. They don't like turning on and off a lot. So in a room where you only need a light for a short time eg. Kichens, bathrooms, toilets, laundry,entranceways etc - CFLs will die quickly. A CFL that would otherwise last 3 years will last 3 months if you're lucky.
In main living areas where the light will be on for at least a few hours at a stretch - Perfect. That's where they belong. Forcing consumers to use these lights where thy don't belong is ridiculous. It's no longer friendly to the environment if we're forced to throw bulbs out every few months because they died prematurely - Yage2006, on 07/21/2009, -0/+3Given how dumb most of the general public is they should rethink this and wait for a better solution. Its too much wishful thinking to assume everyone is going to dispose of these correctly. I bet 80% will end up in the trash.
Might as well make the bulbs out of cyanide and arsenic. - mgraves81, on 07/20/2009, -2/+5No one and I mean no one can get their hands on my personal nuclear reactor!
http://www.hyperionpowergeneration.com/
From the Site:
Who would have thought that the benefits of generating electricity from huge nuclear power plants...
…could ever be provided in a small, compact, energy module that can be transported by truck, rail or ship to remote locations wherever reliable electricity and heat for communities and industry is needed?
And:
http://www.thetechherald.com/article.php/200846/24 ...
"Small and self-sufficient nuclear reactors could well be providing cheap and efficient power around the world within the next five years, according to U.S. Department of Energy scientists working out of Los Alamos, New Mexico. "
You can soon pick one up at Wal-Mart for a cool $25 mil.
No joke!
...well maybe the Wal-Mart part. - Mnementh2230, on 07/21/2009, -0/+3Actually, the tech IS there - they're using them in Europe, and they're available here in the US, too. The supply is just very limited at the moment. I checked this weekend, and I could pick up a bulb for about $100 - not really my cup of tea, yet. The folks at the lighting store said to check back in about 6 months, and prices should have dropped considerably by then.
From wikipedia:
"In January 2009, researchers from Cambridge University reported a process for growing gallium nitride (GaN) LEDs on silicon. Production costs could be reduced by 90% using six-inch silicon wafers instead of two-inch sapphire wafers. The team was led by Colin Humphreys."
The problem here is supply and demand. The demand is pretty damn high, considering the things will emit light for years - 25,000 to 100,000 hours (which, at 8 hours per day, amounts to 8 to 34 years respectively). Meanwhile, the supply hasn't caught up, because production hasn't ramped up yet (and probably hasn't started using the Gallium nitride growth process yet). Just give it a year or two. I'm going to stick with incandescent bulbs for just a little while longer, then jump to LEDs once the price comes down enough. I'd go CFL, but to then go LED in another 2 years would be cost prohibitive. Besides which, the light quality I get from CFLs is sub-standard, IMO. - TJ11240, on 07/20/2009, -2/+5I don't know why I'm being buried.
Read the table at the bottom of page 1.
http://www.energystar.gov/ia/partners/promotions/c ... - tomarocco, on 07/20/2009, -2/+5I gots quicksilver in my tooths
- SkippyDoorknob, on 07/20/2009, -0/+3akchrs, I really hope you come back to this thread to explain what you meant, the curiosity is killing me.
- Suricou, on 07/21/2009, -0/+3This reminds of of the Discovery Institute's very long list of scientists who have rejected evolution. Most of the scientists on the list are from completly unrelated fields, not even biologists at all - and a lot of them arn't even aware they are on the list, and strongly agree with the theory of evolution. They merely made one statement at some time which the DI took out of context and interpreted as permission to add them.
- inactive, on 07/21/2009, -0/+3You mean the nanny state that forced stores to stop selling you flammable children's pajamas, or the one that mandated airbags in cars.
The article doesn't point to a specific bill, legislator, or government agency, or indeed to any specifics at all. Just a vague 'the governments taking my filaments away!'.
Right wingers are just suckers for a good 'bad government' story. -
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