Compact Fluroecent CFL Light Bulb Video

 

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs)

How are they better?

-Use 75% less electricity

-Last 5 to 10 times longer

-Same Light Output as regular light bulbs

 
Which ones to replace in your home?

-Replace a 60W Incandescent with a 13w Spiral CFL

-Replace a 100W Incandescent with a 23w Spiral CFL

-Replace a 65W Flood Light with a 15w Flood CFL

 

 

Video Narration:

Here are two things that nobdoy wants to see increase: Your power bill and pollution.  Boo!  We're going to show you steps you can take to turn these arrows the other way. Yay!

We're focused on your household light bulb, the incandescent kind.  The chances are, there's one within a few feet of you right now.  Go ahead, look around.  That ligth bulb is not cool anymore.  It's the VCR of light bulbs and it's quickly becoming obselete - and for good reason.  It's being replaced by a new type of bulb.  It's called a compact fluorescent or CFL and is an easy way for you to make a big difference.

 

Here are two reasons why. The real problem is coal, which is used to create over 50% of our electricity. When you turn on a light bulb, most of the electricity that powers that bulb comes from burning coal. When it's burned in power plants, CO2 and other pollution is released into the air. More burning coal equals more pollution - not cool at all. If that wasn't enough, coal also costs money. The more you burn for electricity, the higher your power bill. So the ultimate goal is to burn less coal by using less electricity.

 

Here's why new light bulbs matter. If you replace that old light bulb with a new CFL, you can save money and help prevent pollution at the same time. Consider these three big points:

First, lets say you have a lamp in your house that you leave on for one full year - 24/7. You start with a 750 hour incandescent bulb that lasts about a month. This means that over a year you'll use about 12 bulbs for the lamp. At sixty cents a bulb, that's $7.20.  Now compare that to a single CFL that costs about $4. A CFL in the exact same lamp will last 10,000 hours.  That's the same as about 13 regular light bulbs. This should be clear - less hassle, less money. But the last two points are the big ones.

 

Lighting accounts for on average, about $20 of a $100 monthly power bill. And CFL's use one quarter of the power of an incandescent bulb. This means that using CFL's can lower a $100 power bill to $85 a month. That's cool!

 

And finally, switchign to CFL's can prevent hundreds of pounds of CO2 pollution each year. That pollution is a cause of global warming.

 

So you can see the point: CFL's are simply a smarter way to light your home.  If you're still not convinced, notice that these aren't the buzzing blue tube lights from the kitchen of your past.  CFL's have come a long way lately.

Popular Mechanics did a blinded study with new CFL's and participants preferred the CLF light compared to incandescent bulbs and they fit in the same fixtures.

The question to ask is why not switch to CFLs? The next time you're at the store pick up a four pack of CFL's and replace the bulbs that are on the most - maybe the porch lights.  Then ask your friends "Why haven't you switched? Are you still watching movies with a VCR?"