Well, really, I sorta knew this anyhow
(CNSNews.com) – At a time when fluorescent bulbs are gaining in popularity among global warming activists, politicians and consumers, Brandy Bridges discovered a dark side to energy-efficient lighting.
With Congress and state legislatures considering fluorescent-only legislation, the Prospect, Maine, resident is going against the grain – removing every compact fluorescent bulb from her home just months after installing them as part of a remodeling project.
The decision to take them down was prompted by safety concerns. Earlier, Bridges dropped a fluorescent bulb in her daughter’s room and it shattered, leaving potentially unsafe levels of mercury inside the rug.
At the suggestions of the state’s Department of Environmental Protection, she now has to pay $2,000 for a professional environmental clean up. Her seven-year-old daughter sleeps in the family room, as her room is sealed off by plastic.
Look, mercury is not exactly safe. As Snopes points out (hat tip to Silke in the post that Indian Chris beat me too), you do need to take lots of precautions in cleaning up a broken CFL, as well as it being a bad idea to just throw them away.
So, is it worth it? Should we take the risk of exposing ourselves, family, and pets to mercury contamination? And the extra effort in disposal? All for light bulbs that save extra money but cost more, and sometimes take longer to turn on?
Consider how many times a week you are around gasoline pumps. Not exactly safe to breathe the fumes, is it? Are you going to fill up the mower from the gas can? Woops, breathing fumes. Pull in to your garage? Breathing fumes. Sitting in traffic? Breathing fumes. You get the point.
I bet you thought I was going to say "no, it is not worth it." It is worth it. Almost every bulb in my townhome is a CFL. A few are regular fluorescents, one is something strange (in downstairs ceiling fan), and a few are regular. Why regular? Well, the light kit in one ceiling fan takes the small thread type bulb, and the only CFL’s available take a looooong time to turn up. However, I am going to replace the light kit (eventually). The chandelier in dining room is the same. And, I have those big round bulbs that are not covered in the upstairs bathrooms. Can’t be perfect.
I have experimented with them quite a bit. In regular lamps with shades, really doesn’t matter what you put in, but I prefer the Daylight ones. Really lights up a room nicely, great coloring. For ceiling fans, I recommend standard CFL types. Daylight is just way too bright.
Home Depot carries some of the best ones, come in green and blue packaging. They turn on quick, so, check them out.
All in all, it is worth it. Whether you believe in global warming or not, saving energy and lowering you power bills is a good thing. But still shouldn’t be regulated by government.
