Are you stocking up on light bulbs?
 

On Jan. 1 it will become illegal to manufacture or import traditional 60-watt and 40-watt incandescent bulbs. I have been buying them by the case. I have to have good lighting and the swirly lights just do not give good all over lighting and gives me a headache. :(

We switched to compacts fluorescent (the swirled kind) years ago, but we did find
out fast that to get the BEST "true" lighting from the CF's that you needed to get
the 6500k DAYLIGHT kind (they have a brighter white), otherwise your lighting has
a yellowish haze.

We haven't purchased any incandescent bulbs since we switched everything over.

I have to say we are VERY happy with the CF's.

My eye doctor said he has had more complaints from his patients about the lights causing headaches, I guess because more are using them.

I switched awhile ago. The incandescent light have mercury in them, and they are a hazmet problem.

Now I will be running out to the stores to buy these. Like I needed another thing to worry about. Thanks for the warning. I stopped watching the news. It just depresses and annoys me too much so I had not heard this.

The reasons the are being replaced? They are extremely inefficient. They waste natural resources. They do not provided proper lighting. They put harmful chemicals into the land fill and the atmosophere and our lives.

I switched to the new ones a while back and they are fine for me.

We switched ever since they first came out. We also got the daylight version. I don't think they last any longer.

We've switched gradually as the old style bulbs burnt out. Our monthly equal pay electric bill was 173.00 a month 2 years ago. It has dropped by 40.00, and the only thing different is the bulbs.

It did take some getting used to in lighting that shows the bulbs. Didn't take long to forget they were even different.
and I'm careful which type of light I get, the bright white I hate, too cold feeling. Might be my age.

I should. I never know what to buy anymore. it's very confusing!!

Some of you are confused:

Like all fluorescent lamps, CFs contain mercury, a neurotoxin especially dangerous to children and pregnant women, which complicates their disposal.

The incandescent bulbs are filled with inert gas.

I LOVED when CFLs came out. Incandescents give my place some of the worst lighting ever, and CFLs were better. I now have LED bulbs which are way nicer to me, expensive little buggers, but I've got two that are 4 years old and they are as bright as ever.

I picked up a pkg in the grocery store of what I thought was a normal round bulb. I hit it against the grocery cart when putting it in and it shattered. well the outside round covering shattered. it was one of the curly ones inside. I put it back!! myhubby likes light! I got two halogen bulbs for the bathroom light fixture above the sink. it takes awhile forthem toget bright, but bright they get!

CFLS are the big ...lie. They are toxic (Mercury), they emit UV rays, They use considerably more power when used in short term use lighting, and they trigger migraines and seizures in some people. But, Nanny knows best.

One of the downsides with compact fluorescent light bulbs is the high start-up voltage that is required due to the ballast regulating the current. These light bulbs are therefore not as cost-efficient when used for shorter periods of time (switched on and off a lot) as opposed to being switched on for longer periods. The constant On/Off cycles also reduce the bulb's lifespan by as much a half, creating cost to purchase more bulbs more often and filling our landfills with heavy metal toxins. We've gone to LEDs as well, because I have severe head pain due to a previous carotid artery dissection, and can not tolerate the new lights at all. They are expensive, but we get deals at Costco.

I hate CFL lights. They give me migraines. I have stocked up on light bulbs but when they're gone I'll probably switch to LED for those sizes. The government sucks.

FYI You switched for nothing then. The incandescent are safe-the new CFL ones are the ones that require a hazmat team and total evacuation (slight exaggeration) if you break them.

We have three overhead fans with lights. The manuals state you cannot use CF bulbs in them. The fans are only about 4 years old and I don't want to have to replace them Guess I need to stock up on regular bulbs for the fan lights. Now to find a place to store all those bulbs...

yep!
MaryKatherine

We are slowly switching over to the LED's, spendy critters. Put two in the overheads over my long arm in my sewing room, WOW what a difference.

We have switched to LEDs also

Those of you who have LEDs: are they cooler than incandescent? I can choose between having enough light and roasting while I sew, or sewing in the dark. But I don't use CFs because of the mercury, and the few I've tried haven't lasted any longer. And, how is the quality of the light?? Those are mighty pricy bulbs, and I prefer to experiment with fabric.

I have some lights which will not fit those twisty compact fluorescent bulbs, so I guess I need to stock up a bit. Otherwise I'm ok with the CFL's, but I have no idea how to dispose of them. They have mercury in them, and say right on them that they can't be put into landfills. I have two or three right now which are burned out and I don't know what to do with them. Anybody know?

The apt complex I moved into have the energy efficient bulbs. They give off a lot of heat but this winter, so far this apt stay warm. When I am a bit cold, I just sit at my computer underneath the ceiling fan with the warm bulb and I am comfortable. I use OTT lights for good light when doing any type of sewing. I guess I am lucky that I don't get headaches from them.

I had forgotten this. We have the CFL lights all over the house. The fixture in one of the our bathrooms we can't find CFL's to fit. I really like the light fixture. I guess I need to go find a 10 or 20 year supply of them. Thanks for the reminder.

Home Depot and Lowe's both take them.
Check the home improvement stores near you

The sad thing about these new bulbs is that the uninformed or low-information public do not realize the hazards of these bulbs, and yes, they will end up in our landfills and over time guess what will happen. I think these bulbs are disasters waiting to happen - and someone mentioned that if they break having to use a hazmat team is over exaggerated- would you want to take the chance of getting mercury poisoning? - and people will. I think this is another example of government run amok. I will never use these bulbs if I can help it.

I HATE Florescent lighting & I do mean I HATE them. I worked under them for years, colors are never true & yes they cause headaches. I have quit a hoard of the old fashion light bulbs. I have seen to many bad reports on the CFL's about the mercury in them & no the incandesent bulbs do not contain mercury. Now how can that be better for the enviroment??? If you break one you are supposed to double bag it & take it toxic dumpster. How many people are going to do this, none. They willl just toss them in the garbage & then into a landfill they go along with the mercury seeping into the ground. You will never convince me these are better in any way. If you like them you can have them. Personally I don't like being told by the goverment what I have to use, especially when the ones they are peddeling are more dangerouse for the earth. Okay time to get off my soap box. Here is how you have to clean up a CFL if you break it, do you really want to take any chances with mercury???

One of the most potent threats to CFLs' superiority isn't their cost, but their contents. There's a small amount of toxic mercury in every one, which can be absorbed or inhaled, potentially causing brain damage in adults, children and especially in fetuses. Fumble a CFL while changing a light, critics warn, and you unleash a poisonous fiend in your home. Throw it out and you're dumping mercury in landfills.

Those are both valid concerns. You should be careful when cleaning up a broken CFL, but don't go nuts — Snopes has debunked the myth that breaking one requires calling in an environmental cleanup crew. Keep kids and pets away, open the windows and resist the urge to vacuum, since that can kick up mercury vapor into the air; see the EPA's advice on cleaning up broken fluorescent lights for a complete guide. When they do eventually burn out, make sure to dispose of them properly. :eek: Enough Said.

We switched to the new ones a long time ago, I have had no problems with them. Mine seem to last a long time. I used to be buying bulbs all the time it seemed, now not very often. The day light ones are brighter

Thanks for the ''Light Bulb Alert'' -The squirrelly bulbs do the strangest things to my vision. I can only describe it as the after effect of sitting in strobe lights. I was scared that there was something seriously wrong with my eyes. But some one told me they were florescent and I've always had problems with the tube/bulb lighting. Thank God it was nothing serious. So I will be going shopping today to do a large stock-up on regular light bulbs..

Compact florescent bulbs contain mercury. Don't know about incandescent. Around my sewing machine, I use the ones Bonnie Hunter uses. They are great and inexpensive. $10 or $12 if I remember correctly.

I agree, the CFLS being toxic, not a good replacement for the old ones. I too am switching out to LED and have great light.

I have 2 lamps that don't like the new bulbs and my 3way lamps have a problem also. Otherwise, I have switched over to the new ones and really like them.

I have to check the stash up in the attic first. I think we need 60w and 40 w ones still. A lot of shop tools still use the standard light bulb vs the curly ones.

When we moved into this house 4 1/2 years ago. We replaced all the bulbs with the curly ones. We are just now starting to have to replace the burnt out ones.

In my sewing room I prefer the standard bulbs, I think they are so much brighter.

We go for 90% LED in our house. Don't like mercury vapor in my or my childrens environment. It is so toxic and I can't understand how it can be legal to produce and sell.

If the "environmental" lightbulb is warm when it brakes a significant amount of the Hg will evaporate becoming far more bioavailable than in liquid form (in which it is not as harmfull and can be disposed of).

You sound just like me ! I am SOO out of the loop. I did not know this about the bulbs. I have switched over to the swirly kind, but I don't like them and so far I haven't seen a drop in my electric bill.

We switched over a few months after I bought my house, because of high energy bills. The month we made the switch, (on the bill cutoff date) my electric bill fell by 1/3! I'm sold. I just use a higher wattage one over my sewing machine. I also have natural light at all times due to having created "false skylights" in every window in the house. I don't notice any yellowing effect...

I use the daylight 'swirly' ones everywhere. We switched over when dh was diagnosed with depression and they help a lot in the winter plus my electric bill dropped a lot. I never get headaches unless I use too much salt and have to take a fluid pill (did I mention potato chips with a fluid pill chaser).

I was told by my brother who owns his own neon shop that when you first use the bulbs that have mercury in them, you should leave them on for at last 30 minutes the first time. This will extend the life of the bulb. It's the mercury fumes that generates the brightness of the light. I've stocked up on the 3-way bulbs that I use in the living room, other than that I guess I'll have to go with the flow. As for the 'yellow' effect, my eye doctor told me as we age, our corneas tend to change from clear to a yellow-ish color lens.

[QUOTE=lovelyl;6457202]We have three overhead fans with lights. The manuals state you cannot use CF bulbs in them. The fans are only about 4 years old and I don't want to have to replace them Guess I need to stock up on regular bulbs for the fan lights. Now to find a place to store all those bulbs...[/


Why are you not supposed to use the CF bulbs in ceiling fans? I have them in mine and now I am concerned and wondering if I should remove them.