OldManOnFire

Well if you live in the USA, and you are somewhat normal, fluorescent lighting has primarily been used in kitchen lighting, garage and shop lighting, basement lighting, so it is difficult to imagine no exposure to these very very popular lights??

Yeah they were brought into homes about 60 years ago and at one time produced more lighting nationwide than incandescents.

I think they want this because they last longer and require less power.

Now I'm going out on a limb here, but I'm going to assume that 99.9% of the retail outlets try to sell merchandise that people show a demand in...not the opposite way around where they force people to buy things they don't want. You always have a choice.

So in order to have lighting that lasts longer and uses less electricity, and the fact that in order to deal with the mercury we will need to recycle used CFL's, you think we are incapable of this and all the ground water will be contaminated? Like I said, we've been dealing with tube fluorescents for decades, and if we know we should recycle them, then why is this a big issue today?

Well...lighting represents as much as 25% of your homes power consumption. So if you multiply this by the 120 million homes and 7 million businesses, I'd say it's a pretty damned big energy consumer...

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GurnBlanston

You make some good points but, my point was that CFL's are not any better. And NO, they don't get recycled. It's a nice thought but you and I know better. Plus, there's enough Mercury in the Ocean to contaminate fish and you think there's no problem with Mercury in our landfills? Please!
I have an expensive lighting system designed to save energy and lighting using transformers (e.g flourescents) wont work with this type of dimming system.
Now on to my next point which was asking why we don't pour money in LED's (which are the only moral answer). And contrary to your "Economics" lesson, many retailers are dropping incandesant lighting (regardless of demand) because they feel it's an ecological choice. Costco now carries NO Incans. at all. There is still a high demand for them and I feel as though incans are smarter for environmental reasons and health reasons as well, because even though some CFL's claim they have the same type of light range as the Sun, they don't, won't and can't. LED's do.

BleedingPinky

Cool. Thanks for the tips, but I already take care of all the saving juice busyness at home. Thank God (or whoever) I live at a place where I seldomly need heat during the winter. Something pretty close as your avatar. And yes, I sail on boats every now and then,(last question?)

OldManOnFire

At our house we recycle all recyclable items--why...because it's the right thing to do for our environment. And we don't have curbside pickup...I personally take this stuff to a recycle center about ten miles away once per month. So please don't tell me things cannot be recycled. What you meant to say is that 'you' aren't going to recycle anything which is your choice.

And wow...you make the ASSUMPTION that the mercury in the oceans come from fluorescent lights??

Mercury pollution comes mostly from industrial emissions to the atmosphere...primarily from coal burning processes. Once in the air, the rains and snows bring them back to Earth, either onto the land where they are washed into rivers and the oceans, or directly into the oceans.

Some businesses are 'pouring' money into LED development and LED's have already found their way into thousands of products.

And what's wrong with a good ecological choice??

I don't live in Siberia...every store I use sells both incandescents and CFL's so it appears there is a choice.

And no matter what you believe, most big-box retail stores will sell the products with the highest demands because they operate on high volume and lower profit margins.

First, Costco is free to sell which ever merchandise they desire. Second, Costco, as with many businesses, is trying to be more conscious about the environment and energy consumption--a good thing--right? And third, Costco would not be providing shelf space for CFL's if they were not selling by the boatloads!!!!

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OldManOnFire

If you live in Sevilla, your weather is about 10 degrees warmer on average than where I live in northern California. Although we get 50+ inches of rain each year, it's still quite dry here. For our warmer months we depend on mature trees to help shade the house and we designed it so the prevailing winds flow through the house. We use A/C only a few times in the summer...

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GurnBlanston

I didn't say they can't be recycled, I said they don't get recycled. It's no a matter of whether it's possible. It's a matter of whether it's probable. I do recycle...so there

You need to quit taking my point of view so personal.

BleedingPinky

Yes, that´s correct. I live at Sevilla. Unfortunately I haven´t had the luck to design my house, so I have to deal with how it is. I do turn on the A/C almost every night from mid June through mid September. But I bet even so I save more juice than you do, . I know how sticky 98% humidity days are like at the south east. At least it´s dry over here.

GurnBlanston

OK, I'll address this rant.

Good for you and so do I. My point is most WON'T.


Actually you're assuming that's what I meant. I know exactly where ocean pollution comes from. I was talking about man's ability to pollute the vastness of the ocean because you seem to think that it's not possible to pollute even a minute area like a landfill with these. We already are. Businesses don't recycle their FL's and neither will all these people buying buttloads of mercury laden light bulbs that give you migranes.



And I merely advocating them here. Talk aboiut "green" lighiting.


That's the problem. It isn't any better an ecological choice than incandescent lights.

My point is Incs are dissapearing (slowly, but I notice it) more and more each day.
I just want people to know the trade off in using these lights.
LEDs are getting cheaper (about $30-40) and they'll get cheaper the more we use them.

OldManOnFire

I don't take anything personal unless you call me an asshole, and if so, prepare to defend yourself!

It's not that they 'don't get recycled' it's that they can be recycled so if the mercury is truly a critical issue, then a bounty can be placed on spent CFL's like $.25 per unbroken bulb.

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OldManOnFire

I'm not in the southeastern US...I'm in the western US, in northern California...and it's quite dry here...very low humidity.

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