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ComEd will again be giving a $2 discount on Compact Flourescents as a part of their aptly named ComEd Discount CFL Bulb Program. See? Energy conglomerates don't want the earth to die, you silly environmentalists.
CFLs are those delightful little spiral light bulbs that use 75% less energy and can last 10 times longer than regular, evil incandescent bulbs. Normally, CFLs can run a few dollars more than a standard bulb, but over the course of its life saves an estimated $30-$35. Customers will be able to go to participating Ace Hardware, Do It Best Hardware, Menards, Home Depot and True Value stores and buy the discounted bulbs until the end of the year, or while supplies last. Last time ComEd ran the promotion, 1.2 million CFLs were purchased in less than six weeks. Chicagoist likes to consider ourselves incredibly green, so about a year ago we switched all of our regular lightbulbs to CFLs, and we've been extremely happy. We were afraid the light would be office-ish and fluorescent, but it's really not; we can't tell the difference between CFLs and incandescents. Plus we haven't had to replace a bulb in well over a year.
Though we didn't get the day off from work, yesterday was apparently Change a Light Day and the Change a Light Bus is rolling in to town next week. The real winner is Al Gore the Earth. ComEd said that residential customers who switched to CFLs saved over 79 million kilowatt hours last year. That is a lot, we think.
Go save the planet, Chicago!
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This was a colorful article about a relatively boring subject.
As a result I will go buy these mega-bulbs.
If only they worked on dimmers, which account for most of the lights in my apartment. Doh!
CFL's are the way to go. The new ones are so nice that you can not tell the difference from the old ones. Encourage all your friends to change.
Cheers,
E
http://www.redlanternstyle.com
I replaced all our bulbs too, but the only problem is that they take a few minutes to warm up and get to full strength. Not a big deal, but kind of annoying when you just need to flip on the light in a room to get something.
Does anyone know if they make 3-way bulbs in the style? We use regular one way CFLs, but it would be nice (at least aesthetically) to have the 3-way option - so to speak.
Guests #2 and #5, there is a certain bulb called a 'cold cathode' bulb (known as CCFL), similar to CFLs, but lights immediately, works on three-way switches, and has zero warm-up time. Unfortunately, CCFLs are hard as hell to find.
Popular Mechanics did a great test/comparison of various CFL bulbs earlier this year - I'd highly recommend reading it and printing out their CFL buying guide (PDF) to take with you to Home Deport, Lowes, etc...
er, that should have been "Home Depot", not "Deport" - I'm sure some of you can make a pretty good joke out of that typo!
Don't forget that CFLs have mercury in them, and must not be thrown away. They should be recycled on your city's hazardous waste collection day.