Everyone knows what a wonderful thing it is to switch to low energy light bulbs. Yet the way they have been pushed as such a saviour of the planet is another example of the dubious over-simplification that put poor old Al Gore in court (Maybe the Nobel Peace Prize counters this, so strike that ‘poor old’.)
When we switch to low energy bulbs, we certainly save energy, but there are a number of issues that do seem to be swept under the carpet.
- They don’t last as long as they say. Every single low energy bulb in my house has been replaced at least once in 3 years. My record is an Ikea bulb that lasted 2 months.
- They aren’t as bright as they say. Everyone knows this – I’ve even seen it used as a joke on TV. To replace a 60 watt incandescent bulb you need a ‘100 watt equivalent’ low energy bulb.
- They don’t fit. I use low energy bulbs where I can, but around half the light fittings in my house (plus one dimmer switch) will have to be thrown away and replaced to go all the way.
- They’re harder to recycle.
- They’re much more dangerous than conventional bulbs in landfill because of the mercury content. (And given that few if any councils recycle them at the moment, this is a big issue.)
- The energy savings are, to some degree, spurious.
That last one’s the biggy, and admittedly the most contentious, but here goes. Why are incandescent bulbs worse? Because they ‘waste’ energy. Where does that waste energy go? To heat. When do we use light bulbs? When it’s dark and cold. So basically, we aren’t saving the energy, we’re transferring the heating demand from a potentially renewable source (electricity) to a technology mostly fuelled by gas or oil (central heating).
Despite all this, on balance, low energy bulbs are worth having – and the miser in me celebrates the reduced electricity bill anyway – but it’s a good demonstration of how green issuer can be greyer than they first seem.
Thanks to my friend Andy for pointing this out. Any other suggestions for grey areas – whether green solutions that aren’t as green as they seem, really effective green actions that no one recommends, or apparently green activities by large organizations (or whoever) that hide a murkier reality? I’d like to hear about them.
Being green is just so complicated!!
I recently did an experiment where I went to the shopping centre with lots of plastic containers to try to avoid buying anything that was not recyclable. When I discussed this with a guy who works from Sainsburys at one of the Nature Network Pub evenings we got onto the subject of tinned versus fresh fish.
For the consumer who only wants to put out recyclable waste, the tinned option is obviously the best, because we are already very good at recycling tins (is economically viable etc). BUT, the process of getting the smaller portions of fish into the tin use up a lot of energy. Perhaps someone else has done the sum, but I have a feeling that it is actually better to buy the fresh fish in the non-recyclable packaging…or develop a relationship with the fishmonger such that he is happy to put your fish in your tupperware container.
I would like to see your electricity bill, because AFAIK incandescent lamps consume ‘much less’ energy, so even if the lamp ad gave the wrong CFL power / luminosity / incandescent power relationships, still a CFL with the ‘double’ power would be perhaps brighter then the desired, and stilll consume much less. To my knowledge it’s
usually something like 1/4 or 1/3 the power for the same luminosity.
As for the heating, this is really an interesting subject… But you have to consider that you don’t usually sleep with the lights on. Also, what should we do when we want a light and cold environment?
As for the shape, the use of modern lamps in old sockets should be just temporary. Newer buildings should already start to be adaptaded to the newer fluorescent lamps!...
And the recycling proccess is under research, never fear!
Also under research is the use of LEDs…
Now, a nice example of grey-green activities: I’ve heard that the production of certain types of solar power cells can be very toxic. That was many years ago, I believe there are already better manufacturing proccesses…
They don’t last as long as they say.
Well, I’ve replaced them way way less than old style lamps. They can suffer a bit from being switched on and off lots – they last so many thousands of flicks and then the starter conks out. The usual advice is to leave them on if you’re out the room for less than three-five minutes.
They aren’t as bright as they say.
The incandescent (must be very angry) bulbs emit all their light from a very tiny lump of metal. Fluorescent ones emit the same light but from a much larger surface area. Same overall level of light, but the fluorescent bulbs look not as bright – one of the reasons I prefer them for desk lamps. Fluorescent bulbs also dim over time – but we’re talking years of use.
They don’t fit.
Where do you put your bulbs? And what shape arethey? I have a lovely leaflet from the Energy Saving Trust that I got when I got my free Tom Dixon lamp, that shows fluorescent bulbs available in most shapes and sizes – including candle (from B&Q, Woolies, Dyas, BHS and Debenhams).
When do we use light bulbs? When it’s dark and cold
I think there is an issue with some types of house – eg if you’re in the superefficient Norwegian-type houses that are heated only by body heat and light bulbs, then switching wouldn’t make sense.
But I’m not sure your desk lamp is adding much to your comfort heat level in your office compared with your computer, your jumper or your cat.
I’m not saying they are perfect, but from all I’ve read, they are better. Recycling is an issue and there are companies starting to offer this – though your local council needs to get on the case. I’ve contacted mine to ask about recycling bulbs. I’d be interested to hear what yours says to you.
Ah, they have cottoned on a bit to the shape issue – the base is often slightly wider, but I have a Glowb which is remarkably similar, and these dimmable ones may also suit.
What I didn’t realise is that the colour of fluorescent bulbs is different too – they are usually more blue, though some are made as orange as ordinary.