9 to 6

While I agree with the sentiment that Fox is run by a bunch of narrow minded nut sacks, it is funny they take this position for a few reasons.  Mostly because the money that is going to lobbyists to make these laws is funded by very large corporations (many of them with conservative Christian ties and Republican leanings), who don’t have the environment in mind but rather the desire to make money.  These companies have patents and insane amounts of money going towards developing leading LED technology which once they kill incandescents you can bet that they will start phasing out CFLs and start forcing LEDs (cha-ching$$$$$).  But regardless, this is political stuff so let me rewind a bit and talk a little about the whole CFL vs. incandescent debate a little in more scientific terms.

First off, there is no denying that CFLs consume less energy with a higher lumen output to standard incandescents.  Even the argument that they contain mercury is a little moot as the only time that is directly harmful is if one breaks (then you have to open all windows for 15 minutes and try and not have any direct skin contact when cleaning up…).  Standard incandescents create a great deal more mercury to operate (in terms of coal burning energy sources) then CFLs contain and use to operate. 

Second, the life span of CFLs is determined based on lab tests where the lamps are left on for long hours at a maintained temperature - this is what allows them to sustain longer lifespans.  In many real world applications where incandescents are actually used (i.e.- private homes) most people who are already energy conscious are in the habit of turning off their lights when not in use.  CFLs don’t work so well in real life applications where they are turned on and off more than every few hours.  Here’s why: CFLs once turned on take about 15 minutes to reach full efficiency- not great for situations where you need a certain level of light immediately.  Even that can be tolerable in a lot of situations, but the next issue is that when CFLs are turned on/off with a higher frequency their lamp life is significantly shortened.  Thus making their lifespan far less than rated (about half), but you won’t see that advertised anywhere! 

Third, CFLs only provide ambient light.  Putting any optics over them to control beam spread is nearly impossible and output is dramatically reduced.  This is both an aesthetic concern as well as quality of life concern.  Want to read a book?  You better sit right next to your light source or have a high wattage CFL or be young and have really good eyesight.  This is kind of petty, but for me having a sensitivity to light and how it effects how we relate to spaces- I can tell you it’s a pretty big deal. 

Fourth, CFLs emit more blue wavelengths then standard incandescents.  This is partly how they achieve higher efficiency- higher kelvin means more lumens. This is concern because it can suppress melatonin, which in turn effect’s our bodies hormones and circadian rhythm.  This the opens the door to a whole host of disorders and diseases.

Fifth, who needs a 100 watt incandescent anyways?!?!  That shit is over the top, most applications need no more than 60 watt lamps to have a very comfortable level of light.  I have always been a major supporter of having all hardwired fixtures on dimmers because the amount of time you really need your lamps on full power is generally very limited.  Plus it creates more mood and drama in a space!  Plus it uses less/equal energy than CFL and lengthens the lamp life significantly!  Plus you can’t dim most CFLs (unless you get the kind that are self ballasted, which are larger in size and look nasty when dimmed… so what’s the point)

Lastly, I could obviously go on and on about this, but my point is- there is no catch all fix.  It kills me to hear either side arguing about this when you are replacing one bad thing with another bad thing.  The best solution to me seems to be compromise- use lower wattage incandescents on dimmers and maybe sprinkle a CFL or two into the mix where appropriate.  In the meantime- why not use our energy developing something truly good for our environment- a light source that is cradle to cradle, something we all can agree on :)