Thanks for doing the math. I'll go get some!

I read in last month's Reader's Digest that the drop in price happened because of last year's power crisis in California. The demand went way up, and China started mass producing them, and that has reduced the cost tremendously.

That's great. I cringe every time I go into someone's house and see a bunch of incandescent bulbs going -- especially on a hot summer day. The other day I was at a birthday party at someone's house, and it was a very warm summer night and their a/c was running. Just in the kitchen, living room, family room, and bathrooms, I counted 18 incandescent bulbs operating. Most looked to be 100 watts, some could have been 60 watts. If it was just a 50/50 split between 100s and 60s, that's 80 watts per bulb -- 1,440 watts of costly and unnecessary heat going into that house.

A good place to start saving is with kitchen "can" lights. You normally see 65 watt floods installed in these. With compact fluorescent (CFL) floods, that drops to 13 watts per bulb -- for lighting that's actually brighter. In my mom's kitchen, I changed out eight 65 watt floods for eight 13 watt CFL floods, and she likes the quality of the light a lot better. Before, you could really feel the heat from all those bulbs -- all 520 watts of it. Now, with just 104 watts, the kitchen is very noticeably cooler, and the light looks cleaner and brighter.

The next best bet for CFLs are table lamps that are used several hours a day.

A few places where CFLs aren't good are won't pay off: Enclosed fixtures (often CFLs won't fit in them, and the heat buildup inside could shorten the bulb's life). Closets, attics, or other places where light bulbs are turned on infrequently, or only for a few minutes at a time. (CFLs don't last as long as they're supposed to last when turned on only a few minutes at a time, and the energy use of an incandescent bulb only used a few minutes a day is negligible.)

Also, some CFLs aren't compatible with cold locations. They can be great in outdoor fixtures, and a big money saver since a lot of people use outdoor lights for many hours of every night. But if you live in an area with cold winters, you need to make sure that any CFLs you intend to install outdoors are rated for use in temperatures as low as what you are likely to see. You can usually find this information on the bulb's packaging.

I use CFLs in enclosed fixtures all the time. Check ventilation and check the package for use. But when you think about it, the heat is substantially less than incan anyway. Most of them, you could just pop a couple holes in it an it'd be fine.

Ken

That's probably true. The heat issue is a little different with CFLs, though, because you have the electronics in the base, which would probably cook if you got a CFL anywhere near as hot as an incandescent bulb. Of course, the actual amount of heat being produced is only about a quarter of what the incandescent gives off, so that'd be hard to do.

The biggest risk of putting a CFL in an enclosed fixture is that it wouldn't last as long as it's supposed to. At the low prices these bulbs are available for now, that's becoming less of an issue. It's probably worth a try.

The one downside (and I am a CFL user) is that the bulbs do contain mercury. When they do burn out, if you dispose of it in the trash, it will be broken in the garbage truck or landfill and will release mercury in the environment. One should always dispose of them at your local hazardous waste facility. Bright side of the matter, they do reduce mercury overall as more mercury is released making energy, so CFLs do reduce the overall amount. But they should be disposed of properly.

I noticed a 6-pack for of the 13-watters at Home Depot recently, too, for about $10.

In NJ last year, the state subsidized these bulbs so you could buy them for $1 each. Just passing this on in case somebody can find an electrical supply store that still has them in stock. (Ours has finally run out.)

That's a great idea; every state should do that.

I slightly modified the recessed fixtures in my bathrooms to take the 13 watt CFLs. (All that was required was to substitute a different translucent cover which gave a little more space.) Many recessed bathroom fixtures will take the 13 watt "twist" style CFLs with no modifications, because these bulbs are only very slightly larger than a standard 60 watt bulb. When I put the 13 watt CFLs in the bathrooms, I was amazed that the light actually got brighter, as compared to a 60 watt incandescent. I think this is due to the fact that the light is a whiter color and travels through the translucent cover better than the yellowish light from the incandescent.

I'm slowly getting rid of any fixtures I have that won't accept CFLs and replacing them with ones that either come standard as fluorescents or which will accept a CFL.

Air conditioning - what's that?

If some of you are keeping your air conditioning turned so cool that I get goose bumps when I visit - how about setting them for higher temp?

I've complained to some local stores about the coolness in their store. Coming from the outdoors heat, one almost needs a jacket, for gosh sake!

Save power, guys - tread lightly on the earth.

I'd appreciate it if you guys in the Ohio Valley area would reduce your demand, for about half of the pollution here north of Lake Erie comes from your area, much of it from those dratted old coal-burning electrical generators in the Ohio Valley.

We had several smog alert days, recently - were asked to try to drive less, cut other pollution-generating factors.

My eyes get itchy sometimes, which I think may be caused by the smog.

My Dad had breathing problems so serious sixty years ago that he sold his farm here and moved to farm on the Prairies - had 40 years of good health.

Enjoy your summer, all.

ole joyful

Those of us in the Ohio Valley aren't the only ones using the power generated here. That's sent all around this part of North America. People who live near those plants summer all manner of physical ailments due to the pollution (which is far worse there than in Ontario), yet the power generated there lights, heats, and cools the homes and businesses of people hundreds of miles away.

Unfortunately, it's the demand side that matters. A Canadian or New Yorker is just as happy to turn on his electric lights and appliances as a person who lives in the Ohio Valley, and if you're creating a demand for that power, you're just as much a part of the problem as anyone else. That's one reason I posted this thread advocating CFLs.