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108 comments on More on OPEC Rig Counts

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jjhman on July 4, 2006 - 8:32pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Regarding compact fluorescents vs incadescent:  About two years ago I replaced almost all of my incadescent bulbs with the CFs.  Within a year I had replaced EVERY ONE of the new bulbs.  While they had advertised long life times, not one lasted a full year.  Something not everyone knows is that they all contain mercury.  So which is worse?  Long lived tungsten filaments that use lots of energy or short lived, low energy use bulbs that put mercury in the environment when disposed of?

Like so many issues in modern technology, when you start to think about sustainability you just can't get there from here.

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john milton on July 5, 2006 - 7:21pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Ther is indeed a lot of variability with CF bulbs.

I found as you did with the ones I bought from IKEA for example (various sizes and shapes all bad)

"Globe" are also fairly grim IMO

For what it's worth if you can find NOMA brand I think you should give them a try. Their 60 watt spiral is now the std. bulb around the house here. The one outside the front door is on all night every night and has been in service for 2 1/2 years.

But I'm still looking for a dim-able CFL that works, and at $10 Canadian a piece I don't want to gamble on any more junk. Anyone found one of these that does what it claims?

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Sparaxis on July 5, 2006 - 7:33pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
To ensure you get 6000 hours when advertised as such, it's best to stick to Energy Star CFLs. I had the same bad luck (imported CFLs from China) at first, but the Energy Star ones (which had a $3 rebate on a $3 bulb here), have lasted for 4 years so far.

Yes, CFLs contain Hg, but the largest source (40%) of Hg in the environment is from coal-burning power plants. This is the nasty stuff that is in the air, water, and soil. The savings on electricity from using CFLs has a much greater impact on Hg emissions from power plants than the Hg potentially leaching into the soil in a land fill from a CFL (though most places have CFL recycling centers so you shouldn't toss them in the trash anyway).

As for dimmables, there are 34 listed at the energystar.gov website. I've used on (Greenlite) and it works as claimed (and full ignition in less than 1 second and full run up in 60).

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108 comments on More on OPEC Rig Counts

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