Affordably replace your light bulbs to conserve energy

CFLs are great when it comes to power consumption. I usually go for the 8- or 9-watt daylights. You'll definitely see good results when you get your next power bill (provided you don't suddenly change your home lighting habits, of course).

I'm not so sure about the 8000-hour claim; at a regular 8-hour-per-day usage, the Philips bulbs I bought only lasted for over a year, which would be just above one-thirds of the rating. I then switched to GE, and I have yet to observe its lifespan, but one thing I noticed is that (with the GE bulbs I got,) it requires a couple of seconds of "warming up" before it lights up. (Philips' went on immediately after flipping the switch.) Perhaps that'll help lengthen its service life.

We're slowly converting our entire house to CFLs, with some varied results.

The first ones were tried were from Ikea, around $4.00 for a two-pack. Yellowish/redish ugly light and they began burning out after only six months or so which was a surprise. The light was being used in a bathroom where it was lit nearly all the time and the base actually melted from heat. Very disappointing honestly.

Next we tried some "daylight" CFLs from Philips, I think it was. Started with a large round one for about $3 and it produced much brighter and better light than the Ikea lights. So we got some smaller Phillips of the same "daylight" type but they're not a nice as the bigger one. But they are pretty bright.

Then I found some "Lights of America" CFLs at Walmart, two for $7. These are another "daylight" bulb and produce a beautiful blueish light which works very well in the bathroom and kitchen, not so well in a carpeted hallway where the blue tinge just looks weird. But it's very bright almost like there's a flying saucer on the ceiling beaming down a spotlight.

Paired up one of these blue lights with one of the remaining yellowish/redish Ikea lights for a bedroom fixture and together they sort of cast just the right shade of light. It works.

Good article. I just bought my first CFL bulb when my incandescent one burned out in my apartment at school a few months ago. I bought the GE Brand bulb.

Upsides:
a) Saves energy
b) Just as bright
c) Lasts for a long time
d) Works just like any old light bulb
e) Really cool shape!

Potential Downsides:
a) Takes a second or two to warm up, which I don't really care about. In fact, I actually think it's cool.
b) Slightly higher initial cost.

They also put off a lot less heat than incandescents and keep your home cooler as a result.

Costco has an 8 pack for 11 bucks. I bought 2 and replaced every single bulb in and out of my home...

They are SOOOOO much more affordable today than they were even 5 years ago. Plus they come on FAST now.

Do they work on dimmer switches? I have CFLs in my house on the most used fixtures, but never tried it on one that had a dimmer. Just thought I'd see if anyone knew off hand.

This is a question I've been wondering about for a while.
Why is it that they are still allowed to sell incandecents?
I mean they don't allow cars to be sold that don't meet certain emmision requirements.
You would think that they wouldn't allow light bulbs that didn't meet certain efficiency requirements.
It would be good for the U.S (& the world) on the whole, and you could really sell it as something useful by falling back on the whole energy security thing.

I don't see any downfalls really to getting rid of incandecent light bulbs, can someone please point out one if they do?

ERN: I came across a blog post via Jason Kottke that I thought was interesting. random($foo) has calculated that if the government (or someone, for you anti-government types) handed out a CFL to every household in America, the energy savings (over the bulbs lifetime) would equate to the energy output of one nuclear power plant. I'd say that's not too far off, either.

The first CFL's I saw were in the late 80's when my dad bought a bunch (he works for Niagara Mohawk Power/National Grid). At the time they cost about $14/ea, but I'm sure they've all paid for themselves by now. One of those original bulbs is still working in the socket of my old bedroom. They were much bulkier and uglier than the new spiral ones out now, but they did the job.

I now have a mix of Sylvania, GE, and Philips CFLs all around the house, at least 25 in all. Some were from my old apartment and are about 3-5 years old, the rest I bought about a year and a half ago. I've only had one burn out so far. Aside from the obvious benefit of using less energy, their longevity and heat output (especially in the summer) are definitely good benefits. The slow warm-up period is actually kinda nice in the middle of the night, it gives my eyes a chance to adjust.

Their initial cost isn't even a factor any more considering the fact that they pay for themselves so rapidly. After taxes, fees, BS, etc. I pay ~$88.80 for ~490kWh a month (about $0.181/kWh) through the ConEd Green Power ESCO (65% hydro + 35% wind = 100% renewable), so I'm really just worried about saving money using CFLs.

My wife dislikes the hue on some of the older bulbs, but the daylight ones are really nice. Their shape can be kinda difficult to get into some fixtures, but I haven't ever had one that didn't fit the newer bulbs, I even replaced a tiny 15W bulb in my aquarium with one. Aside from that the only downside is that they'll skunk your beer faster than incandescents will (just as with the non-compact fluorescent bulbs). I just wish they'd make fridge/appliance versions and some spotlight ones so I can replace the giant 150W bulbs shining on our backyard.