Tackling a Common Question (And What's Big Bubba?)

As energy manager for Arlington County, I'm thrilled at the leadership shown by County Chairman Paul Ferguson in launching the AIRE campaign. (OK, maybe I'm getting a bit less sleep these days -- but I'm thriving on the enthusiasm of staff, residents and the business community!)

I'll be doing more blog posting, but in this first one, I'll tackle one of the most common questions I hear: "Where do I get compact fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs?"

The easy answer: You can get CFLs at most of the usual places where you buy light bulbs already. I've gotten them for my own home at Home Depot and Lowes, where you can buy a six-pack for under $10. (And remember, these bulbs last over 8,000 hours -- lasting up to 10 times longer than regular light bulbs!) Other people I know buy their CFL bulbs at Target, Costco, local hardware stores, Walmart, grocery stores, etc. (P.S. Arlington County will be giving away CFL bulbs at selected events throughout the year -- stay tuned.) CFL bulbs are so common now -- there's a CFL for almost every fixture and application.

By the way, the fourth graders at Patrick Henry Elementary especially loved "Big Bubba" -- it's a 55-watt CFL bulb (for specialty applications) that I showed them at a career day demo last year.

John Morrill
Energy Manager, Arlington County

Comments

[Steve]

CLOSETS (response to Glenn's note)- Please note that it is a fire hazard to have an exposed incandescent bulb in a closet. If you do (because a DIY installed it or it was done without a permit), replace it with a CFL immediately or remove it! Even if it's recessed or covered, replacing with a CFL will reduce heat and be safer. Although it will not be used much and your financial investment will not be as good as other fixtures, using CFLs in closets is a fine idea.

[Diana Sun]

For anyone who remembers that the first-generation CFLs were dark-ish... the new lights are terrific! Very reasonably priced, as John points out, very nice bright light, and a very speedy 'on.' Give it a try!!

[Gregg]

I am a security consultant with knowledge of security lighting. CFL's can help to reduce electric use but there are some places they may not work well. They are best in fixtures that are on for extended periods of time (not good for a closet or anywhere a light is turned on for a few minutes). They cannot be used with a dimmer switch. They may cause static or interference with radios or other electronic devices depending on how the ballast is made. If a CFL is installed in an outside light fixture, you will also notice it take a while to start and get to full illumination if the temp is below 30 degrees.

CFL's are good and everyone should try them in one or two fixtures (not on a dimmer)that are used for extended periods of time.

Now I wish the County would start to look at street lighting and replace all of the mercury vapor (MV)fixtures with high-pressure sodium vapor (HPS) and require all of the fixtures to be sharp cutoff type fixtures. MV fixtures produce around 50 lumens per watt while HPS fixtures can easily reach 130 lumens per watt and the HPS has a practical life almost three times that of MV. The current roadway lighting standard fixtures loose as much as 30 percent of illumination that goes out as glare and into the sky (or bedroom windows). Replacing the standard MV fixture with a sharp cutoff HPS would allow electric use to be cut in half if not more.

[Steve]

For unusual applications, like 3-way bulbs, dimmable bulbs and candelabra-sized bulbs, I recommend www.efi.org. They have a great selection.