I just tried out my first compact fluorescent bulb because I had to replace one that died, had no incandescents at home, and these were on sale 2 for 1 (still $3 each). I figured I would use my green to be green. But I'm afraid this is going to be like the low flow shower or the low flow toilet - "advances" I can't get behind.
For one thing, "Daylight" is actually blueish-white. I had no idea, and I can't say I like it very much. Reminds me of old school flurorescent lights , except without the flicker. But even if I did like it, there's another problem, which is it stands out when the other lamps are incandescent. This means that all the bulbs in a room all have to be the same type. Ugh. In this case I have two tall lamps on either side of my desk - one has a 100 watt incandescent while the other has a "75 watt" CFLB. The contrast is quite apparent. I suppose I might give in and swap the other bulb out, but it's not clear I like the color very much.
Look, I am happy to make other sacrifices like driving a smaller car and taking more public transportation. But can't you get the toilet, shower and lighting right? And don't think that low-flow showers will reduce my water usage, it wont. It'll just take me longer to get clean and I'll use the same amount of water anyway. And without going into the low-flow toilet issue, they also don't work well if you're following the government's dietary recommendations. You know what would be good? A dual flush toilet. That would be more efficient and not cause inconvenience. I'd also be quite happy with a gray water toilet. But simply restricting capacity is irritating.
Any other semi-environmentalists annoyed by the way things are going?
You will get used to them. The color is different at first but your eyes will adjust. We have all CFBs in our apartment except for those circuits on a dimmer switch, which obviously don't work for fluorescents. As for the matching issue, it's an excellent excuse to replace all your bulbs and save the planet (and your wallet). No progress without sacrifice!
Comment #1 :: link :: September 14, 2007 1:33 PMI replaced the bulb in my bedside lamp with a CFB and I pretty much don't notice a difference, though it's a very low wattage (on purpose) and the bulb is not actually exposed, which I think is key (the light is mitigated by the glass shade). In my building, they've jammed CFB's into all the old 1920s sconces and they look terrible (also the light is sufficient, but not beautiful). But, hey, liberals are supposed to get a dark joy from suffering for the greater good, right? At least it won't be forever. It'll be a slow process, but as with most things, the design will probably get better in increments, at least for people who care to notice. (Futurecops will still hang a single bulb over those rotten perps during interrogations.) Your future CFB-friendly lamps and improved bulbs will not bother you as much as they do now. Besides, by then, you'll be railing against the new state-mandated composting toilets....
Comment #2 :: link :: September 17, 2007 10:52 PM :: homepage
