Consumer Tips:
Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs 101
Here's a bright idea: light your home with compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. Many Oregonians installed CFL’s during the energy crisis a couple of years ago. But if you didn’t, now is the time to take the plunge and start replacing your traditional light bulbs with CFL's when they burn out.
The super energy efficient CFL is a miniature fluorescent tube and ballast. Screw-in CFL's fit many of the fixtures where you previously used incandescent light bulbs. For example, you can replace a 60-watt incandescent with a 15-watt CFL that will last 10 times longer and deliver about the same amount of light for one quarter the energy.
Although CFL's are considerably more expensive than incandescents, they will more than pay for themselves with savings in electricity, replacement, and labor costs. Payback is quickest when they are installed in fixtures that are used for many hours each day, year round.
CFL's are available in a wide variety of styles to suit most lighting needs. With reflectors and extenders, they can fit and work well in a variety of fixtures. They are available either as one-piece screw-in units that incorporate the ballast or as modular units where the tube can be separated from the base/ballast when the lamp burns out. One-piece CFL's must be discarded, while only the tube need be replaced in a modular unit.
The compact fluorescent tubes have lifetimes of 9,000 to 10,000 hours, while the ballasts last 40,000 to 45,000 hours. How about that porch light? Today, there are CFL's made specifically for outdoor use which maintain consistent light output at low temperatures. Just be sure to use an enclosed fixture and they should work fine.
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