Incandescent lights to be banned?

[Eric B]

Athenian, what is your opinion of using yellow LEDs, mixed with white LEDs?

The spire on the new Coney Island subway terminal is covered with bulbs like those (and they line the entrances too). I once saw one with the glass removed.
I had wondered what exactly they were, as they emitted a dim pale orangey glow that looked more like a dimmed incandescent. Sort of like the color of high pressure sodium bulbs. So it was an array of amber led's, with at least one white.

Not a good combination, IMO. Around that time I began seeing nice 2700K LED's that made a good incandescent color. But it has just taken time for them to become more available.

You can tune it to the hue you want with red, green, and blue LEDs if you want.

Anyone think there would be a market for custom hue LED boards that fit into light-bulb sockets?

Just need to find a covering that'll soften the glow and mix the colors well.

Tristar E27 RGB Lamp (though this is more like a spotlight)

But can you customize the hue and saturation?

Wish! :steam:
There doesn't seem to be anything out there like that yet. Flashlights too. There are strings of light you can use for Christmas, but the conrollable ones are very expensive

 

[heart]

GlobalTV.com | 16 x 9 - The Bigger Picture: Video

Video where people in Canada claim unhealthy effects from enviromentally friendly light bulbs.

 

[Nillerz]

LED bulbs are the best but what if you're using the bulb for heating purposes?

 

[Nocapszy]

then you are using the wrong device.

 

[millerm277]

Didn't read whole thread, but most (if not all) light manufacturers are already developing higher efficiency incandescents, that meet the requirements. (In the USA at least). I will guarantee that you will see them rolled out as the deadline draws nearer.

 

[Feops]

I wouldn't mind trading cheap inefficient bulbs for expensive efficient bulbs, but I don't like trading away light quality for that efficiency.

 

[laughingebony]

Global warming and peak oil could prove to be an inconvenience too. You might have to sacrifice the soft warm glow of incandescents (at least until they come out with an alternative that produces the exact same lighting effect if they haven't already).

This company makes LED light bulbs in both "cool white" and "warm white."

Here is a comparison of the colors taken straight from their website.

It seems as though LED bulbs have incandescents and CFLs beat in every area except price per bulb and beam profile, with the latter being only circumstantial.

CFLs are soooo last year.

 

[SubjectA]

Don't fluorescent bulbs contain toxic chemicals in them? Seriously, how many people do you think will properly dispose of them, especially since in many places you actually have to pay to have a company come out and remove toxic waste? I think the government could be doing more harm than good here (surprise surprise.)

 

[Eric B]

The subway is testing some new LED bulbs in a couple of places. New bright blue (these indicate locations of emergency equipment in the tunnels), near West 4th St. (I took a good look at one on the way to our last TYPOc meetup!), and now, even some cool whites (the first test of white for general lighting) on a stretch of track in Brooklyn.

They look like the ones on that EarthLED site (the opaque plastic sides with only the "dome" emitting light).

 

[millerm277]

Don't fluorescent bulbs contain toxic chemicals in them? Seriously, how many people do you think will properly dispose of them, especially since in many places you actually have to pay to have a company come out and remove toxic waste? I think the government could be doing more harm than good here (surprise surprise.)

From wikipedia: In the United States, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimated that if all 270 million compact fluorescent lamps sold in 2007 were sent to landfill sites, that this would represent around 0.13 tons, or 0.1% of all U.S. emissions of mercury (around 104 tons) that year

 

[Athenian200]

From wikipedia: In the United States, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimated that if all 270 million compact fluorescent lamps sold in 2007 were sent to landfill sites, that this would represent around 0.13 tons, or 0.1% of all U.S. emissions of mercury (around 104 tons) that year

Yes, but there would be WAY more than that number sold if we couldn't get incandescent anymore. How many incandescent bulbs are sold? Scale the percentage by that amount.

I think it will add up to much more than 0.1 percent.

 

[Mondo]

Sure flourescent bulbs are more energy-efficient but banning incandescent bulbs isn't the right answer to the problem.
The government really shouldn't have a say in this!

 

[laughingebony]

The government really shouldn't have a say in this!

Maybe not, but what do you suggest we do about the energy problem? Nothing?

From wikipedia: In the United States, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimated that if all 270 million compact fluorescent lamps sold in 2007 were sent to landfill sites, that this would represent around 0.13 tons, or 0.1% of all U.S. emissions of mercury (around 104 tons) that year

Regardless of the ratio, that's still 260 pounds of mercury we don't need in our landfills.

 

[millerm277]

Regardless of the ratio, that's still 260 pounds of mercury we don't need in our landfills.

True, but when you factor in the energy saved by not burning coal for incandescent lights, it's probably in favor of the CFLs. (Take a guess where a good amount of that other 99.9% of mercury emissions come from? Coal-burning power plants produce a LOT of mercury emissions.)

 

[laughingebony]

True, but when you factor in the energy saved by not burning coal for incandescent lights, it's probably in favor of the CFLs. (Take a guess where a good amount of that other 99.9% of mercury emissions come from? Coal-burning power plants produce a LOT of mercury emissions.)

Granted. I was really making a case for LED bulbs. Given enough support and a little more time, we could have LED bulbs that cover the entire range of what incandescents and fluorescents can do now.

 

[SubjectA]

True, but when you factor in the energy saved by not burning coal for incandescent lights, it's probably in favor of the CFLs. (Take a guess where a good amount of that other 99.9% of mercury emissions come from? Coal-burning power plants produce a LOT of mercury emissions.)

And assuming that using more CFL's will lead to significantly less coal-burning sources for power is questionable. Not to mention CFL's pose direct health risks to households when they break.

 

[JAVO]

Prepare yourselves... this is just a build-up to banning all light.

 

[BlueScreen]

LED bulbs are the best but what if you're using the bulb for heating purposes?

Nillerz does have a point. Power wasted on incandescents, is power saved on heating. Ignore the fact reverse-cycles are 400% efficient.

 

[runvardh]

Don't move here, we're adopting it sooner than the US according to an earlier post. That said, I'd be happy to get the LEDs. Having to change bulbs all the time is a pain and I can do with out the extra thermal energy that does me more harm than good homeostasis-wise.

 

[Feops]

Sure flourescent bulbs are more energy-efficient but banning incandescent bulbs isn't the right answer to the problem.
The government really shouldn't have a say in this!

The government... should not have a say in environmental issues?

I suppose you expect the industry to regulate itself yes?