Unless you have been living in the dark – quite literally in this case – you will no doubt have seen the new energy saving light bulbs on sale in increasing numbers of locations in recent months.
They are called energy saving bulbs for a very good reason – they use a lot less energy than the old incandescent light bulbs which have been a part of our lives for more than a century. And the new style bulbs last so much longer than the old ones too, so there is really no reason for us to be relying on the old technology any longer.
There is the chance that new legislation will be brought into effect in the next few years that will affect the whole of Europe. This is likely to mean that all countries would need to phase out the use of old bulbs anyway. The idea is that Britain could be saying goodbye to the old light bulbs as soon as 2011 – just two years away.
The phasing out process will happen in several stages. It will start with the eradication of the highest wattage light bulbs and go down in stages until each wattage finally disappears from our shelves.
So will the new energy saving bulbs be any different to use than the old ones?
Well if you haven’t already started using them, you will notice one main difference when you first go out to buy them. This is the fact that the wattage of each bulb will be far less than the standard ones we have been used to. So for example, if you would normally use a 40w bulb, you would now only need to buy an 8-11w one. An 8w bulb means you would be using a fifth of the energy that your normal 40w one would have done.
Clearly this means you will be saving energy every time you use it. It is estimated that just one bulb will save you anywhere between £3 and £6 every single year. That may not sound like much, but when you replace all your old bulbs it can really add up.
But they don’t just save you energy. They also save a lot of money because they last so much longer than traditional bulbs. The one thing that may people probably aren’t aware of is that they won’t be able to throw their old bulbs away in their regular rubbish anymore. Special facilities are being set up to recycle the bulbs, and these are necessary because they have mercury inside them.
There has been some worry over the fact that mercury is included inside the bulbs, but there is really no need to be too concerned. The amount used is microscopic compared to what is needed in thermometers.
So it would appear that we are just a couple of years away from saying goodbye to the old tungsten filament light bulbs for good. Are you ready to start using the new alternative?