Reducing Energy Waste With CFL Bulbs

CFL (Compact Fluorescent Light) Bulbs have become very popular in a lot of places. CFL Bulbs replace standard bulbs, which use a significantly higher amount of wattages. By using CFL Bulbs the amount of energy that we use can be dramatically reduced. These bulbs use 75 percent less energy than regular bulbs do, and also last a lot longer. If each home in America replaced one regular light bulb with a CFL Light Bulb then within one year it would save enough energy light roughly three million homes. The difference between CFL Light Bulbs and regular light bulbs is that CFL Bulbs are much more energy efficient. How are they more energy efficient? Regular light bulbs create light by heating a filament inside of the bulb, which the filament white hot, creating light. A CFL Bulb contains a gas that produces invisible UV light when the gas is excited by electricity.


There are different wattages for CFL Bulbs to replace regular light bulbs. Here is a list of the wattage comparisons:

Regular Bulb CFL Bulb

60w 13w/15w
75w 20w
100w 26w/29w
150w 38w/42w


What is even better than being able to replace regular bulbs with more energy efficient bulbs? Being able to easily recycle them. Home Depot recycles CFL Bulbs. When a CFL Bulb burns out simply bring it to almost any Home Depot, making sure to bring it to the return desk. A sales associate will help you and take the bulb, making sure it gets to the right place to be recycled.


If you are interested in purchasing CFL Light Bulbs there are quite a few places that sell them. A few stores out of many include EarthEasy Shop, Home Depot, Lowe's, Amazon, Walmart, etc.


The price varies from brand to brand and place to place on CFL Bulbs. Also, remember, the higher the wattage of a CFL Bulb the higher the price, the same as a regular light bulb. The key to finding an affordable CFL Light Bulb is to simply shop around.