GREEN LIGHTS
Deciding which light bulb to buy is not as simple as it once was. But learning the difference between ordinary incandescents and newcomers on store shelves could save you money in the long run, and also help the environment.

An Energy Star-qualified compact fluorescent light bulb, or CFL, for example, uses 75 percent less energy to produce the same amount of light as an incandescent and lasts up to 10 times longer.

Recently, however, there has been concern over the mercury used in CFLs. While recommending careful handling of the bulbs, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cites relatively miniscule amounts of mercury in CFLs and notes that none is released when they are in use. It is the long-term effects of large amounts of the burned-out bulbs on the environment that sees EPA and the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality recommending recycling CFLs as the best way to dispose of them.

Preventing these bulbs from winding up in our landfills, where large amounts of mercury might infiltrate soil, water or air, is vital, according to Valerie Bohonus, a
manager at a.k.a. Green. The green-oriented Scottsdale business, which sells energy-efficient CFLs, also is a drop-off site for unbroken burned-out bulbs; these are sent to a toxic waste facility. To find other drop-off spots for spent bulbs, contact local, city or county government offices or utility companies, or visit energystar.gov, earth911.org, aps.com or lamprecycle.org.

Michael Jackson, owner of Hinkley’s Lighting Factory in Phoenix, believes the wave of the future in lighting lies in light-emitting diodes (LEDs), produced from semiconductor materials. Depending on the brand, they last up to five times longer than CFLs, he says. “They also save a lot more energy than CFLs, and, since they do not contain mercury, they don’t have the disposal problems CFLs have,” he adds.

LEDs currently are primarily good for task lighting, and “they are expensive—up to $80 a bulb,” Jackson says.  “They’re still evolving.”
See Sources.


MULTI-USEFUL
Touted as “two lamps in one,” the Energy Star-approved Berkeley II lamp from Full Spectrum Solutions provides dimmable fluorescent task and ambient lighting. Its two CFL bulbs can be used independently or together for upward, downward or combined illumination. The Contemporary steel design has a 120-volt power supply outlet on its base, useful for plugging in a laptop computer or recharging a cell phone. Multiple lampshade options are available, including crepe and raspberry, shown above; bulbs included.









OVER THE RAINBOW
As colorful as its name implies, this energy-saving 3-watt LED Rainbow pendant light from Bruck Lighting Systems Inc. is composed of an inner casing of frosted white glass and an outer shell of multicolored dichroic glass. The piece becomes a rainbow of bold hues when the pendant is lit. The fixture measures 3 1/2 inches high by 4 1/2 inches in diameter and is suspended on a cable. Use alone or in clusters. A smaller version also is available.

DIDJA KNOW? If every American household replaced just one light bulb with a CFL, we would save enough energy to light every home in Arizona for a year. —Arizona Public Service