New energy bill breaks my decor
December 27, 2007
From the New York Times:
The new energy bill signed this week makes it official. When 2012 hits, stores can no longer sell the cheap but inefficient incandescent light bulbs that are fixtures in most homes. [ No Joke, Bulb Change Is Challenge for U.S. ]
Good news for the environment, I suppose, but really bad news for my lava lamps. I need that wasted heat to warm up the lava sludge enough to get it in motion, dang it!
Well, we have four years. Maybe there will be a revolution in lava-lamp manufacture before it’s too late.
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December 27th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
Let the lava lamps go. It’s time.
December 27th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
What do you mean? Lava lamps are eternal.
December 27th, 2007 at 6:03 pm
It’s time to panic and stockpile incandescent bulbs - or hack up an heating element to put in the base. Talk about saving energy!
December 29th, 2007 at 9:48 am
I think Carl is right. We stockpile the bulbs and then sell them on e-bay to the highest bidder…where is my calender? We need to sell them fast since the Mayan calender ends at the end of 2012 (http://2012wiki.com/index.php?title=Main_Page) Are light bulbs a sign of the Apocalypse?
December 29th, 2007 at 10:34 am
Yes, I am sure there will be stockpiling going on. But those bulbs have such a short shelf life I am sure any quantity won’t last long.
SCHT, I don’t think light bulbs are a sign of the Apocalypse, but they do help you see it better.
December 29th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
In general I can see the point of CFL bulbs for efficiency, but I worry about the mercury in them (and all fluorescent bulbs) which will become a bigger problem once we start disposing of them in larger quantities.
And then there’s the Annoying Buzz Factor, which is one reason I insist on an incandescent bulb for any light that’s going to be used within a couple feet of my head. Fluorescent bulbs make noise, haven’t met one that doesn’t, drives me crazy, clearly this is the current administration’s effort to send me gibbering over the edge into the abyss.
Or something.
December 30th, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Fortunately we won’t dispose of them as rapidly as we do the others, though. I’m with you on the buzz, too. How to the LEDs work for you?
December 31st, 2007 at 9:26 pm
We bought some LED holiday lights this year and they seem to be comparable to the old-fashioned incandescent mini lights, albeit at about three times the price. Since we don’t have past years’ holiday light costs to compare, I’m not sure if there was any significant cost savings - but if they hold up for a few years the tradeoff should be even.
When they manufacture an LED-based lamp that screws into a standard fixture, and market it at an affordable price, I’ll consider trying them.
January 3rd, 2008 at 5:11 am
[...] we don’t have to worry, because as Some Call Him Tim has pointed out, the world ends in 2012. Expect to hear more about this as we get to 2012. And especially expect to [...]