Happy Earth Day!

I'm a little ashamed I was caught off guard by Earth Day today but to save face I think about ways to conserve almost as a way of life. In fact, last night I must have known subconsciously because I finally found and bought affordable LED(light emitting diode) light bulbs in Walmart of all places.

I know Walmart isn't exactly a world leader for environmental products, but how is it they started carrying these before our health food market leaders like Earthfare here in the Southeast. These have been around for several years yet until now have only been available online or through mail order. I was happy to see Wally even had LED bulbs "made in the USA" for under $10. 2 years ago these bulbs would have cost $30. Watch out though because they sell a smaller cheaper bulb of the same brand "made in China".

For Earth Day, I'd like to share a little about these eco friendly bulbs.

Surprisingly, most people haven't even heard that there is a much more environmentally beneficial alternative light bulb to CFL's (compact fluorescents) or that CFL's contain an average of 5mg of mercury and by law are considered hazardous waste and not suitable for landfills. Most people don't know this because of all the eco-hype they get, which makes it worse because they end up going in the landfill anyway. The energy savings is huge as well. While a compact flourescent substitute for a 40 watt incandescent bulb uses about 13 watts, an LED 40 watt substitute uses only 1.5 watts! WOW!!!!

They also have 3 to 10 times as long a lifespan average of compact fluorescent bulbs.
Here's a nice article about the lifespan of compact fluorescents:
http://blogs.lawrence.edu/greenroots/2009/02/compact_fluorescent_life_span.html
It should also be noted that stoplights have been aggressively converted to LED bulbs not only for their energy savings but primarily for their durability and long life. LED bulbs also do not burn out all at once so users are not left in the dark (or a car accident). Instead, individual diodes will give out leaving the timing of replacement flexible depending on the necessity for full brightness. They also turn on instantly in all climates and temperature whereas fluorescents don't fair too well in colder temperatures.

Lastly, they don't have that 60 hertz flicker and hum like CFL's that give some people headaches.

There is a practical drawback that prevents this from replacing all your lights though. They're still a little dim and the color is cool. But like with CFL's they're making advancements quickly.

For now, I find them great for my bedside lamp, closets, porch light, and hall lights.

So celebrate Earth Day with me and give an LED bulb a try!