The light of my life
There is a lot of hoarding going on, and it’s not food in case of a nuclear warhead dropping in your neighbourhood. It’s the old fashioned incandescent light bulb, as the EU plans to phase them out completely by 2016. Of course, being the UK we just love being proactive *cough* so the mandatory phasing out will be scheduled ahead of time by 2011.
The problem with these energy saving light bulbs, is they contain mercury. It’s not exactly the best substance to parade with. If you break one of these things while you are swapping them out, you best have a pair of gloves and a hazmat suit. The amount of mercury used can sit on the tip of a ballpoint pen, but still enough to be harmful as it is extremely toxic. There have also been problems with the amount of light emitted, or lack of. I have to admit, I use energy saving light bulbs myself and it is true they are dimmer and not as bright. But I managed to get used to it and sometimes it is best not to have that glare.
I asked a friend of mine what he thought about them, it went something along the lines of “oh, cool bulbs, kill you if they break. I’m thinking they are trying to make us all have them bulbs because of some brain modifying property in them… makes us not protest or something”. Whether it is some grand scheme for world domination, or the potential hazard of mercury within, it does save world energy as a whole. An energy saving bulb uses 80% less electricity than a normal light bulb, that can’t be scoffed at. The way forward is probably LED lights, which do not contain the mercury and uses even less energy. There is a nice article about the pros and cons. I love the Government advice section, it’s a shame they don’t highlight these warnings on the box.
Either way, if you are fond of the old bulbs you best start hunting for them. Some manufacturers have stopped making them, especially the 150W versions. I am unsure of whether the 2011 deadline can be met, or if the banning of the old bulbs can be enforced. Will our tax money now go to fund the Bulb Police? Time will tell whether the populace fully adopts this mandate, or if we have a pending light bulb riot on our hands. Sharpen your filaments lads.
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