More efficient light bulbs? Trump administration would rather not

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Quartz


By Zoë Schlanger 15 minutes ago

The Trump administration on Wednesday (Feb. 6) moved to roll back an Obama-era rule that would make light bulbs more efficient. Set to take effect in one year, the rule would change what type of bulbs could be sold in the US, and it would save more energy than any efficiency standard in Department of Energy history, according to E&E News.

Now a proposal to roll it back comes after vocal pushback from the industry that would have to comply with it. In short, Big Lightbulb sued.

The Obama-era rule—finalized on the day before Donald Trump took office—expanded the reach of an earlier standard, so that it would require virtually all light bulbs to meet a level of energy efficiency (45 lumens per watt) that incandescent and halogen bulbs in their current form simply can’t meet. That leaves compact fluorescents and LEDs, but because compact fluorescent bulbs come with a risk of mercury contamination, the industry is already moving away from those. So as a recent newsletter of the Association of Energy Services Professionals put it, the new standards effectively “accelerate a transition to light emitting diode (LED) light bulbs already underway.”

On January 1, 2020, if the rule goes into effect as planned, it will be illegal to sell most incandescent and halogen bulbs in the US, and they’ll be replaced on store shelves with LEDs.

Read more: https://qz.com/1546400/more-efficient-light-bulbs-trump-administration-would-rather-not/

[Rorey]

1. I'm happy to report

Every lightbulb in my house is an LED, except maybe the refrigerator and oven bulbs.

[k8conant]

3. I still have a few CFLs.

[myohmy2]

8. same here...

...why would anyone want to use those energy-gluttonous electric-heater light bulbs today?

…is there any purpose for incandescent bulbs that can't be met with LEDs?

...the only place that I find incandescent bulbs desirable are automobile headlights...

...an approaching vehicle with LED headlights sucks...

[DBoon]

10. Lava Lamps

You need enough heat to make the colored "lava" swirl

[SCantiGOP]

40. You can take my lava lamp

When you pry it from my cold, dead eyeballs that were staring at it.

[Archae]

22. Same here, and add to that my lava lamp.

The rest are LED's.

[Bengus81]

33. I'm about there,a few left in very low use closet lights that haven't burnt out.....

And then any extra bulbs I have I've slowly used up in my garage door opener. Refrigerator will have to have an incandescent. I still have outdoor incad Christmas lights that are on for about four hours per night for a few weeks in Dec.

Still like the way they look although LED has come a long way in those colored bulbs and the price has come down. But boy....do those old time lights use electricity! I used to leave them on through New Years Eve but I pull the plug the day after Christmas.

[NutmegYankee]

39. Almost there. I still use T5 bulbs for seed starting.

In fact some of my seedling fixtures consume 216 Watts! But I get some really healthy seedlings for the garden.

[El Mimbreno]

42. grow light panels

Couple of years ago my wife found 12" square LED grow light panels on ebay. Think they were about $15 at the time. Really give the vegs a head start.

[TexasBushwhacker]

2. The thing is, even with their higher costs LED bulbs save you money

They last so much longer and use less electricity. Of course, electric utilities really don't want us to use less electricity, because that's how they make their money. That's why they are fighting solar too.

[Rorey]

4. For a little while they were 97 cents a box

at Walmart (I know, I know....) for a 4 pack of GE 60 watt LED bulbs. I think I must have bought at least 25 boxes and gave them to tenants and my family. I have no idea why they were such a ridiculously low price, but I took advantage and didn't ask questions.

[docgee]

6. IKEA has them rather inexpensive as well.

[Norbert]

31. Replaced a floodlight with the LED version that required a 20 ft ladder to change it.

Love the fact that, with our usage, it will be at least 20 years until we change it again.

The dumb shit will undue everything that the black president has done. What a jealous ass hole.

[Bengus81]

34. Here in Kansas the KCC ALLOWED Westar to NAIL homeowners using solar with a FEE

Never mind that Westar themselves uses solar along with a lot of wind generation,they want to fine people who use panels on their homes. So far their getting away with it but I see a lawsuit coming. They claim your abusing them (sniff,sniff) by making them provide you electricity yet then using solar to not use their electricity.

Never mind the fact that most with panels are NOT off the grid,their just reducing their usage and saving Utility companies from having to build another zillion $$$ gas fired plant to meet demand. What their doing should be 100% illegal unless their going to fine people for using LED bulbs.

[TexasBushwhacker]

43. Yeah, that really chaps my hide

The great thing about solar is that it's producing the most electricity when demand is highest - during the day, during the heat of summer. The electrical companies should be THRILLED that they can delay building new power plants for the sole purpose of peak demand.

[Locrian]

5. LEDs are great

It's the dimmers that tend to suck and are $$$. And the incandescent dimmers don't work well with LEDs.
Still worth it to change over - plus a lot less heat

[LakeSuperiorView]

9. In my view, LED bulbs are pre-dimmed...

No dimmers required. But then, that's my aging eyes talking. CFLs were terrible in dealing with colder temps in winter here.

I like LEDs, just wish they made them brighter.

[not fooled]

16. There are 100-watt equivalent LEDs

that are quite bright, e.g. on Amazon (yeah, I know, but Bezos did just monkeywrench cheeto and co's. latest crooked endeavor).

[Scruffy1]

23. I converted my shop to LED worklights.

It's a much better light and I can see things better with my old eye. Lumens do not tell the whole story. They actually have a lower lumen rating, but they work a lot better than the fluorescent T8. I think it's because a lot of the "lumens" in some bublbs are not in a useful spectrum.

[forgotmylogin]

13. I know they're more expensive...

but you can get LEDs that control and dim via a phone app. I have an LED hallway light programmed to turn on at dusk and off at sunrise.

You can also get color LEDs to make cool mood lighting!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

46. You have to use good quality leds I think.

We’ve installed hundreds of Cree brand recessed retrofit lights. Every time we tried the off brand we get buzzing.

We did our whole house at $40 bucks a pop. Now the Crees are down to $13 bucks. So it doesn’t even make sense to go off brand. I think the same goes for the individual bulbs.

[SWBTATTReg]

7. Too late. Can't go back once everyone has found the benefits of having lightbulbs that ...

work cheaper and just as good or better than the older style light bulbs. The only reason they're doing this (rump admin.) is because Obama and/or his admin. was involved w/ this. And that's it, the only reason. rump will go down in history as the worse so called president ever, being that almost every decision that he's stumbled into is that of revenge and pettiness.

[rurallib]

12. Exactly - what's the benefit of being the last buggy whip dealer?

who would want to carry an item few will buy?

[SWBTATTReg]

15. The only ones I can think of are either members of a sex club or leather club. Ha ha. Just a ...

little humor here. Take care.

[rurallib]

18. !

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

20. There are still makers of race horse crops.

For that "Triple Crown" experience.

[RockRaven]

11. Even ignoring the energy cost savings AND absent government regulations, LEDs are going to elbow out

incandescents anyway. Why? Because of their life-span. An LED light bulb (say a 60W or 100W incandescent equivalent) costs about 5 times as much as their respective incandescent, but lasts 50 times as long. So in the long run a 10-fold savings in bulb costs.

So Trump can kiss the ass of "Big Lightbulb" or the "But Freedom" FOXNews viewers with this move (I recall some of my idiot relatives having conniptions over "Obama telling them what lightbulbs to buy, dammit" ); consumers still won't go back to those crappy, quick-to-burnout bulbs.

[Bengus81]

35. I write the date on many of them I install.........

I have two on my outdoor garage lights that are on their fifth year and use almost no electricity (18W) compared to the old Edison bulbs,120/200W for two. And....I was constantly replacing the old ones because of the vibration the garage door would put on that thin filament when it went up and down. I don't think most of the incads burnt out,the filament would break.

[Rorey]

36. That is a great idea!

I'm learning so much on this thread!

[mudpuddle]

14. I cannot justify replacing incandescent bulbs anymore.

LED's last so much longer in my shop that the labor cost of replacing the incandescent bulbs every time they burn out justifies the higher price of the LED's. Also the LED's are much brighter.

[NurseJackie]

17. I can't use LED bulbs in my oven...

I can't use LED bulbs in my oven... so I hope the incandescent bulbs will still be available for that. (I guess ovens of the future will be illuminated by an LED bulb that sits in a safe (cool) location and aims light through tube with 45-degree angled mirrors)

[BumRushDaShow]

25. I thought bulbs 25W and below

(like appliance ones and some that go in chandeliers, etc) had been exempt from the original requirements.

[MurrayDelph]

19. I'm glad to get rid of CFLs

They were more expensive, had a lousy lifespan, and as they got old, it would take forever to reach peak brightness.

I used to have one CFL floodlight in my bathroom, as by the time it was bright-enough to read by, it was too late.

[groundloop]

21. I actually have a use for incandescents.... but it's for making heat, not light

I've done quite a lot of fiberglass work over the years and a reflector type shop lamp with a 60 watt incandescent bulb put off just the right amount of heat to help speed along the cure of small parts.

As far as making light, LEDs rule. Now that dimmers are available that actually work with them I have zero complaints, every light in my house is now an LED.

And oh yeah...... Tiny and his industry slaves are idiots.

[David__77]

24. Too late - the ship has sailed.

The market already transformed in anticipation of the standard kicking in. And utility ratepayer-funded incentive programs have facilitated this.

[GulfCoast66]

26. This may be the first thing in 2 years I don't absolutely hate out of this administration.

Most of my house is LED and will soon be 100% converted. They are superior for lighting in every way and are way more cost effective.

But incandescents have their place, mainly when heat is what you need. For incubators or keep covered plants from freezing there is no beating them.

No one made buggy whips illegal. They were just not need by many people. But some people still use them if they have a buggy.

[pangaia]

27. While I fully support saving energy, I so far have not found an LED bulb that gives the warmth

of an incandescent bulb.

Am I missing something?

probably so...

[wishstar]

28. Dollar Tree has been selling LED's for $1 for a 2 pack (I bought the 100w equivalents)

I have been using them above my kitchen sink and other high use locations where they have held up great so far with instant soft brightness. Last year Duke Energy also had a special mail order deal where they were only $2 a bulb.

I kept some incandescents just for a couple of outside motion lights that don't get used much because they are supposed to be better in cold temps and I have a couple of ceiling lights that the LED bulbs are too big for and small CFL's fit better.

We replaced all of our 4 shop lights (as their fluorescent tubes went out) with LED fixtures last year and love them too.

[Duppers]

30. Thanks for that TIP! 💡

I need bulbs and will ck them out.



❤ for ya.

[Takket]

29. huh? efficient lighting regulations went into effect back in 2012

You can't even hardly find any incandescent bulbs for sale anymore. Go to your local Target or Home Depot and I doubt any more than 1% of the bulbs for sale are incandescent.

There is no market for them anymore. Manufacturers have already switched over. The "roll back" is meaningless. It is like telling the auto industry they don't have to build cars with crumple zones anymore. That's nice... but they aren't going to retool all their plants at the cost of millions of dollars just to build something unneeded and unwanted by the consumer.

[Norbert]

32. Stores will be slow to react to the tRump rollback

It starts on the first day of an election year. With any luck he will be pink slipped or convicted and this rollback will be repealed.

[Blues Heron]

37. Hate the piercing LED security lights

you know the ones - bright as a welders torch - that are popping up everywhere, always unshaded. When did we decide lampshades were passé?

The interior LEDs are nice though, but are there any real-world stats on longevity? CFLs were supposed to last 10 years too, but they didn't in practice. I would think some degree of planned obsolesence would be baked in by the bulb makers.

[Iterate]

44. That's a lighting design problem, not an LED problem.

I switched completely 12 years ago and have seen the minor problems ironed out over time.

The problems manufacturers and users are dealing with now are correct design and lamp selection, phosphor color consistency, output stability over time, and filling out the selection of all less common lamp sizes and shapes.

Buyers need time to learn how to select them, because it's more than a matter of just picking wattage and shape -color temperature and profile, lumen output, light beam pattern, and dimability are the new variables.

Longevity is a tricky thing to measure. Designs are constantly changing. You can get longer life with lower output and over designed heat-sinks. Testing by the EU two years ago showed about 25% failure between 6,000 and 10,000 hours. Ignore outrageous claims. Is 10,000 hours not good enough? That's five years for a light that's heavily used.

And there is no baked-in obsolescence, only a set of design and manufacturing trade-offs.

[Blues Heron]

45. True, a lot of this comes down to personal behavior

If there's twice as many bulbs out there at half the wattage, we're back where we started. Let's not eat up our efficiency gains by lighting up our neighborhoods to look like prison yards.

[Firestorm49]

38. Money and private business over the common good of the country. Oh so Republican.

[jcgoldie]

41. Pretty incredible

That the Trump Administration really does choose the side of evil and corruption in EVERY SINGLE CIRCUMSTANCE.