Imagine one light bulb consuming electricity around the clock for one full year. How much coal would it take to light that bulb if it were an incandescent? How about if it were compact fluorescent? Let’s do the calculation:

The thermal energy content of coal is 6,150 kWh/ton of coal. If 40% of the thermal energy in coal is converted to electricity, then:

0.4 x 6,150 kWh/ton = 2,460 kWh/ton of coal burned

One 100-watt light bulb burning for one full year:

0.1 kW x 8,760 hours = 876 kWh

So that: 876 kWh/(2,460kWh/ton) = 0.3561 tons = 712 pounds of coal burned per year

One 23-watt CFL burning for one ful year:

0.023 kW x 8,760 hours = 201 kWh

So that: 201.5 kWh/(2,460kWh/ton) = 0.0819 tons = 164 pounds of coal burned per year

The difference? 712 – 164 = 548 pounds of coal saved per year!

Carbon Dioxide Savings

There are, on average, 2.2 pounds of carbon dioxide per pound of coal burned.

548 pounds of coal saved annualy x 2.2 pounds of carbon dioxide/pound of coal = 1,206 pounds CO2 per 23-watt CFL changed!

Commentary: Green Irene has been carrying covered CFLs of various types at SHOPGREENIRENE. In addition, Green Irene’s CFLs have the lowest amount of mercury possible, are high-quality (so they will not fail until at least the end of their lifetime), and have high luminosity and colors for lighting quality, all while saving you money. You can learn more about them by contacting a Local Eco-Consultant or you can shop directly at SHOPGREENIRENE.

Valley retailers are offering new compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) that get around one of the biggest obstacles – ugliness – for consumers to install the low-power devices.

The new covered bulbs look like traditional lightbulbs but offer the energy efficiency of the curvy, pigtail-like bulbs that sometimes raise shoppers’ eyebrows.

Some of the other drawbacks remain, including the mercury inside that requires special disposal and the fact that shoppers have to pay a little more attention to buy the proper light for the job.

Although CFLs still are more expensive than traditional incandescent bulbs, using one of the 13-watt CFLs saves about $35 in electricity costs compared with a 60-watt traditional bulb, and they’re designed to last longer so they don’t need to be replaced as often, utility officials said. Most homes have about 35 lightbulbs, but utility officials said customers can save a lot without replacing all of them.

And the new covered bulbs do that without looking eccentric.

“It looks like a regular bulb, but has a CFL inside,” said Debbie Kimberly, SRP’s energy-efficiency manager. “If you are an energy geek like myself, you can walk down the aisle and notice they have made tremendous advances in the way the bulbs look as well as their performance.”

Another common complaint from people who switch to CFLs is the lighting quality.

Hines and Kimberly said when switching to CFLs, customers need to learn to buy bulbs based on the lighting output measured in lumens and make sure to buy the proper type of bulb for recessed lights or other specialty sockets.

“Look for the light output that you want first, and the smallest number of watts to get that,” Hines said. “If a CFL light is too dark, go up to the next wattage. You’re still going to save a ton of energy.”

Article excerpted from AZ Central.

Rosamaria Caballero Stafford
Co-Founder and the Original Green Irene

Ever wonder how you could live without light? As a resident of this planet called Earth, I feel extremely lucky to have the Sun, it provides me with an enormous amount of light that I need for living. Wait, we all need light for a variety of purposes.

In general we need light to see; but also to grow crops, power our society, and even keep us happy! (Have you ever met anyone deficient of Vitamin D? I was once diagnosed with a red mark on my chart, “Deficient”, and believe me it’s not a happy state of being!) Inside our houses we need light to see and carry out our normal “home” routine. Unlike outside, we need to be careful with light at home because it’s not free! Forgetting to turn off lights and heating can take a toll on the monthly bill. As your local Green Irene, I can help you see the light to energy saving at home! Lighting fixtures at home can draw a large amount of power, perhaps sometimes unnecessarily because there are more energy efficient options. With my Light bulb Savings Calculator, I can determine how much you can save by replacing your old light bulbs with more energy efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs).

For example, if you replaced 57 old incandescent light bulbs of different types with the Green Irene Set of CFLs and your electricity rate is roughly $0.24/kwh, you would save more than $6,000.00 over the lifetime of the light bulbs at a cost of $536. In addition, your home would reduce its carbon footprint by 41,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, which is equal to planting 5.1 acres of trees or taking 3.6 cars off the roads.I know what you are thinking, “Wow, that’s a lot!” Yes it is… imagine making that kind of an impact and saving that kind of money by just replacing light bulbs…

I can help you green up your home and save money by showing you where the energy savings actually are in your home. Simply ask your local Green Irene, that’s me…you’ll be taking an important step to greening up, while saving money.

Contact Lane Kennedy, Independent Authorized Green Irene Eco-Consultant

www.GreenIrene.com/1070lane.sanfrancisco@greenirene.com

Everybody knows about CFLs (compact fluorescent light bulbs). Not only do they help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but they also help reduce energy costs. Compared to incandescent light bulbs, which are much less efficient, CFLs can last 10 times longer using a fraction of the energy requirements of incandescent light bulbs. Today, there are specially designed CFLs for almost every use, ranging from office lights to ceiling fan lighting. But what do you do when your CFL no longer work?

Well, the answer is not very hard. Obviously, in trying as much as we can to live a green life, we need to reduce, reuse, and recycle as much as we can. Fortunately, old CFLs are one of the items that can be recycled. CFLs, just like many other items, end up in landfills if not recycled. These more energy efficient light bulbs have a small amount of mercury that can escape into the environment if CFLs are incinerated or kept at a landfill.

The health effects of mercury on the human body are well known. These include nerve disruptions, impaired cognitive skills, fatigue, poisoning, and even cancer over the long term. Mercury can easily be absorbed into the body through the skin and can also be absorbed through foods. Fish in particular pose serious risks because of higher mercury levels due to biomagnifications. These are risks that can be easily avoided by simply recycling CFLs so that the mercury is taken care of.

One of the easiest ways to recycle CFLs is to take them to local Home Depot or IKEA stores, which have a free program under which they collect and recycle CFLs. By taking your light bulb to one of these stores, you can prevent glass and mercury from reach a landfill and at the same time protect your own health by avoiding mercury risks.

Rosamaria Caballero Stafford
Co-Founder and the Original Green Irene