Anybody use Energy Efficient light bulbs?

coganh83

Are they supposed to lower your electric bill somehow, or are they just better for the environment? If they last longer, have you had them long enough to notice a diff in your bill? I'm trying to convince DH to start buying them when a bulb burns out.

kzoomaggie

We use them.  I don't know how much they actually lower our bills, but I like the fact that we haven't had to change a light bulb in a few years.  They are definitely more expensive than traditional light bulbs, but I think we've saved money in the long run. 

vitaminc28

We have them, but so far it doesn't seem like they last longer.  We have burned out a couple already and we haven't had them for a year even.  I thought they were supposed to last a lot longer. *shrugs*

lilnephie

I would say about 90% of our indoor and outdoor lights are Energy Efficient.  We have a couple fixtures and fans that wouldn't take them and our turtle's UV lamp is not EE.

You see the savings over time.  You will notice it in the first couple of months.  We noticed it big time in the summer when we changed our outdoor flood lights to EE bulbs.  We leave them on quite a bit for bon fires and when we let our dogs out at night.  The old lights were pretty expensive.  I would say so far we have seen a 25% decrease in our bill.  It should be more when we replaces the last of the fixtures.

We we added dimmers to the kitchen and dining room, that has helped as well.  Those are the fixtures that do not have EE bulbs.

MrsB1021

We had them at the condo and never had any burn out.  We've had them at the house and haven't had to replace any yet.

I don't really think you'll notice a HUGE reduction in your bill unless you really monitor it, but since they last longer you won't be buying bulbs as often, and they do you less energy so they technically are better for the environment.  Disposal of them is a different story though since you aren't supposed to just throw them in the trash since they contain small amounts of mercury.

lilnephie

vitaminc28:

We have them, but so far it doesn't seem like they last longer.  We have burned out a couple already and we haven't had them for a year even.  I thought they were supposed to last a lot longer. *shrugs*

We have found this is hit or miss.  It has a lot to do with the type of bulb and the fixture itself.  There are some bulbs in our house that we have not replaced in 4 years, but then there are a few that we replace once a year.

Tarah716

I buy them and Jason hates them - he hates that they take a while to "warm up" so to speak.  So he's gone back to buying regular bulbs.

lilnephie

Tarah716:

I buy them and Jason hates them - he hates that they take a while to "warm up" so to speak.  So he's gone back to buying regular bulbs.

Are you talking about the the type for recessed lighting so they are flood light style.  We have those and I hate it too, but I have gotten used to it over the years.  Not all the bulbs are like that.  Just the flood style.

whrldtravlr

I know this is very "not-green" but I use them really sparingly because I hate them too. They give everything in our home a weird blue-green tint and makes it look morgue-like. We're only using them in parts of the house where DH tends to keep the lights on ALL the time even though we aren't there- like in the basement stairwell.

mardoll10

That's all we buy now, unless it's a small light fixture and we can't get them to fit.  I find that they do last longer.  Since finishing the basement ceiling, we've already burned out 3 or 4 incandescent (regular) bulbs, and 0 compact flourescent.

mary811

We have them in some places, but not the whole house.

I can't say our bill has decreased at all, so I only buy whatever is on sale and what I have a coupon for. 

mcvaydesigns

they give you cancer

coganh83

mcvaydesigns:

they give you cancer

what type? I'm going to guess you'll say testicular.

mcvaydesigns

coganh83:

mcvaydesigns:

they give you cancer

what type? I'm going to guess you'll say testicular.

face cancer