Light bulb regulations: what’s true and what’s not

By Mary Boone

Don’t know anything about light bulbs? You are not alone. The new federal regulations governing the sale of light bulbs are a bit confusing. Many consumers mistakenly believe that the new standards in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 prohibit the sale of light bulbs. Not true. Instead, the federal government set new efficiency standards for light bulbs. From January 1, 2012, any light bulb that can generate the amount of light produced by a conventional 100 W incandescent bulb, but uses approximately 30% less energy, is eligible for sale.

Basics

Uncle Sam gives consumers and light bulb manufacturers time to adapt to the new regulations. In 2013, this rule will be extended to 75W bulbs. In 2014, 40W and 60W bulbs will also be available. No bulb will be banned as long as it meets the new energy standards, and retailers will still be able to sell substandard bulbs while supplies last.

It is also important to remember that the new standards do not apply to all light bulbs. Some specialty bulbs are exempt, including appliance bulbs, heavy-duty bulbs, colored lights, three-way bulbs, and others. The new energy efficiency standards apply to conventional, medium-sized, pear-shaped screw-in bulbs – most often used in traditional home lighting fixtures.

Watts and lumens

One of the most noticeable changes consumers will notice when they walk down the lighting aisle at their local home improvement store is the way products are labeled. For decades, light bulbs were sold by watts – a measure of the energy used by a particular product. Currently, light bulbs must be labeled according to the amount of light they emit, a measure called lumens.

The Federal Trade Commission is requiring new product labels that clearly list the lumens – or brightness – of the bulb, the estimated annual operating cost and the color of the light (from warm/yellow to white to cool/blue). .

The US Department of Energy sheds additional light on this topic:

• Nationwide, lighting accounts for approximately 14 percent of total building electricity use (approximately 10 percent of home electricity use). New lighting standards could save American households nearly $6 billion in 2015 alone.

• Experts estimate that replacing 15 incandescent light bulbs in your home with new, energy-saving light bulbs, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) or light-emitting diodes (LEDs), could save an average of $50 a year.

• The average consumer spends about $4.80 per year to use a traditional light bulb (electricity cost). For comparison, this consumer would spend about $1 for an Energy Star-certified LED bulb, about $3.50 for a halogen bulb, and about $1.20 for an Energy Star CFL bulb – each producing about the same amount of light.

• CFLs and other fluorescent lamps contain very little mercury, so it is important to recycle them at the end of their life. Many retailers recycle CFLs for free, and some municipalities have special CFL recycling programs. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency offers specific guidelines for recycling CFLs.

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