How do you save money, conserve energy, and help protect the environment in one simple step? By changing a light bulb! Due to their exceptional energy efficiency, compact fluorescent light bulbs can significantly reduce your electric bills, decrease the energy output of your home or office, and allow you take an important step towards "going green" in just 18 seconds: the time it takes to change a light bulb.

Energy Star ® is a joint program of the U.S. Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency. This program has released impressive statistics stating that if every American home replaced just one regular light bulb with acompact fluorescent light bulb, we, as a nation, would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year, more than $600 million in annual energy costs, and would save the greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of more than 800,000 cars. You can imagine how much more savings can be had when you add businesses to the mix.

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs Conserve Energy

Compact fluorescent light bulbs use up to 75% less energy, generate up to 90% less heat, and last up to 10 times longer than traditional light bulbs. That, in and of itself, makes them an exceptional choice for businesses. So what exactly is it that makes compact fluorescent light bulbs so much more energy efficient than traditional light bulbs? The answer is found in the method these bulbs use to produce light.

Traditional incandescent light bulbs use heat to generate light. However, only 10% of the heat produced actually results in illumination, which means an astounding 90% of that heat goes to waste. In comparison, compact fluorescent light bulbs use an efficient chemical reaction to produce light, which requires only 25% of the electricity used by incandescent light bulbs in order to produce the same amount of light.

Statistics show that replacing a 75-watt incandescent bulb with the equivalent compact fluorescent light bulb will save about 570 kWh over its lifetime. At an estimated 8 cents a kWh, that calculates out to a savings of $46 in electricity for each bulb.

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs Save Money

Replacing just five of the most frequently used light bulbs in your home or office with energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs will save around $65 a year on your electric bill. The general recommendation is to replace the light bulbs in the high traffic areas of the home such as the family and living rooms, kitchen, dining room, bedrooms, and outdoor porch. Businesses might consider replacing regular bulbs in the lobby, showroom or other public areas.

Because compact fluorescent light bulbs do not produce the heat that traditional bulbs generate, cooling expenses in the summer are also reduced. And, while they initially cost a bit more, compact fluorescent light bulbs last 8 - 10 years, while incandescent bulbs generally need to be replaced on an annual basis. The added benefit is fewer trips to the store and less time spent changing light bulbs.

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs Protect the Environment

The less energy people use in their homes and offices, the less coal or natural gas is needed to produce energy. The result? A tremendous reduction in the carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses released into the air, a substantial decrease in air pollution, and a giant step towards the fight against global warming.

Replacing just one traditional bulb in your home or office with a compact fluorescent light bulb reduces coal usage by more than 200 pounds. It also prevents a whopping 400 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions over its lifetime.

Other energy-saving methods are often inconvenient and unaffordable. Compact fluorescent light bulbs, however, are an easy way for everyone to become more energy efficient, reduce expenses, be kind to the environment, and help make the world a brighter, better place to live.

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