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Fair Warning - 100W Light Bulbs Outlawed Next January 1st
Two manufacturers have revealed Light Emitting Diode (LED) bulbs they will offer to replace the 100W bulb, at a retail price of about $50 each. They only produce the amount of light typically provided by 60W bulbs.Congress passed a law in 2007 mandating that bulbs producing 100 watts worth of light meet certain efficiency goals, beginning on January 1, 2012. The same rule will start apply to remaining bulbs 40 Watts and above in 2014. Since January of 2011, California has already banned stores from restocking 100-watt incandescent bulbs, in an effort to prevent hoarding. Importantly, some manufacturers are already marketing 100W bulbs that are markedly dimmer than standard bulbs, as measured in Lumens, which rate brightness. Traditional 100W bulbs emitted at least 1500 Lumens, whereas some 100W bulbs now emit as little as 950 Lumens, about the same brightness as a standard 60W bulb. Lumens are usually numbered on the outside of the box. The big problem with LEDs is that although they don't produce as much heat as incandescent bulbs, the heat they do create shortens the lifespan and reduces the efficiency of the chips. Cramming a dozen chips together in a tight bulb-shaped package that fits in today's lamps and sockets makes the heat problem worse. The brighter the bulb, the bigger the problem is. The most powerful pear-shaped LED bulbs in stores today the kind that fits existing lamps produce light equivalent to a 60-watt bulb, though there are more powerful ones for directional or flood lighting. Posted by: Anonymoose 2011-05-17 |
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