Remembering the push for compact fluorescents before LEDs took over

Back then, we were all installing those curly CFLs to save energy. Now with LEDs everywhere, it's wild how much less waste and power we use on lighting jobs.

3 comments

3 Comments

the_cora4d ago

Yeah the "less waste" part is kinda off. Those old CFL bulbs had mercury in them, which made them a huge pain to throw out. You couldn't just toss them in the trash, they were toxic waste. So we swapped one problem for another for a while. LEDs are definitely the win, using way less power and actually being safe to handle when they burn out. The energy savings were real with CFLs but the whole mercury thing was a downside people forget.

maxt954d ago

Remember how bad it was when a CFL broke? You had to air out the room and use sticky tape to clean up the glass. The mercury vapor was nasty stuff. Now with LEDs, if one breaks, it's just a quick sweep with a dustpan.

emery6804d ago

Yeah @the_cora is right about the toxic waste thing. Honestly, a lot of people just threw them in the regular trash because the recycling spots were hard to find. That mercury definitely ended up in landfills, which kinda ruined the whole green point of using them.