Super Eco

Photo credit: kimberlyfaye, flickr

At Super Eco, we're all for replacing applicable light bulbs in your house with compact fluorescents. We've already showed you how to recycle the little treasures of toxic mercury (also the name of my new band), but what if you haven't joined the bandwagon yet? Here are a few tips on how to choose which CFLs to buy and where you should place them.

The most common variety of compact fluorescent light is the Mini-Spiral, fitting easily into table lamps, ceiling fixtures and wall sconces. If you're starting out with just your every day, easily-reachable lamps, the Mini-Spiral is where to start. They contain the lowest amount of mercury of any CFL and will last over 10,000 hours. If mercury is your concern, Environmental Working Group has a great guide to CFL bulbs, how long they'll last and how much mercury they contain.

If you have track lighting or exposed bulbs outdoors, you'll need to go with reflecting CFLs, which contain more mercury but will last longer. If using them to light an outdoor area, make sure the kids aren't playing too much kickball in the general area. If you think they're too exposed and are likely to break, go with an LED light instead. Planet Green also makes the point that the technology is continually changing, so it's good to stay up to date on the latest breakthroughs in CFL technology.

If you're not convinced and have no plan to get compact fluorescents, at the very least do what I do and turn off lights when they're not in use. It seems perfectly intuitive, but it's like pulling teeth when it comes to my roommate. Within minutes of coming home he promptly turns on every light in the place and takes a nap. He's like one of those iguanas your 9th grade biology teacher kept on a fake tree branch. Sigh...it's a learning process for us all, I suppose.