Energy Saving CFL Light Bulb Buying Guide
At Cut Your Footprint, we can appreciate that CFL bulbs can be a bit confusing as there are many different options that use measurements that people generally aren’t used to. Which is why we have devoted this page to helping you make sense of it so that you can get on with changing some of your light bulbs and reducing your carbon footprint.
Energy Saving CFL Light Bulb Wattage
First off, you need to look for the equivalent wattage to your existing bulb. If you currently have a 100watt light bulb, you will need a CFL bulb that gives you a 100watt equivalent. But don’t worry, your CFL bulb will use far less energy but still give you the equivalent light output. No change to your home lighting, but a big reduction in carbon emissions from the energy savings and thus a smaller carbon footprint for you. Not to mention much smaller energy bills!
Base Options for Energy Saving CFL Light Bulbs
Next, you need to look at the different base options. There are a few different types of bulb fixtures and you need to make sure that you get an energy saving CFL bulb that will fit properly. The main options are the traditional screw base, the pin base, or the GU24 base.
The traditional screw base is like any regular old light bulb. Most incandescent light bulbs come in this format and there are plenty of CFL bulbs like this to help you save energy and cut your carbon footprint. Second is the pin base. This is exactly how it sounds, with two ‘pins’ at the base of the bulbs.
The corresponding fixture will have to slots that these pins enter into. These fixtures are becoming more common in lamps and new homes as more people work on cutting their carbon emissions due to the worry of global warming. The final option is the GU24 base. These look the same as a screw base, but are guaranteed to meet Energy Star (a US government energy certification) requirements and thus help you ensure that you are saving as much energy as possible and in turn reduce your carbon footprint and fight global warming.
The Shape of Your Energy Saving CFL Light Bulbs
The next thing to choose is the shape and look of the actual CFL bulb that you want to use to save energy and reduce your carbon emissions. The main choices are the indoor twist, the indoor reflector, outdoor, and specialty. The indoor twist is the most familiar looking CFL bulbs and has become a symbol of the fight against global warming. If you prefer the look of regular light bulbs, you can get energy saving CFL bulbs with a dome cover.
Indoor reflector bulbs are designed to work in recessed fixtures, so are ideal in spot lights. Unfortunately, not any CFL bulb can go outside, so if you are looking for an outdoor fixture, be sure to get a CFL bulb that is marked for the outdoors. Finally, specialty CFL bulbs are designed to work with dimmer switches or three-way switches. See the diagram below for the different shapes and their main uses to help you reduce your carbon footprint.
Color of your Energy Saving CFL Light Bulbs
The last choice you’ll have to make for your CFL bulbs is the color. This is fairly simple. As a general rule of thumb, you should get cooler temperature light for indoors, and brighter and bluer lights for garages, work areas, or outdoors, as they cast a wider area of illumination.
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