CFL Bulbs?

DavyJones61

I've just come across about 20 CFL bulbs while tidying up.

Any use for anything or should I just bin them

Gerry1

They contain poisonous mercury as well as electronics, so they mustn't be binned, only recycled at a suitable site.

Not worth keeping because they're twice as expensive to run compared to filamentary LEDs, as well as taking far too long to warm up.

cranford

Try one and see if you could live with it. You could use them in places where they are used infrequently rather than binning them. After all this is a money saving forum. A typical CFL equivalent to a 60 watt incandescent bulb would be 15 watts and if you use it for 1 hr a day it would cost 75p for a year to run. A saving of 37p a year over an equvalent LED. So buy a LED replacement for £3 and it will take you 8 years to get break even but probably the CFL will fail by then.

Ectophile

I have piles of them that I have been given. I actually prefer them in bedrooms because they take a little while to warm up. I also use them in places like hallways where it doesn't really matter.



If you want to get rid of them, then check your local council to find out where. They contain various toxic substances, including mercury.

FreeBear

Gerry1 wrote: »

They contain poisonous mercury as well as electronics, so they mustn't be binned, only recycled at a suitable site.

A bit of perspective here. A typical CFL bulb will contain less than 0.004g of mercury. Whilst there is no disputing the toxicity of mercury, the risk from a CFL is minimal. Still, they should be disposed of in a responsible manner.

tk47

FreeBear wrote: »

A bit of perspective here. A typical CFL bulb will contain less than 0.004g of mercury. Whilst there is no disputing the toxicity of mercury, the risk from a CFL is minimal. Still, they should be disposed of in a responsible manner.

If they are in good working order, please consider the environment and don't dispose of them at all

Gerry1

tk47 wrote: »

If they are in good working order, please consider the environment and don't dispose of them at all

The same logic would mean keeping all your incandescents...

Norman_Castle

Offer them on Freecycle.

Swipe

I still use CFL bulbs, they seem to give off a much more pleasant light than LEDs. I'm just upset you can't buy them any more and the LEDs are a rip off. I ended up buying a bedside lamp from Lidl with the led bulb included as the bulbs on their own cost double the price of a lamp without one.

cranford

You can buy CLF bulbs on Ebay, Amazon and many other online retailers. They use about a fifth of the energy of an incandescent bulb and a halve more than LED. Using a 60w or equivalent bulb for 1 hr a day for a year would cost you about 40p for a LED, 75p for a CLF and £3 for a incandescent.

DawnCrush

Gerry1 wrote: »

The same logic would mean keeping all your incandescents...

Only if you plan to use them. Or you know someone who does.
I'm not sure who would particularly want them, but I suppose there are some 'stick in the mud's' out there.

I know there is a stall at our local market who seems to be able to still sell incandescents. Charges £1.50 per bulb, which considering I used to buy 10 of them for 99p back in the day, from the likes of Texas, that seems quite a mark up, but some people seem prepared to pay it.

CFLs use only about 20% of the electricity or less of an incandescent equivilent, so definitely worth using them if you have them over incandescents,

I am aware that LEDs probably use only about 60% of the energy of equivilent CFLs, but as CFLs themselves use so little electricity, then any further saving is negligible. I think someone above suggested it would take 8 years to repay the cost of a new LED, and that does not take into account the environmental effect of the energy, plastics and other materials required to produce yet another bulb, and transport it to you, usually all the way from China.