Changing your light bulbs.

July 28, 2021

Changing your light bulbs is probably the easiest, most cost effective change you can make in your business. LEDs have an impressive lifespan (20-something years!) and are very cost-effective. They are an affordable investment and technology that has made significant advances over the last few years, finally delivering the warm light incandescents have comforted us with for decades.

As you can see in the chart, an incandescent can draw up to five times as many watts for the same number of lumens. Get a sense of the brightness (in lumens) you need before heading to the store, and throw away your affinity for watts.

Compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) contain mercury. They should be safely recycled to prevent release of mercury in our landfills. Various locations will recycle your CFL bulbs for free. [Link to something here such as Home Depot’s service?] If you break a CFL bulb, there can be a small amount of mercury released as a gas, but most will be in solid metal form. Do not vacuum it up, as that can aerosolize the mercury, which is dangerous to our health. Find out how to safely manage and dispose of broken CFL bulbs here.