Incandescent Bulbs - OK, so what's left ?

[3930dave]

I'm trying to make sense out of the upcoming Canadian legislation....... might be easier to turn Lead in to Gold though....

I was going to post this in the Canada section here, but it seems that Ottawa is trying to play catch-up with what Washington decided some time ago. So.... I'm looking for feedback on what's been the reality on retail shelves in the USA.

1) Are halogen bulbs still widely available, and in what wattages ?

2) Have long cylindrical halogen bulbs (T3 etc style) in 150, 300, 500 watt been eliminated ?

3) Are there any notable exemptions ? (Ex. Infra Red bulbs for farm/industrial use).

Link to Canadian legislation:

Notice

If anybody needs to cure insomnia, the pending legislation is in the pdf listed at the bottom of the link, page 2305. Pdf is too big to post here.

Rgds, D.

 

[Ken45101]

AFAIK, the only thing that is missing in the US is 100w incandescent bulbs. 60w and smaller are still readily available, I was just looking at Walmart a couple of days ago. The T3 halogen bulbs are available, I saw them at Krogers (grocery) a few weeks ago although they were expensive.

 

[3930dave]

View attachment 349257

Thanks Ken.

I'd need to head off to Law School to really be able to interpret what's going on, but it looks like there may be new federal regs kicking in Jan 01/14 in the USA. (See attached pdf).

As legislation goes, I like how yours is laid out - gets to Exemptions pretty early. If I read this right, T bulbs are going to be limited to 40watts (?).

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/110/hr6/text

(See Sec. 321 for Lighting regs).

Also looks like sales increases for exempt bulbs are capped, and will kick in additional legislation if the cap is exceeded.

I don't use many 100w A bulbs, but it looks like I need to stock up on the T, and reflector bulbs that I do use.

Rgds, D.

 

[Ken45101]

Stupid a** politicians. CFLs don't make sense or save energy in the cold barn or other places that get very little use per year (an hour or two per year at most.)

I guess I need to stock up on those adapters that screw into a light socket and provide sockets for two bulbs.

How long do you think it will be before they discover that the mercury in fluorescent bulbs is hazardous? I already have several dozen dead 4' fluorescent bulbs sitting around that I can't dispose of (only option here is one day a year at place 20 miles away! That saves a lot of energy. NOT!)

 

[3930dave]

I'll give the Canadian traditional media credit in this case... before I started this thread, what I read through contained a lot of reporting that hammered on the Govt for forcing this legislation through, w/o putting in place a Federal structure for handling the mercury. Somebody never told the feds you need a Cart and a Horse !

I use CFLs by choice for certain things, but it is a real PITA to lose the other bulb options for the things I want to use them in. Many people find the CFL lifespan to be nowhere near what is claimed too, so the cost justification story definitely is weaker than what is marketed.

I take the time to recycle flourescents, including CFLs, but many people don't. That behaviour is pretty easy to predict.

What I haven't tried yet is that big tall CFL that is a replacement for something like a 200w incandescent. I see them at Ag stores, and I think Lowes too - might be a good option for barns or workshops....

Rgds, D.