Two of the most heavily used lights in our house are the R30 Recessed Bulbs that sit just above our dinner table. It’s the first light that I turn on when I come home and usually the one that stays on the longest. A couple of years ago my wife and I installed dimmers around the house to create a more moody feel throughout the house. Right now we have two 65W equiv 40W actual Halogenas in and we like them very much.

It seems like since that time we have been looking for energy efficient bulbs that have good dimming quality. Unless you want to spend a bunch of money on LED Lightbulbs, CFLs are pretty much your best bet in terms of efficiency. Unfortunately, any Dimmable CFL that I’ve tried has numerous quality problems. Last week we were at costco and picked up a 3-pack of 15W (65W Light) R30 Dimming Bulbs for $19.99. I was very pleased with the price because the ones at Home Depot were $13/piece.

These lights really are terrible. The light quality is inconsistent, one bulb was bright white while another was soft. They take forever to warm up and show full brightness. They don’t dim very well at all, the lowest dim is maybe 50% of full light, which doesn’t give you the ability set any sort of ambiance. Also, when brought down to lowest dim, some of them flicker out and will not restart.

I am taking these back to the store today and returning them. $20 bucks is a lot of money in a recession. So the quest continues for good quality dimming CFLs. If anyone has experience with some great ones, let me know, I am still searching.

Here is the video review.

RATING: 1 out of 5 Gears for Variable Eco Benefit

This kind of reminds me of Seinfeld episode where regular showerheads are outlawed and the guys are forced to seek them out on the black market.  But, in all their infinite wisdom, Congress passed legislation before the end of the new year that will ban 100W incandescent bulbs by the year…. wait for it… 2012. 

“Wow!  Whew!  Glad we got to that one in time… hey isn’t there a war on?” says the American Consumer!

 I can’t say I’m surprised.  Leave it the government to take a good thing too far.  Just as Americans were coming to the realization that using less energy is the right thing to do, not only for themselves but, for the environment, Big Brother steps in and ruins the party.  I hadn’t even gotten started on my second drink. 

I’m not really going to get into a CFL vs. Incandescent debate.  I have CFLs in my home where I don’t want dimmable lights.  CFLs are great in terms of their energy usage but, in my opinion, leave something to be desired in terms of light quality and disposal.  And of course, the classic bulb is great for light but doesn’t last very long and uses more energy than needed.  So, I use both but I’ve found that if you really want to help your energy bill, and the environment… the best idea is to turn off the lights when you leave the room!

I guess my question here is two fold.  First, is this sort of legislation the type of thing the Government should be doing?  Second, is it even necessary? 

Well, on the first issue I suppose I would say it’s probably not.  It should be up to consumers to make the decision as to how they power and light their home, seeing as they pay their own energy bill and not the government. 

 Second, the legislation itself seems kind of odd to me.  First off, everyone knows that full wattage incandescents are on their way out.  Over the next few years CFLs will come down in price and we will see a slew of new options from LEDs, Halogens, Fluorescent Induction, and heck… even energy efficient Incandescents!  So why ban them?  and if you Ban them, why in 2012?  That’s kind of like baning typewriters in 2018, or 3.25″ Floppy Disks in 2031.  It’s really not in sync with the market. 

So while this is probably good for the people that are making the bulbs, I don’t think it was needed, especially considering the more pressing issues we have going on right now.  But oh well, off to the Black Market. 

 Enjoy your 3 week break Mr. / Mrs. Congressman!  Thanks Again!