What better place to start a green revolution than in your own backyard. The greening of America is a good thing and you can help with something as simple as the way you cut your lawn.
Lawn care comes in three basic styles; gas powered, electric powered and human powered or the manual push mower. Let's start with gas powered, the fastest and most powerful. On the toxic side, gas mowers produce several types of pollutants, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, ozone precursors and carbon dioxide, none of which are beneficial to the environment and even less to the person operating the mower.
Depending on which study you read, operating a gas mower for one hour produces the same pollution as driving a car 1300 to 3400 miles. An EPA study found that nine percent of some types of air pollutants nationwide come from lawn and garden equipment small engines. Gas mowers are not the eco friendly solution.
With a push mower, or hand mower, you are eliminating all of these pollutants as well as petroleum product use. The manual mower has come a long way since those days of mowing the neighbours lawn for two dollars.
Modern technology and design have created a mower of superb quality and effectiveness. These mowers, also called "reel" mowers, due to the design of the blade movement, are the ultimate in eco friendly lawn care. It is a simple concept, you push, it mows.
Even though your gas mower friend might try to tell you otherwise, a push mower is not difficult to use requiring only slightly more effort than a power mower. With new blade designs and lighter materials, hand mowers are quiet and virtually maintenance free lawn tools.
A manual mower does take a bit longer to accomplish the same task as a power mower, but it is a much more pleasant experience. Reel mowers also leave you with a good feeling about yourself and how you've helped the planet.
In terms of time spent, if you can mow an area with a power mower in 45 minutes, it might take you 60 - 70 minutes with a manual push mower. But as good as the modern reel mowers are, they aren't for every lawn job.
They will not cut dandelions or tall weeds and for unkempt lawns; it may require two passes of a manual push mower. Lawns over 7000 square feet will take too much of a time commitment for the average user to consider hand mowing a feasible option.
For larger lawns, the eco friendly advantages of the manual push mower must bow to the electric mower. There are two kinds of electric mowers, the corded and the cordless. With the advances in battery technology the cordless, rechargeable electric mower is the best option. A corded mower has the obvious limit of its cord length, usually no more than 100 feet before you run into the problem of current flow and diameter of cord.
Electrics are more expensive than the more simple reel mowers, usually two or three times the price. They also offer a smooth, silent cutting experience and a cutting power closer to that of a gas mower.
The recent trend back towards the manual push mower stems from a more eco aware public. A simple step like mowing your lawn by hand is a great way to start greening your own yard.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Sunday, July 13, 2008
What About All That Dog Poop?
For those of us who own dogs, especially those city dwellers, there is a common problem that we all face on a daily basis. Dog waste removal is not only a requirement of responsible pet ownership, but in many cities it is the law.
The idea of putting something that is 100% biodegradable into plastic bags seems less than earth friendly. Some plastic bags can take up to 100 years to degrade, this is not a solution.
Obviously the best solution is to take the waste and flush it down the toilet, but modern living often doesn't allow us that luxury. There is no reason to put naturally biodegradable waste into our already overfull landfills. The solution is biodegradable dog waste bags.
The green movement has finally gotten around to bowel movements and now green manufacturers are creating completely biodegradable bags that look, feel and work like traditional plastic. These bags contain no polyethylene, the common ingredient in real plastic bags and the one that just won't go away.
Rather than making bags out of almost non-degradable polyethylene, green innovators are creating biodegradable dog waste bags out of corn starch. These new bags solve the recycling problem of traditional plastic bags and offer new options as well.
Dog owners now have the several choices for waste disposal. The waste and the bag can now be used on your backyard compost pile where both items will decompose naturally. It can be buried where both the bag and the waste will be eaten by microorganisms.
The waste can also be left for curbside pickup if your community has such an option, many do and more are providing the option to their residents. If yours doesn't yet, call your local government official and ask when curbside composting pickup might be available.
The best biodegradable doggie bags are made of GMO free corn, which means that there were No genetically modified organisms used in the production of the bags. GMO free also means that you can use the waste as part of your compost for any organic agriculture or gardening.
Dog ownership includes many joys, the least of which is waste disposal. As a responsible dog owner and citizen, it is important to make the right choice for your pet and the planet. Biodegradable dog poop bags return to the earth as quickly as food scraps and leave no harmful residue. They offer a variety of choices for disposal and leave both you and your dog with the feeling of a job well done.
The idea of putting something that is 100% biodegradable into plastic bags seems less than earth friendly. Some plastic bags can take up to 100 years to degrade, this is not a solution.
Obviously the best solution is to take the waste and flush it down the toilet, but modern living often doesn't allow us that luxury. There is no reason to put naturally biodegradable waste into our already overfull landfills. The solution is biodegradable dog waste bags.
The green movement has finally gotten around to bowel movements and now green manufacturers are creating completely biodegradable bags that look, feel and work like traditional plastic. These bags contain no polyethylene, the common ingredient in real plastic bags and the one that just won't go away.
Rather than making bags out of almost non-degradable polyethylene, green innovators are creating biodegradable dog waste bags out of corn starch. These new bags solve the recycling problem of traditional plastic bags and offer new options as well.
Dog owners now have the several choices for waste disposal. The waste and the bag can now be used on your backyard compost pile where both items will decompose naturally. It can be buried where both the bag and the waste will be eaten by microorganisms.
The waste can also be left for curbside pickup if your community has such an option, many do and more are providing the option to their residents. If yours doesn't yet, call your local government official and ask when curbside composting pickup might be available.
The best biodegradable doggie bags are made of GMO free corn, which means that there were No genetically modified organisms used in the production of the bags. GMO free also means that you can use the waste as part of your compost for any organic agriculture or gardening.
Dog ownership includes many joys, the least of which is waste disposal. As a responsible dog owner and citizen, it is important to make the right choice for your pet and the planet. Biodegradable dog poop bags return to the earth as quickly as food scraps and leave no harmful residue. They offer a variety of choices for disposal and leave both you and your dog with the feeling of a job well done.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Is There Such A Thing As An Eco Friendly Diaper?
One of the biggest problems the growing green movement faces can be found hidden in every baby's diaper. Eco friendly diapers are in short supply unlike that which they were intended to collect. There currently aren't enough landfills to deal with all the diapers out there.
Babies go through about 5,000 diapers during potty training and the EPA says that diapers account for 3.4 million tons of waste (roughly 2% for the US total) in landfills (1998 figures). To qualify as eco friendly diapers it will be necessary to bypass the landfills as well as the harmful chemicals.
It may at first seem an easy, green choice to go with cloth diapers rather than disposable, but the diaper solution is not so cut and dried. To make cloth your eco friendly diaper of choice you will need a few basic items.
First and foremost you will need a washer and dryer at your beck and call and the time to constantly wash the tainted offerings that your baby produces at a near prolific rate. You will need to chose an eco friendly laundry soap and the style of cloth diaper that best suits your child.
This is by far the most preferable way to deal with the diaper issue, but not the solution for everyone. City dwellers may look to a diaper service, but eco friendly diapers do not come from most pay services. Due to excessive hot water use and necessity of chlorine bleach (to kill Staff and other infections common to babies), these services produce less than eco friendly results.
This takes us back to disposable diapers. Conventional disposables (Pampers, Huggies) are also not eco friendly diapers. Their manufacture involves chlorine (a volital organic compound VOC) and all use chemical gel cores that "lock in" a baby's pee. These chemical gels contain sodium polyacrylate known for respiratory and skin irritation problems (mind you in much higher doses than found in diapers).
These manufacturers would argue that the chemicals used are all within safe limits, but do you really want to swaddle your child in such potential problems? Disposable, eco friendly diapers do exist, sort of and are are making strides towards even higher standards of green on a daily basis.
A well know manufacturer of many green products, Seventh Generation, makes a disposable eco friendly diaper or so they say. The truth is a truly biodegradable diaper doesn't really exist due to the quantity versus the available landfills.
But Seventh Generation is a very transparent company as far as their ingredients go and produces some of the best eco friendly products available. They also claim that their eco friendly diapers use a "chemically inert" gel and claim independent scientific research has shown it is "nontoxic, not carcinogenic, and nonirritating to the skin."
Another company, Gdiapers, makes a similar product with the added advantage of making their diapers flushable. The flushable feature does eliminate the landfill problem (some statistics put a diapers landfill life around 500 years), but both of these so called eco friendly diapers use similar gel cores on which there is still not enough definitive research.
The winner, in this reviewers eyes, in the disposable eco friendly diaper contest is made by Tushies. Assembled in the US, these are made of a cotton blend, chlorine free wood pulp and best of all, no chemical gels. Not as widely available as the Seventh Generation product, this brand can be found in some health food stores and also online.
The final word on diapers is that "eco friendly diapers" is an still an oxymoron at this point. Diaper services show facts that gel absorbents in disposables are harmful and disposables claim the chlorine used in diaper services is harmful. There is no definitive proof of either side being right. The eco friendly diapers of the future will combine all the best features, flushability, no gel absorbents above all comfort and safety for your baby.
Babies go through about 5,000 diapers during potty training and the EPA says that diapers account for 3.4 million tons of waste (roughly 2% for the US total) in landfills (1998 figures). To qualify as eco friendly diapers it will be necessary to bypass the landfills as well as the harmful chemicals.
It may at first seem an easy, green choice to go with cloth diapers rather than disposable, but the diaper solution is not so cut and dried. To make cloth your eco friendly diaper of choice you will need a few basic items.
First and foremost you will need a washer and dryer at your beck and call and the time to constantly wash the tainted offerings that your baby produces at a near prolific rate. You will need to chose an eco friendly laundry soap and the style of cloth diaper that best suits your child.
This is by far the most preferable way to deal with the diaper issue, but not the solution for everyone. City dwellers may look to a diaper service, but eco friendly diapers do not come from most pay services. Due to excessive hot water use and necessity of chlorine bleach (to kill Staff and other infections common to babies), these services produce less than eco friendly results.
This takes us back to disposable diapers. Conventional disposables (Pampers, Huggies) are also not eco friendly diapers. Their manufacture involves chlorine (a volital organic compound VOC) and all use chemical gel cores that "lock in" a baby's pee. These chemical gels contain sodium polyacrylate known for respiratory and skin irritation problems (mind you in much higher doses than found in diapers).
These manufacturers would argue that the chemicals used are all within safe limits, but do you really want to swaddle your child in such potential problems? Disposable, eco friendly diapers do exist, sort of and are are making strides towards even higher standards of green on a daily basis.
A well know manufacturer of many green products, Seventh Generation, makes a disposable eco friendly diaper or so they say. The truth is a truly biodegradable diaper doesn't really exist due to the quantity versus the available landfills.
But Seventh Generation is a very transparent company as far as their ingredients go and produces some of the best eco friendly products available. They also claim that their eco friendly diapers use a "chemically inert" gel and claim independent scientific research has shown it is "nontoxic, not carcinogenic, and nonirritating to the skin."
Another company, Gdiapers, makes a similar product with the added advantage of making their diapers flushable. The flushable feature does eliminate the landfill problem (some statistics put a diapers landfill life around 500 years), but both of these so called eco friendly diapers use similar gel cores on which there is still not enough definitive research.
The winner, in this reviewers eyes, in the disposable eco friendly diaper contest is made by Tushies. Assembled in the US, these are made of a cotton blend, chlorine free wood pulp and best of all, no chemical gels. Not as widely available as the Seventh Generation product, this brand can be found in some health food stores and also online.
The final word on diapers is that "eco friendly diapers" is an still an oxymoron at this point. Diaper services show facts that gel absorbents in disposables are harmful and disposables claim the chlorine used in diaper services is harmful. There is no definitive proof of either side being right. The eco friendly diapers of the future will combine all the best features, flushability, no gel absorbents above all comfort and safety for your baby.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Some Tips on Making Your Own Compost
Maybe you've been wondering how to make your own compost, it's not that dificult if you follow some basic rules. Composting provides relatively easy methods for recycling your yard clippings into usable garden soil for your backyard or garden. As all organic matter eventually decomposes, composting merely speeds the process with some styles of composting being faster than others.
Let's start with the decomposition, decomposing organisms (bacteria, fungi, etc) need four basic elements to do their job: nitrogen (clover, fresh grass clippings, livestock manure), carbon (dried leaves and twigs), moisture (rain or your garden hose) and oxygen (you can aid this process by turning or mixing your compost).
Other materials suitable for your compost pile are; straw, woody brush, coffee grounds, vegetable and fruit scraps, sawdust and shredded paper. Materials you should Not use include; meat scraps (they may attract animals) and diseased plants or dog/cat manure (which can carry disease).
No matter which style of composting you choose they all supply you with the same final result; humus or garden soil. Humus helps all kinds of plants grow and look better by providing vital nutrients to the soil. Below are 3 basic ways you can easily make your own compost.
1. Cold composting is a simple task and works well if you don't have a lot of yard waste, don't have the time to tend the compost at least every other day and aren't in a hurry. Simply create a pile of your grass clippings and dry leaves on the ground. A barrier or wall can be used to keep the compost more together and chopping or shredding speeds up the process which can take many months to a year to complete with this method.
2. Hot composting requires more work, but will create humus in weeks instead of months. With this style the pile must be at least 3' x 3' x 3' to create efficient heating. It is also necessary to enclose your pile with a wall (wire mesh, bamboo). Choose a level, well-drained area. Make sure you include high-carbon and high-nitrogen materials and mix the two together. If you are low on nitrogen material, you can add a small amount of commercial fertilizer containing nitrogen. Roughly a 1/2 cup of fertilizer for every 10 inches of compost should do the trick.
You will need to keep the pile moist, but not soaked (when it is too wet the pile will start to smell bad). It is necessary to turn the pile when the internal temperature reaches 130-140 degrees Fahrenheit. Checking temperature can be done with a compost thermometer or by reaching into the pile to feel the heat, if it is uncomfortably hot, it is time to turn the pile.
To make your own compost in a month, you will need to turn the pile daily. Turning every other day will yield humus in 1 to 3 months. The finished product will smell sweet and be cool and crumbly to the touch.
3. Rotating barrels or compost tumblers work on the same principles as hot composting, but offer several advantages. Compost tumblers are nice looking (not like an ugly pile of fermenting yard waste), pest resistant, easy to keep aerated (you simply flip the barrel to mix the ingredients) and they stay closed which helps keep them more insulated from weather conditions like excessive rain or heat.
Compost tumblers make the whole process more fun by eliminating the hard work involved in turning your compost pile and deliver a finished product in the quickest time possible. This style of composting is the perfect solution for a busy lifestyle.
Once you make your own compost it can be used for all your planting needs. It works well in your garden as well as potted plants and improves the soil structure of any soil you add it to. Creating your own compost pile is a wonderful way to recycle at the same time improving your garden and all the plants in it. Composting is the perfect solution to a greener garden.
Let's start with the decomposition, decomposing organisms (bacteria, fungi, etc) need four basic elements to do their job: nitrogen (clover, fresh grass clippings, livestock manure), carbon (dried leaves and twigs), moisture (rain or your garden hose) and oxygen (you can aid this process by turning or mixing your compost).
Other materials suitable for your compost pile are; straw, woody brush, coffee grounds, vegetable and fruit scraps, sawdust and shredded paper. Materials you should Not use include; meat scraps (they may attract animals) and diseased plants or dog/cat manure (which can carry disease).
No matter which style of composting you choose they all supply you with the same final result; humus or garden soil. Humus helps all kinds of plants grow and look better by providing vital nutrients to the soil. Below are 3 basic ways you can easily make your own compost.
1. Cold composting is a simple task and works well if you don't have a lot of yard waste, don't have the time to tend the compost at least every other day and aren't in a hurry. Simply create a pile of your grass clippings and dry leaves on the ground. A barrier or wall can be used to keep the compost more together and chopping or shredding speeds up the process which can take many months to a year to complete with this method.
2. Hot composting requires more work, but will create humus in weeks instead of months. With this style the pile must be at least 3' x 3' x 3' to create efficient heating. It is also necessary to enclose your pile with a wall (wire mesh, bamboo). Choose a level, well-drained area. Make sure you include high-carbon and high-nitrogen materials and mix the two together. If you are low on nitrogen material, you can add a small amount of commercial fertilizer containing nitrogen. Roughly a 1/2 cup of fertilizer for every 10 inches of compost should do the trick.
You will need to keep the pile moist, but not soaked (when it is too wet the pile will start to smell bad). It is necessary to turn the pile when the internal temperature reaches 130-140 degrees Fahrenheit. Checking temperature can be done with a compost thermometer or by reaching into the pile to feel the heat, if it is uncomfortably hot, it is time to turn the pile.
To make your own compost in a month, you will need to turn the pile daily. Turning every other day will yield humus in 1 to 3 months. The finished product will smell sweet and be cool and crumbly to the touch.
3. Rotating barrels or compost tumblers work on the same principles as hot composting, but offer several advantages. Compost tumblers are nice looking (not like an ugly pile of fermenting yard waste), pest resistant, easy to keep aerated (you simply flip the barrel to mix the ingredients) and they stay closed which helps keep them more insulated from weather conditions like excessive rain or heat.
Compost tumblers make the whole process more fun by eliminating the hard work involved in turning your compost pile and deliver a finished product in the quickest time possible. This style of composting is the perfect solution for a busy lifestyle.
Once you make your own compost it can be used for all your planting needs. It works well in your garden as well as potted plants and improves the soil structure of any soil you add it to. Creating your own compost pile is a wonderful way to recycle at the same time improving your garden and all the plants in it. Composting is the perfect solution to a greener garden.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
LED - The Future of The Light Bulb?
Nearly one fourth of all energy used in homes gos for lighting. This fact can be tied directly to the inefficiency of the incandescent bulb which converts only about 10 percent of the electricity they use to produce light, the rest is wasted as heat. Incandescents are definitely not energy saver light bulbs, yet are still in most households.
The compact fluorescent light (CFL) came on in the 80s as the energy solution to home lighting needs. CFLs do provide greater efficiency on two levels. The average 60 watt incandescent can be replaced with a 12 watt CFL and CFLs can last up to 10,000 hours according to their ratings chart. It is important to note that this rating is made by only switching off the CFL once every 11 hours, so if that's normal for your usage, then the hours stand.
The biggest problem with the CFL bulb though is the inclusion of toxic mercury in its production (a small amount of this chemical is used to increase the bulbs efficiency).
CFLs are still housed in glass and glass is breakable, should you break a CFL bulb even Energy Star (a large proponent of CFL technology) has a "to do" list that reads like a hazmat clean up.
So what's the real eco friendly bulb?
The energy saver light bulbs of the new millennium are light emitting diodes (LED). LEDs offer even greater energy efficiency than CFLs (one third better) and last for an average of 60,000 hours. Even if you left your lights on for half of every day, they would still last over 25 years, or longer than most people own their homes. You might never have to change another light bulb in your home.
LEDs are also of solid state design and this makes them tougher and more durable than any of their current competition. Best of all, LEDs use NO toxic mercury. The efficiency of LEDs can lead up to a reduction in home lighting energy use by as much as 90%. This is an excellent savings in money as well as green house gas emissions.
In terms of durability, I was recently at a green expo and watched an LED spokesperson drop an LED onto a cement floor over two dozen times only to plug it in and have it work just fine every time. Both the solid state inners and the metal housing made the likely hood of breaking this bulb very low.
LEDs do suffer from high initial cost right now, but even with the cost of the bulbs as it is they still save you considerable money on your electric bill while keeping your family and pets safe from any toxic chemical mishaps. LED prices will benefit from increased public support, just as CFLs did when they first came out.
If you're looking for energy saver light bulbs that are also family friendly and last for decades, then look no further than the LED. A simple change like the light bulbs you use in your home can start you on the eco friendly lifestyle; helping you save money and the planet at the same time.
LEDs are expensive right now, around $25 for an average household bulb and about $65 for a flood light style bulb, but the savings in electricity and longevity make LEDs cost effective even at today's prices. These prices are similar to what CFLs were when they first came out and as public interest increased; the prices decreased. You can be assured this will also happen with LED bulbs.
The compact fluorescent light (CFL) came on in the 80s as the energy solution to home lighting needs. CFLs do provide greater efficiency on two levels. The average 60 watt incandescent can be replaced with a 12 watt CFL and CFLs can last up to 10,000 hours according to their ratings chart. It is important to note that this rating is made by only switching off the CFL once every 11 hours, so if that's normal for your usage, then the hours stand.
The biggest problem with the CFL bulb though is the inclusion of toxic mercury in its production (a small amount of this chemical is used to increase the bulbs efficiency).
CFLs are still housed in glass and glass is breakable, should you break a CFL bulb even Energy Star (a large proponent of CFL technology) has a "to do" list that reads like a hazmat clean up.
So what's the real eco friendly bulb?
The energy saver light bulbs of the new millennium are light emitting diodes (LED). LEDs offer even greater energy efficiency than CFLs (one third better) and last for an average of 60,000 hours. Even if you left your lights on for half of every day, they would still last over 25 years, or longer than most people own their homes. You might never have to change another light bulb in your home.
LEDs are also of solid state design and this makes them tougher and more durable than any of their current competition. Best of all, LEDs use NO toxic mercury. The efficiency of LEDs can lead up to a reduction in home lighting energy use by as much as 90%. This is an excellent savings in money as well as green house gas emissions.
In terms of durability, I was recently at a green expo and watched an LED spokesperson drop an LED onto a cement floor over two dozen times only to plug it in and have it work just fine every time. Both the solid state inners and the metal housing made the likely hood of breaking this bulb very low.
LEDs do suffer from high initial cost right now, but even with the cost of the bulbs as it is they still save you considerable money on your electric bill while keeping your family and pets safe from any toxic chemical mishaps. LED prices will benefit from increased public support, just as CFLs did when they first came out.
If you're looking for energy saver light bulbs that are also family friendly and last for decades, then look no further than the LED. A simple change like the light bulbs you use in your home can start you on the eco friendly lifestyle; helping you save money and the planet at the same time.
LEDs are expensive right now, around $25 for an average household bulb and about $65 for a flood light style bulb, but the savings in electricity and longevity make LEDs cost effective even at today's prices. These prices are similar to what CFLs were when they first came out and as public interest increased; the prices decreased. You can be assured this will also happen with LED bulbs.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Earth Day - 38 Years Later
I remember Earth Day 1970, I was living in Vancouver, Canada and still in school. Our teacher, a bit of a forward thinker, took us all on a field trip that day to the local post office where several groups of other like minded peoples were congregating. This was a time before "green" thought, even before Greenpeace, but still we stood holding our signs protesting the "pollution" of automobiles and non-caring big business. We felt we were making a difference.
The world has changed a lot since then as has the green movement in the Americas and around the world. The idea of pollution back then was the price of "progress" said big business and to an extent that's still the excuse. The difference now points to a more and more informed public on environmental issues (thanks in a big way to the Internet).
Education being the principle that furthers the cause. To know the problem is to want to help and even though there are some who would like the public to remain ignorant of these issues, the greed that fuels these people is slowly being covered over by knowledge that we are part of this planet, not supreme rulers.
Our world is run on capitalism and whether its for or against the environment doesn't matter as much as our attitude about our existence. We as humans need to feel hope and purpose, a feeling that not only comes from age and experience, but from contemplation and knowing that we share a deep spiritual connection to the planet. We must feel passion for our environment.
So celebrate this Earth Day and celebrate your connection to all things Earth. Its the only planet we have right now. Just as I did on that first Earth Day so many years ago, go out today and educate yourself about your place on this world. With an educated populace comes unstoppable change.
The world has changed a lot since then as has the green movement in the Americas and around the world. The idea of pollution back then was the price of "progress" said big business and to an extent that's still the excuse. The difference now points to a more and more informed public on environmental issues (thanks in a big way to the Internet).
Education being the principle that furthers the cause. To know the problem is to want to help and even though there are some who would like the public to remain ignorant of these issues, the greed that fuels these people is slowly being covered over by knowledge that we are part of this planet, not supreme rulers.
Our world is run on capitalism and whether its for or against the environment doesn't matter as much as our attitude about our existence. We as humans need to feel hope and purpose, a feeling that not only comes from age and experience, but from contemplation and knowing that we share a deep spiritual connection to the planet. We must feel passion for our environment.
So celebrate this Earth Day and celebrate your connection to all things Earth. Its the only planet we have right now. Just as I did on that first Earth Day so many years ago, go out today and educate yourself about your place on this world. With an educated populace comes unstoppable change.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Which is the Most Green Light Bulb?
Back in the days of incandescent bulbs we were just happy to have something less messy than a candle. In recent years, due in a big way to the green revolution, we have seen the rise of compact florescent lights (CFL) as a solution to the wasteful nature of incandescents.
With the average US household using 45 light bulbs and CFLs using 75% less energy and lasting up to 10 times longer than their incandescent equivalent, it seemed like a no brainer to switch over and many people have done just that.
In the early years of CFL bulbs there were some strong negatives to balance their economy. The bulb was known for its sickly blue colouring and high price tag. But the new generation of CFL bulbs have corrected their colouring problems and now often produce better light than the incandescents in blind tests.
The high prices have gone down as well, from around $25 a bulb (average household size) to around $5 for the same bulb. With all this going in the CFLs favour you might be thinking these are the green bulbs to go with, but wait.
Phosphor, the chemical compound inside the CFL which once excited converts ultraviolet radiation into visible light, is the main ingredient in the bulb, but CFLs also contain toxic mercury. The EPA estimates that about 5 milligrams (or enough to cover the head of a pen) of mercury is used to increase the bulbs efficiency.
The inclusion of mercury is the problem. This toxic chemical makes disposing of a CFL a somewhat more involved process than that of an incandescent. These bulbs are still made of glass like their incandescent predecessor and are still relatively easy to break.
Energy Star, a great proponent of CFLs, has a recommended list of things to do when you break a CFL bulb that reads more like a hazmat operation. A broken CFL bulb will immediately release mercury into the air. The resulting initial discomfort of dizziness and nausea are only part of your concerns. Breathing in mercury can cause lifelong damage to the central nervous system.
The potential dangers of CFLs make them a less than perfect green lighting solution, but there is a light in the tunnel. I will leave you with one word...(no, not plastics)...LED.
Next blog I will talk more about Light Emitting Diodes (LED) and how they are poised to be the eco friendly light bulbs of the future.
With the average US household using 45 light bulbs and CFLs using 75% less energy and lasting up to 10 times longer than their incandescent equivalent, it seemed like a no brainer to switch over and many people have done just that.
In the early years of CFL bulbs there were some strong negatives to balance their economy. The bulb was known for its sickly blue colouring and high price tag. But the new generation of CFL bulbs have corrected their colouring problems and now often produce better light than the incandescents in blind tests.
The high prices have gone down as well, from around $25 a bulb (average household size) to around $5 for the same bulb. With all this going in the CFLs favour you might be thinking these are the green bulbs to go with, but wait.
Phosphor, the chemical compound inside the CFL which once excited converts ultraviolet radiation into visible light, is the main ingredient in the bulb, but CFLs also contain toxic mercury. The EPA estimates that about 5 milligrams (or enough to cover the head of a pen) of mercury is used to increase the bulbs efficiency.
The inclusion of mercury is the problem. This toxic chemical makes disposing of a CFL a somewhat more involved process than that of an incandescent. These bulbs are still made of glass like their incandescent predecessor and are still relatively easy to break.
Energy Star, a great proponent of CFLs, has a recommended list of things to do when you break a CFL bulb that reads more like a hazmat operation. A broken CFL bulb will immediately release mercury into the air. The resulting initial discomfort of dizziness and nausea are only part of your concerns. Breathing in mercury can cause lifelong damage to the central nervous system.
The potential dangers of CFLs make them a less than perfect green lighting solution, but there is a light in the tunnel. I will leave you with one word...(no, not plastics)...LED.
Next blog I will talk more about Light Emitting Diodes (LED) and how they are poised to be the eco friendly light bulbs of the future.
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