Reply #56: Waah! The big bad gubmint

[fifthoffive]

says I can't use incandescent bulbs in my home!!

Nope. The government is imposing energy standards on light bulb manufacturers. If you can find incandescent bulbs, no one is going to try to stop you. If you can find a 1973 Mercury Grand Marquis station wagon you want to drive, go for it.

Maybe some one will invent a new kind of light bulb that is efficient and has the same light characteristics as incandescent bulbs. They darn well won't unless there's demand for it, and there won't be demand for it until the inefficient incandescent bulbs are scarce. I know I can still find them almost everywhere I look, I just don't buy them anymore.

LEDs are pretty expensive right now, though they have extremely long life. The major effort in LEDs for lighting is for commercial applications, not for the home. That is slowly changing, and I expect more variety and less expensive choices in the relatively near future. I like the LED lights for weaving and sewing. They put out bright, white light with virtually no heat.

I don't particularly care for the compact fluorescent bulbs, but for those locations where I don't do a lot of work (stairwells, closets) they're just fine.