I try to be a good citizen. When they told me to save the environment by phasing out my old incandescent lightbulbs and replacing them with compact fluorescent, I began doing my best to oblige. And when they told me that the CF bulbs that cost 5 times as much but will last ten times as long, I believed.
So as my incandescents burn out, I have been steadily replacing them with the CFs. And, I note, more and more I am replacing the CFs that have burned out -- even though I have quite a few incandescents that continue to burn away happily, sometimes in adjacent lamps that get usage that is pretty much identical to ones where the CFs have already run out their lifespan.
Okay, I'm still willing to believe that these ugly harsh expensive CF bulbs are somehow better for the environment. But on the way up to Canadian Tire for another expensive box of CFs to replace the latest CF to burn out, I start to ponder: if they don't really last any long and need replacing just about as often and cost so much more, where is that benefit again? (Plus they need special recycling because of the toxins in them.)
Anybody else live here?
