CFL bulbs: A bright idea.

We hear about the environment a lot these days what with hybrid cars, global warming, and alternative energy sources regularly in the headlines. Often times thinking about the environment means making tough sacrifices such as spending thousands of extra dollars on a hybrid car in order to save gas, or sitting and listening to Al Gore drone on for 90 minutes about melting glaciers.

Sometimes being environmentally correct is very easy, however. That's what makes the compact fluorescent lightbulb (CFL) story so remarkable. It's the rare technology that's economical in every sense of the word, saving money, time, and electricity.

CFL technology has been around for years as an energy saving alternative to the "regular" incandescent lightbulbs. Despite using about 75% less energy than equivalent conventional bulbs and lasting ~8x as long, CFLs were "prohibitively expensive" for consumers, costing several dollars per bulb (compared to a buck for four regular bulbs). Thus, they weren't popular.

Today CFL bulbs still deliver energy savings but at much lower initial cost than in years past. Thanks in part to a push by Wal Mart these light bulbs are now much cheaper and should be used by everyone. Although these bulbs are still about 10 times more expensive than conventional bulbs (which is to say, just $2 or so) they are one of the best investments that everyone can make. The energy they save over just a few months of usage pays for the cost of the bulb. After that, it's all gravy. The bulbs last for many years which means no changing bulbs and no buying new bulbs. And over the lifetime of the bulb one could save about $40 worth of electricity. Good for the wallet and the environment.

Switching from conventional incandescent lightbulbs to CFLs may seem like a mundane action – frankly you may not even notice the $4 monthly savings on your electricity bill – but the energy savings can be enormous given that it is the type of action that everyone can take part in. 100 million CFLs used instead of regular bulbs would reduce green house gas emissions as much as taking a million cars off of the road.

Lightbulbs. So boring, yet so amazing. Next time somebody shows off their Prius or wants to make a movie about saving the spotted owl, tell 'em you've got a brighter idea: you're gonna go change a lightbulb!

update: feature CFL article in Fast Company.