Switch on to save energy
Tue 22 May 2007
Renae Dyer, Journalism
In wake of climate change, the government has announced Australia must phase out conventional light bulbs within three years and replace them with energy-saving globes.
Australia will be the first country in the world to implement compulsory use of the globes, which are also called fluorescent light bulbs. The globes use 20 per cent of electricity to produce the same amount of light as an ordinary light bulb.
However, co-owner of Lights at Caloundra Ann Booth said using a fluorescent light globe in every room of the house was not practical.
“People have been scared into buying them and it’s just ridiculous,” she said. “We’ve had elderly people ring us worried that they have to buy them.”
While Ms Booth agreed florescent lights save money and help reduce greenhouse gases, she said the general public weren’t switched on in relation to understanding its applications.
“There’s a lot of misinformation out there which is confusing for people,” she said.
Ms Booth said one of the common misconceptions has been that the light bulbs are a new development.
“We’ve had people come into the store asking about the ‘new’ globes but the energy efficient light bulbs have been around for 20 years now,” she said.
“They’ve always been known as fluorescent lights but ever since they started calling them energy efficient light globes people think they are new.”
Another fallacy customers often believe is that one size bulb will fit all. Ms Booth said the public lacked information about the various fluorescent lights available in terms of size, voltage and colour.
“You only use fluorescent lights in a room that you’re going to have the light on for more than 20 minutes at a time,” she said. “I mean you wouldn’t use a fluorescent light in a toilet because it would be a waste of money.”
Ms Booth’s business partner and husband Neil Booth could not agree more.
“You can’t just plug it in anywhere,” he said. “They still haven’t made some of the lights compact enough to be used in certain fittings such as ovens.”
For that reason Mr Booth said he makes it his mission to educate his customers about correct usage.
“There’s a lot of misunderstanding, that’s why we take the time to explain this to people to make the globes work for them,” he said.
Despite the business partners expressing concern for the propaganda surrounding the light globes, they were pleased to see the recent discussion spark more interest.
“It’s great to see more customers buy the lights because they are a fantastic development,” he said.
Mr Booth said advantages of the light bulbs were endless.
“They are great for the environment, don’t need to be replaced as often, and will cut your electricity bill in half,” he said.
Unfortunately Mr Booth said the fluorescent lights have not always been popular in the past due to the aesthetic appearance of the globes.
“People spend a lot of time making their homes look pretty, so they don’t want to put in lights that are going to look ugly,” he said.
But with a wider range of fluorescent lights available to the public, Mr Booth said this is no longer a major concern.
“People forget that there are choices now,” he said. “A lot of people say they don’t like them because they don’t like the colour but there are different colours, such as white, blue and clear.” (? Repetitive).”
Mr Booth said fluorescent lights were still evolving and have a long way to go before it is deemed reasonable to completely phase out regular light bulbs.
“There will be big changes in the market place,” he said. “But it’s a step by step process.”
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Image(s) designed by Renae Dyer