Until recently there have been some drawbacks to compact fluorescents. They come on a wide variety of sizes, shapes and wattages, so you may have to shop carefully and try several bulbs before you find exactly the right one for your purpose, one that fits your fixture.
One on the biggest consumer complaints in the past has been that compact fluorescent light bulbs couldn't be used with dimmers. That problem is being solved now that there are dimmable compact fluorescent lights on the market and energy-efficient torchieres being sold today that feature either fully dimmable compact fluorescent bulbs or three stages of brightness.
And finally, in the past some lower-cost compact fluorescent bulbs have been imported and sold in the U.S. Many of these have been of questionable quality and had a lifespan much shorter than predicted. As a result, many people who tried compact fluorescents have been unhappy with their performance.
Here's a rough comparison of the long-term costs of the two types of light bulbs:
| INCANDESCENT vs. COMPACT FLUORESCENT BULBS |
| Bulb Type |
100W Incandescent |
23W Compact Fluorescent |
| Purchase Price |
$0.75 |
$11.00 |
| Life of the Bulb |
750 hours |
10,000 hours |
| Number of Hours Burned per Day |
4 hours |
4 hours |
| Number of Bulbs Needed |
About 6 over 3 years |
1 over 6.8 years |
| Total Cost of Bulbs |
$4.50 |
$11.00 |
| Lumens Produced |
1,690 |
1,500 |
Total Cost of Electricity
(8 cents/kilowatt-hour) |
$35.04 |
$8.06 |
| Your Total Cost over 3 years |
$39.54 |
$19.06 |
| Total Savings over three years with the Compact Fluorescent: |
$20.50 |
| Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration |
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