Our family is the pivotal point in our lives, so it’s incredibly obvious that we want to make sure that our family’s are safe at all times and are not, at any point, at risk or in danger , this also means being reassured and made aware of what Compact Fluorescent Lamps, or CFLs carry in terms of potential health issues, especially if you have just begun to replace your conventional lighting with them.
CFLs use about over seventy five percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs, and more people are realizing this, which is why they’ve
Archive → December, 2010
Are Compact Fluorescent Lamps dangerous to my Family?
Why Use CFLs?
Color temperature is the term used to refer color of the light source. For example yellow-red colors (that is found in flames of a fire) are warm in nature while blue-green colors (that found in overcast sky) are cool. This color temperature is measured and represented in Kelvin (K). The higher the color temperature is, the cooler it will be and the lower the color temperature means the hotter the effect. It means the temperature from 3600 to 5500 Kelvin or K is cooler than the temperature 2700 to 3000 K. Cool lighting effects are best for visual tasks as they produce higher contrast than warm colors. Likewise warm lights are preferred in houses and offices because it is found more flattering to skin tones and clothing. For general indoor lighting applications and tasks a color temperature of 2700 to 3600 K is considered ideal one.
What Fixtures to use with CFL bulbs
If you are considering to deploy suitable lighting fixtures in your house or office, you should have clear idea about the applications and suitable fixtures and light bulbs for it. Installing inadequate lighting infrastructure may result in higher consumption and poor visibility, inferior views, higher temperature, eyestrain and much more. Gone are the days when incandescent light bulbs were the only options to choose, and halogens were the best options for outdoor illuminations. Things have tremendously changed now. There are smarter, more efficient and economical options available in the form of compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs and Light Emitting Diodes (LED) bulbs.
What After CFLs
Gone are the days of incandescent bulbs which consumed a lot of energy and produced a lot of pollution. Next came the compact fluorescent light CFL technology which was more efficient and durable than incandescent bulbs and consumed upto 75% less energy than the former. But CFLs too had some deficiencies which are now being removed with new LED (Light Emitting Diodes) technology which has potential of revolutionized the efficiency, appearance and quality of lighting.
All three lighting technologies work on different mechanisms hence produce different effects. In incandescent bulbs electric current is run through a wire filament and heats the filament until it starts to glow. In CFL bulbs, an electric current is passed through a tube containing argon and a small amount of mercury vapour. This generates invisible ultraviolet light that excites a fluorescent coating (called phosphor) on the inside of the tube, which then emits visible light. LEDs work on solid-state lighting technology which gets illuminated by the movement of electrons through a semiconductor material.
Saving Electricity with CFLs
Making provision for natural lighting resources while designing houses and buildings saves a lot of cost and fuel both which otherwise is consumed on costly lighting fixtures and recurring electricity bills. Windows and skylights are used to bring daylight into the houses. Today, by virtue of advanced technology and architecture, engineers can make your houses into most energy efficient one which would help you curtail the use of artificial lighting arrangements during daylight hours. True! There are some good electricity saving options such as CFLs (compact fluorescent lights) and LEDs (Light emitting diodes) but there is certainly no alternate of natural lights, if we can harness it effectively in our houses and buildings.
