Fast Company reports that, in the next 12 months, starting with a major push this month, Wal-Mart wants to sell every one of its regular customers–100 million in all–one compact fluorescent bulb. In the process, it may change energy consumption in the United States, and energy consciousness, too. Teaming up with General Electric, which owns about 60% of the residential lightbulb market in the United States, Wal-Mart wants to single-handedly double U.S. sales for CFLs in a year, and it wants demand to surge forward after that.
Which presents a daunting challenge: Wal-Mart’s push into swirls won’t just help consumers and the environment; it will shatter a business–its own lightbulb business, and that of every lightbulb manufacturer. Because swirls last so long, every one that’s sold represents the loss of 6 or 8 or 10 incandescent bulb sales. Swirls will remake the lightbulb industry–dominated by familiar names GE, Philips, Sylvania–the way digital-music downloads have remade selling albums on CD, the way digital cameras revolutionized selling film and envelopes of snapshots. CFLs are a classic example of creative destruction.
This equals energy savings roughly equivalent to the needs for a average American city – each year. The effect is cumulative.
Bravo, WalMart, for being willing to prove you can make money with green marketing decisions. Probably more money than those afraid of progress.
Most nights the only bulb running in my home is a 40W bulb. That is a tiny fraction of the electricity that my computers and entertainment center pull. You will pardon me if I just wait for solid state lighting.
I use CFLs in my apartment. I have to wonder what kind of crazy wiring some of you people have, because I’ve been using CFLs for more than four years now, and in that time I’ve had exactly two bulbs (out of about 12) fail “early.” The bulbs in my outdoor fixtures were replaced first (in 2001, actually) and they’re still going. Compare that to having to replace my incandescents annually and the savings are obvious.
Plus, they’re cheap– you can get them at the dollar store for a buck each. I think they’re a nice stopgap for LED/solid-state lighting (I, too, am waiting for the revolution, but I do professional lighting and it’ll take awhile for LED to get cheap enough for household use) and I welcome this move by Wal-Mart, whom I despise. It’s a step in the right direction.
Just to add to the mess here — I switched 1.5 years ago, haven’t had to replace a single bulb yet, no buzzing, and my elec. bill has gone down by about 15%. As for the mercury etc. bulb disposal, try to get rid of 15 old computers in an ‘environmental’ way. Almost enough metal to build a new lawn mower.
You will pardon me if I just wait for solid state lighting.
Comment by Improbus — 5/4/2007 @ 1:18 pm
Quick, I can’t wait!
Man, this is REALLY OLD news that I knew I’d read before. NY Times reported on this back in January 2007. SHEESH.
http://tinyurl.com/yruehn
I’m all for this. I agree with #13 DOUGLASS TRUTH above.
Why bother? LEDs will be the way of the future.
In other energy news, there’s an interesting tale about
Lake Kivu.
So if Walmart is in the story headline does it automatically make some of you hate the story or is just the Walmart name thing? I thought it would be interesting if DU posted a headline that had Walmart in the headline but was not in the story and what would be peoples reactions…..yes it is a slow Friday night in case you were wondering.
None of my CF bulbs have ever burned out… going on 5 years for the older ones now. Perhaps there are some quality issues for these bulbs that have not been realized yet?
I recommend that over at CNET we create a consumer rteview of the brands and models we buy. Then given a couple of years some trends should appear to guide future buying decisions.
I thought you guys hated Walmart. Now they’re a hero?
Walmart sucks, for all the well known reasons.
What I find most entertaining is how consistent posts from some people are:
- There is no such thing as global warming-
- CF light bulbs are a scam that save no energy, are inconvenient and pollute.
- Hybrid cars consume more energy than they save.
- There is no proof of evolution.
- If we don’t fight them there they will come over here.
- Freon has nothing to do with the ozone hole
- If you don’t support the government’s policies, you don’t support our troops
- All immigrants are hardened criminals, and all real Americans are faultless god loving servants of humanity.
- Using the word Nigger on a couch label is hilarious.
- Gays are all evil, straight people are all good.
- and so on, and so on, and so on…
I wonder how much of the national debt is due to the trade imbalance created by Wal*Mart “buying” so much merchandise from China?
The local supermarket has had these bulbs for 10 for 10.00 for almost a year. I have them in all my light fixtures and they never buzz, put off no heat, and are heading into their 3rd year of service without a burn out.
I seem to have about a 7.00 a month reduction in my power bill(but, my bill has always fluctuated due to my weird hours), since installing them.
My biggest gripe is that they look so strange in the bathroom light bar.
I only have one pair of eyes, they won’t grow again if theyre broken…
I value my own eyes much higher than yours of course, so forgive me, if I stick to those ass-cheap light bulbs that don’t create 60hz strobo effect on my eyes like CFLs do.., but YOU should use them CFLs, its good for the rest of us
32…I’m sitting under a CFL as I type this, and I’m quite sensitive to flicker. I can’t detect any. It seems obvious from the array of experiences here that there are quality and manufacturing differences between brands.
Well, when any of my current bulbs burn out, I’ll start replacing them with these-especially since now they are so cheap.
Problem is, I can’t remember when I last bought a light bulb. It has to have been at least two years ago. Is it just me or are regular light bulbs lasting a lot longer than they used to? I moved into my current place a year and a half ago and haven’t replaced one yet.
I thing the regular bulbs are less susceptible to ‘sparkout’ than before.
26,
The ironic thing is that WalMart is implementing Solid-state lighting in its facilitiees now. They predict they’ll save 10% of their energy budget (they spend a little over 60% of their dollar on power) by switching lighted cases from flourescents to LEDs.
#33
Good. Im counting on you. Tell your friends and family!