Progress?

[jarandhel]

Well, I still feel like I'm talking to a brick wall when dealing with my parents, but tonight that wall might have started to give a little. I did a little research and a lot of calculating tonight and found that by simply switching from 100 watt incandescent light bulbs to 40 watt flourescent light bulbs (which are twice as bright and last 13 times as long), we can save AT LEAST $385 dollars a year in electricity. My father is highly skeptical, my mother only slightly more enthusiastic, but I did get them to agree to at least buy ONE flourescent light bulb and see how it compares to the incandescent bulbs. If it compares favorably in terms of how much light it provides, how well it fits our lamps, and how long the bulb lasts without needing to be replaced, then they'll consider switching over fully. :)

Oh, and actually: even that one bulb being switched over should save us about $32 a year... which might seem small, but every little bit counts, right? :)

Comments

[arhuaine.livejournal.com]

Great! Now the hard part is trying to persuade them to let you have a cut of the difference...

[hai-kah-uhk.livejournal.com]

Well, that is, after all, what fluorescent bulbs are for... certainly not for the flattering quality of the light...

The other thing they're good for is houseplants. That ugly blue tint is particularly yummy to members of kingdom Plantae. :)

[dancinglights.livejournal.com]

This is why I have paper lanterns :)

[jarandhel.livejournal.com]

*chuckles* I'm not holding my breath on that... and frankly I'll be satisfied if they just take the money that is saved and use it to hire a professional to do some of the repairs that this house needs, rather than trying to guilt-trip ME into learning how to repair the roof, the floor, and various other problems that have been developing... very frankly, I'm not a carpenter, and the repairs necessary are way beyond anything that I feel comfortable trying to do myself, even if I could find a comprehensive guide on how to do them. Their major objection to hiring a professional has been that it costs too much money... I'm really really hoping if I can keep finding ways to save them money they'll use it for that.

[jarandhel.livejournal.com]

... honestly, I don't get why people consider flourescent lighting to be unflattering and ugly. It seems a lot brighter to me, and I rather like it when I compare it to the ugly yellow lighting of incandescent bulbs.

[jarandhel.livejournal.com]

Mrr? Paper lanterns? With, like, candles in them? That would NEVER work in this house, my grandmother would knock them over in two seconds flat and we'd have a huge fire.

not quite

[dancinglights.livejournal.com]

You can get plastic-inner-coated paper lanterns made for incandescent/fluorescent bulbs of up to a specified maximum wattage. I have one in my room and it softens the light enough to help curb my migraines. plus it looks nice.

[hai-kah-uhk.livejournal.com]

It neutralizes greens. Makes them look grey. Oranges too, if i recall correctly.

[jarandhel.livejournal.com]

This one doesn't seem to... and I'm pretty sure on that, 'cause I'm looking at multiple green and orange stuff that is directly under the new flourescent bulb.

[jarandhel.livejournal.com]

So... basically we're talking fancy lampshades?

[dancinglights.livejournal.com]

big round plain lampshades what hang from the ceiling, I suppose.

[jarandhel.livejournal.com]

Hmm... sound interesting at least. :)