What Are CFL’s?

To the sports fan, CFL might immediately bring to mind the Canadian Football League, an organization that is similar to the NFL in the United States. But the three letters also stand for a new and increasingly popular type of home and business lighting.

CFL, in that case, stands for compact fluorescent light or compact fluorescent lamp. These are different from the long-used incandescent light bulb that uses a filament of tungsten or other material that glows brightly inside the globe of glass. A compact fluorescent light or lamp produces light with a mixture of phosphors, substances that are considered a “transition” metal. When this mixture is exposed to ultraviolet light produced by mercury it glows very brightly.

CFLs are considered a low-energy light source, making them popular because they cost less to use over a long period of time. Experience shows that CFLs cost a bit more to purchase when compared to the relatively cheap incandescent bulbs. But most compact fluorescent lamps last a longer time than the traditional bulbs. This is true primarily because CFLs provide the same amount of usable light with less power. A CFL package in the store might show that it consumers fewer watts, which is the measure of electrical power used. Early studies show that one CFL might save $30 or more over its usable life as compared to an incandescent bulb.

One of the problems encountered by users of fluorescent lamps is the presence of mercury to produce the light. CFLs and other fluorescent lamps cannot be disposed of quite so easily as other used items because of their chemistry. In the last year or two, CFL light has come to rival the comfortable white light of the best incandescent bulbs.

Though the incandescent light bulb is thought to be the forerunner of individual bulbs, the fluorescent lamp has a very long history as well. The process of producing this type of light with phosphors and ultraviolet light was patented in the 1890s. These lights were first used in industry as well as for studio photography. The first fluorescent lights to be used on a widespread basis were produced in the 1930s and early 1940s. The current version of the compact fluorescent lamp was first developed about 35 years as way to save energy.

But the design didn’t immediately turn into a viable product, mostly because of the cost of building a factory and production line for this new type of compact light. Some have expressed concern about the negative effects of bright incandescent bulbs on the human eye, while others felt that replacing the incandescent bulb so often was too expensive. These concerns ultimately led light-bulb manufacturers to make the move to compact fluorescent lights. The process from invention to commercial availability took a couple of decades.

One of the concerns about CFLs, the mercury used in the process, has been addressed in part by the manufacturers and by some researchers. A CFL contains far less mercury than many of the home thermostats and thermometers that have been in used for decades. The amount of mercury used in a CFL has been reduced as well, making this type of light even more popular for home and business use.

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