Usually, I’m an impulsive buyer or shopper. Luckily, parenting and ‘wifehood’ taught me to become a wiser consumer. Those who are close to me know how I sometimes value aesthetics more than quality and price. Such choices caused me a lot of headaches and frustration after products I bought easily break or become damaged. At least now, I think long and hard before I purchase something out of whim.
Since we always buy light bulbs for any purpose — may it be for the kitchen, the bedroom or to serve as porch lights — I’d like to share with you the things I learned when buying one.
- Identify its use to determine what type should you buy, its electric power in watts and design. For instance, for kitchen or living room, we usually require high wattage bulbs while we only need low wattage bulbs for night light or drop lights. Know also where are you putting the bulb, consider the size of the socket or the case it will be inserted in. Make sure it will fit in. Usually, if the casing is small and handy, my practice is to bring it to the store when I buy a bulb replacement to make sure its compatibility and fit.
- Research about the different styles of bulbs and its use. An engineer friend told me to buy the compact fluorescent spiral bulb instead of the regular tube lamps or even the circular lamp with the same wattage because it gives more light in comparison.
- If you are buying the expensive, branded light bulbs, make sure they are under warranty. More than once, branded light bulbs I bought quit on me after several weeks or months of use which should not be because they are expected to last for a year or so. Learning from my experience, I now ask if the bulb I’m buying is under warranty. Just this weekend, I returned a branded 15 watts light bulb back at the store which is under one-year warranty. Unfortunately, the store people told me they do not have a stock yet for the particular style but assured me they will replace the bulb once the stock arrives.
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#1 by Tribeca on July 13th, 2010
CFLs are energy-saving lamps and usually come with a warranty. Most screw-type CFLs are designed to fit most receptacles. Incandescent bulbs actually consume a lot of electricity but produce more heat then illumination, they are now banned in some countries.
Light bulbs in diffusers actually limit the illumination. Reflectors on the other hand help increase light.
Wall colors and window treatments also contribute to the lightness/darkness of space.
For closets and cabinets, you can use LED lights which are very low in wattage and comes in many colors.
There are also light fixtures which automatically shut off when sufficient daylight is available (e.g. lamp posts). There are also light with sensors which turns on/off when it detects movement/body heat.