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I work at a store that sells the CFLs. Suzanne Michelle's comment is right on the money: spurn the cheaper, bluish ones (ours are misleadingly labeled "daylight" type) and get the ones marked "soft white." (Even these are not very expensive.) The light is pleasant, reading by the lights is easy, and the 100W equivalents are very bright.

Good grief, at least try one before you believe what this ignorant Gary Gordon person said on this segment. The guy is as wrong as it gets.

P.S. Call the excellent NYC info line [311] for your nearest 'hazardous waste' drop-off point for these bulbs. And indeed all bulbs, which should NOT be recycled with regular glass items.

'Color temperature' is just that, the temperature in degrees Kelvin to which a metal [don't know which] needs to be heated to produce a particular color - with incandescent bulbs at around 2800K [red/yellow = warm] and daylight averaged at around 5500K [blue = cool]. So Jay Freeman is spot on, although in practice I find the compact bulbs actually seem to produce a slightly bluer/cooler light than the box might claim. But certainly not green anymore - where did they find that full-of-it [and himself] 'lighting designer': in a time warp? Because his other mistake is that some of them ARE dimmable now using regular incandescent dimmers [and I called Just Bulbs on 16th St. to confirm this : 212 228 7820). Just check that the packaging says 'dimmable', and be prepared to pay around $15 for them.

Has anyone heard about issues with broken bulbs? There is a story going around that a homeowner had a bulb break in her home (with small children) and that it cost her over $1,000.00 to have it properly cleaned up. Given the concern there is about properly disposing them because of the mercury - I can see that breakage coulod be a problem. We have broken 2 in my house.

Part of the other problem is that they hang down too much. So in enclosed places with low ceilings (and tall people) they do not work and in any kind of recessed lighting they look awful.

CFLs are available at Home Depot.

Scott Gordon needs to update his knowledge regarding CFLs... there are many choices these days, with warm and cool outputs and dimmable bulbs are available too.

Does anyone know where to find CFLs around Manhattan? My local hardware stores on the USW don't stock them. Thanks in advance.

And another point. CFLs installed in hallways where they are on 24 hrs/day will pay back the cost of the bulb within 3 months. There is no other green investment which such a short payback time. Side benefits include labor saved in replacing burned out incandescent bulbs. Additional energy is saved in airconditioned hallways that must fight the heat of the incandescent bulb.

Comments on comments: Someone referred to heat build up causing CFL failure. What heat build up. You can hold these bulbs while they are on. They run almost cool. CFLs have Kelvin ratings which refer to whiteness. 6500 is very white. 2700 is yellow and warm just like an incandescent bulb. They have colors between those extremes. We use whiter ones in our kitchen and yellow ones in our living room and bedroom.

We stsrted using CFL's in closets, laundry room and other areas where color rendering was not critical and then tried it successfully at other locations. Even in limited use the energy savings are substantial.

The lighting expert repeated several times that there are no dimmable fluorescent light bulbs. That is incorrect. Just google for them and you will find them. He also said the bulbs used 25% of the power of incandescent bulbs. Some actually use 10-15%. We use them throughout our home and have no problem with the quality of illumination. NYC should pass a law mandating them in hallways where bulbs burn 24 hrs a day. Thats the biggest payback on these bulbs. As for the disposal issue they burn 10 times longer and so total recycling waste is one tenth that of incandescent bulbs.

As we speak about the nuances of how green the light signature of different bulbs in we need to keep some larger perspective on why we need to have this conversation.

The power cord from your lamp plugs ultimately into a coal generating plant. At the end of the stack is a huge amount of carbon. That carbon is causing desertification, salinization of fresh water supplies and other huge environmental and social effects.

At some point our grave concern about not being able to use dimmers becomes ridiculous in context of the rest of the world's population that is already being affected and somewhat shortsighted even towards our own future and survival.

Design does matter! It's sad that we have to choose between reducing our carbon footprint and increasing our psychic health. As your science reporter and lighting designer note, the redder parts of the light spectrum are healthier because it is flattering to the human complexion and to decor. And, this "glow" effect matters; it makes us happier. It's not coincidental that light deprivation leads to SAD, depression and high suicide rates. I have a friend who suffered migraines when she switched to florescent lights, and got better when she removed them.

From what I understand, typically CFLs contain less mercury than is released in burning of coal, so the mercury issue may be an issue in the West where hydropower is dominant.

Is it me or is the lighting designer a bit pushy with his "taste"? It does not appear that the negative opinion about color is universal. And, he acts like they are all the same. If I were calling, I'd ask why CFLs are so popular in Japan and Europe if they are so ugly.

It always seems people who defend incandescent bulbs refer to that sort of bulb as some perfect ideal of light. I wonder what people were saying when we switched from whale oil to electric lighting?

These so called lighting designers are clueless. I am a graphic designer with over 20 years experience and the new CL lights are nothing like they once were. The lamps labeled "warm" shed an extreemely pleasent warm golden light, brighter and better than incandescents. The color renditioin is just fine.

(1) I have had NO PROBLEMS with any CFB's that i have used (for years), enclosed or not.
(2) The bulbs last WAY WAY longer.
(3) Cool blue ones (the cheaper variety) are not as good and definitely noticeable.
(4) My electricity bills are lower because of them.
(5) HOW can their mercury be an issue?

Female, 50.

CO2 may be bad for the enviornment, i.e., global warming, but it can be retrieved in the future given the political will and financial resourses. Mercury (an extremely toxic substance) however, which is a component of all fluorscent lights, is not removable from the ecosystem period. If you want to save energy why not change the standby electrical current demands of appliances like cable boxes? Thanks.

CFL's have one major drawback - they are intolerant of heat buildup and therefore quickly fail when used in enclosed light fixtures.

Are CFLs really the answer? I understand that they contain Mercury, which will then go into our landfills and water supply. If you break one how should it be cleaned up?