I know I’m not the only one hoarding incandescent lightbulbs. I have those little cardboard cartons of Edison style incandescent bulbs tucked into closets, bins and cabinets throughout the house. I have bulbs of all sizes, including some that don’t even fit fixtures we own! It must be my inner child of the 70’s; comforted by the golden glow of indoors after dark. And some hoarding tendencies, but that’s a different post!
I remember the horror of learning that incandescent bulbs would be phased out by 2014, particularly when I experienced the ugly blue light offered by those weird curly-q bulbs that were supposed to replace them. That’s when I started buying up and hoarding lightbulbs.
Fast forward 15 years or so, and fortunately, technology has evolved. There are now many different options for light bulbs on the market, offering a wide variety of energy use, light output and color.
New technology in LED lighting is quickly making them the better choice for most residential applications. They are the most efficient option, and in the last few years they have improved tremendously in price and light output. That’s all great but the most important thing to me personally is the improvement in the color of the light, which used to be downright awful.
On the LED’s, it’s the Kelvin rating that indicates the color of the light output: the range is 2700K to 6500K, with 2700-3000 being the “warm” end of the spectrum. Not looking for a science lesson? Here’s the upshot: Stay away from “daylight” bulbs because in my opinion, the light looks more like an “operating room”, not a “cozy living room”.
For those of us who just love a warm light, the warm white LED bulbs are going to be most like the old-fashioned incandescent bulbs. For a little less yellow, go for the soft white variety. Find a brand and style that you like, and stick with it! The last thing you want is several different light temperatures in the same space.
With these new developments, plus downsizing plans ahead, it’s time to let go of bulbs I’ve had for more than 10 years. I’m going to start working through my collection of incandescent bulbs and then stick with the soft white LEDs going forward. They last forever, so no need to have tons of extras around. Pretty soon the charms of the lamplight of my youth will exist only in nostalgic memories and Polaroids, and I’ll pick up some shelf space in the process.
Are you downsizing your belongings and looking forward to a smaller, more manageable space? Let us know what you’re up to! We can give you free tools and resources to get you started, and introduce you to qualified, helpful people in your area to step in when you need them.
