The End of a Lighting Era

In 2018 California said goodbye to the incandescent light bulb. Thomas Edison gave the first public demonstration of his incandescent light bulb in December 1879, we’ve continued to use this technology for almost 140 years. However, as more efficient light bulbs have emerged states are moving toward energy saving options.

Why the change?

Congress passed the Energy Bill of 2007 which was signed into law by George Bush. The law completely phases out the incandescent bulb by 2020 in the United States. California is the only state that phased out incandescent in 2018, two years early.

What happens to all the incandescent bulbs?

Retailers will sell all remaining inventory on the shelves. Incandescent bulbs will not be manufactured. Manufacturers had 11 years to expand their offering to more energy efficient lighting products.

How will this impact consumers?

There are 250 million incandescent light bulbs in use in California according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. When consumers replace the quarter of a million incandescents with LED light bulbs, consumers will save roughly $1 billion on electricity.

What will replace traditional light bulbs?

There are two alternatives are LED and CFL (compact fluorescent) bulbs. CFL lights contain Mercury which is a hazardous material and takes time to warm up to full brightness. LED light bulbs contain no mercury, turn on within a second and are shatter resistant. They are safe for your entire family and recyclable. You can learn more about comparing the different lighting options here.

Viribright’s full line of LED light bulbs will make the switch easy. Our light bulbs are UL listed, which have been tested to meet all the safety requirements. We offer a dimmable option on a lot of our LED bulbs. All Viribright products have a 3-year, easy replacement warranty.

If you have questions contact us at support@viribright.us or call (877) 847-4276.