Ban on Popular Light Bulb Begins for Louisiana and U.S. Today

They were once the beacons of light that guided us through our darkened Louisiana living rooms. They show brightly against the backdrop of a dark winter night. They would burn your fingertips if you tried to unscrew them while they were still burning. They were light bulbs.

For those of us who are a certain age we didn't care what kind of light bulbs they were, we only had the one kind anyway. And now that kind of light bulb, the incandescent bulb that so valiantly lit our formative years is no longer available in stores.

Seriously, as of today, August 1st retailers across Louisiana and the rest of the nation can no longer sell incandescent light bulbs. It has to do with a Department of Energy requirement that manufacturers make and sell only energy-efficient LED bulbs. And while those bulbs are more expensive, they do last longer and use less electricity.

Now, if you have incandescent bulbs in your home or business you don't have to rush out and replace them. There will be no "light bulb vigilante" squads going door-to-door to scope out what's lightning up your room. Instead, the phasing out of incandescent bulbs will be gradual and because retailers won't be selling them, you'll eventually be forced to switch to the LED bulbs.

Switching to LED bulbs isn't a bad thing at all. In fact, despite the fact that you do pay more for the bulbs up front the Department of Energy estimates that consumers will actually save some $3 billion per year in energy costs once the complete switch from incandescent bulbs is completed.

The initial cost of an LED bulb ranges from $5 to $7 compared to a typical incandescent bulb which might run you $2 bucks. However, when you estimate the annual cost for each bulb, the LED bulb is estimated to give you one year's worth of service for $1.83 while the incandescent bulb would cost you about $10.95 to operate for a year. So, if you think about the number of bulbs you have in your house, you can see the savings will add up quickly.