subject: Problems With the Incandescent Light Bulb [print this page] Problems With the Incandescent Light Bulb
They are a source of electric light and work by having an electric current pass through a filament which is then heated up inside the bulb until it produces light, this is all encapsulated in glass which stops any oxygen hitting the filament which would break the bulb and make it go out.
Incandescent bulbs have a pretty low cost to manufacturer which has mean that prices for this type of bulb are not very high, also the fact that you need no extra fittings or anything like that for them to work means that many people round the world have been using them cheaply in many modern day applications.
The problem with these lights is that there are many other ways in today's world to product the same amount of light using less energy meaning that they are slowly being pushed out of the top position as so many people in the world are looking to reduce the energy that they use. Incandescent bulbs are very good but not good enough anymore!
Incandescent bulbs can get very, very hot so you need to be very careful if you planning on change one over, try and feel for the heat it is giving off before you remove the bulb and always make sure that the bulb is switched off before you decide to try and remove it. Incandescent bulbs can reach temperatures of up to but not limited to 260 Celsius so they can be very, very hot.
Another problem with the incandescent bulb is that roughly 90% of the power that is used to run the bulb is let out as heat rather than light so you are wasting a lot of energy whilst you are running these bulbs which can be a problem for many people that try and save energy so if you are one of these people then you should go for another bulb as these can also turn out more expense in the long run,
Most countries have decided that as incandescent bulbs are using a lot more energy than other bulb technologies on the market that they want to phase out the sales and use of these bulbs. Some countries have already begun doing this and others like the United Kingdom plan to have them discontinued by 2011.
There is still hope for the incandescent bulb as some companies are working on producing a high efficiency version which have been said will be two times more efficient but also they are working on making them possible 4 times more efficient.
