The Benefits of Halogen Light Bulbs

One of the heaviest users of power in the home is the lighting. One of the easiest changes that a person can make is to replace the standard, incandescent bulbs in their home with compact fluorescent bulbs. As they grow in popularity, CFL light bulbs are becoming more and more affordable. In the long-term, CFL bulbs save you money on your power bill, conserves our energy resources, and are overall healthier for the environment.

Alternatively, you might want to invest in installing track lighting using halogen bulbs. Like CFL light bulbs, halogen bulbs are quite energy-efficient. They also give your home a classy, showcase look.

Here are some of the other benefits to using halogen bulbs:


Brightness

Halogen bulbs burn brighter that just about any other type of light bulb, creating the best area illumination. The light is whiter and more focused as well. This way, you can direct each light in the track on the key areas in the room, like a desk, decorative art, reading area, or a central table.

Unlike standard or CFL bulbs, halogen lights can be equipped with a dimmer switch, giving you much more control over the lighting level in your room.


Longer Life

Since halogen bulbs do burn hotter than other types of bulb, they require a much more durable glass to contain the filament inside. The glass is also filled with the halogen gas, which holds the magic that extends the bulb's life. As the filament burns, it emits particles of tungsten. The halogen gas gathers up these tungsten particles and re-applies them to the filament. Since the filament is constantly restored, halogen bulbs last much longer than incandescent bulbs.

Efficiency

Halogens have gotten a bad rep for having poor energy efficiency. However, more recent types of halogen bulbs have proven to be quite efficient! Many halogen light bulbs emit double the light per wattage than their incandescent counterparts.

Additionally, halogen bulbs continue to emit nearly 94% of their original light output near the end of their lifespan. Incandescent bulbs tend to dim below 85% their original light before they finally going out for good.

Some people may complain about the initial cost of a halogen bulb, but they don't quite realize the money that they're actually saving in the long run.


Space Saver

Placing your lighting overhead will free up valuable space by replacing floor and table lamps. Using halogen light bulbs in your track lighting or is even more convenient, due to their compact size. Installing them is also as easy as a simple twist into the socket.

Track or recessed lighting is most recommended for using halogen bulbs. Free-standing lamps can pose a hazard if they're knocked over, due to the heat generated by the bulbs. Since they burn so bright, they could be uncomfortable to the eyes if seen in direct line of sight.


Outdoor Use

Halogen bulbs are excellent for outdoor flood lights. Since they last so much longer, you won't have to be bothered as often with climbing up into hard-to-reach places to change them.


Triangle Laptops puts a conscious effort toward protecting the Earth's vital energy resources. We also look for the most cost-effective solutions for our customers. Both halogen bulbs and CFL bulbs are available in our online store, along with a variety of LED light bulb options. If you have questions about lighting or any of the products we carry, please contact us by email or call toll-free 1-877-456-7869.

Recycling Your Laptop Battery

Each year, thousands of unwanted electronic devices are dumped into our landfills. This includes laptops and computers that are broken or obsolete. Many of them contain non-biodegradable materials that take hundreds of thousands of years to break down. Some even contain harmful materials that are toxic to humans and are dangerous if they may their way into the environment.

The most dangerous component of these devices is their batteries. Laptops use Lithium-Ion (or Li-Ion) batteries, a dry-cell battery with the average lifespan of 3-4 years. Americans alone purchase over 3 billion assorted dry-cell batteries per year. Just as many then are thrown away, heaping in our landfills and exposing their chemicals into the soil. From the soil, run off from rain can carry them into the ground water, polluting our drinking water supply.

In 1996, a ban was put in place that prohibited the use of deadly mercury in the production of batteries. Many consumers and electronics manufacturers have also switched to rechargeable batteries to decrease the amount of batteries that enter our landfills.

Despite that, the Li-Ion, nickel-cadmium (or "nicad"), NiMH and other heavy metals in rechargeable batteries are still quite toxic. If they’re incinerated, these heavy metals are released into the air we breathe. It’s crucial that when our electronics die or become obsolete, we dispose of them properly.

As part of the law that banned mercury in batteries, manufacturers are now also required to produce rechargeable batteries with recyclable materials. Some states, like California and New York, have made it illegal to simply throw away any rechargeable batteries. The Environmental Protection Agency set up a non-profit organization, The Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation, to help organize and regulate the proper disposal of rechargeable batteries.

Once rechargeable batteries are collected, they’re shipped to a recycling facility in Pennsylvania, where they are separated and broken down based on their type. The reusable metals are extracted and then used to make new batteries or other materials, such as stainless steel. All possible elements are gathered for recycling and never make their way to our landfills.

From this process, organizations like the RBRC have saved our landfills from over 50 million pounds of rechargeable batteries from North America alone since 1996!

How can I do my part?

Disposing your old rechargeable batteries is easier than you think! The RBRC has set up the Call2Recycle program, a service designed to help people who want to make a difference. They offer free collection boxes and bags to contain your old batteries and electronics for turning them in. Most of the top retailers, such as Best Buy, Target, Home Depot, and more are participating in the program, offering drop-off centers at their stores.

To find the locations nearest to you, you can look up the listing on the Call2Recycle website, or call their toll-free helpline, 1-800-8-BATTERY.

You can also learn more about recycling other electronic equipment through organizations like Gcycle. Through these programs, we can minimize waste and landfill space by recycling old computers, monitors, video games, phones, and more!

Triangle Laptops is proud to do our part to help improve the environment and our health by recycling recyclable batteries and electronics. Together with CarbonFund.org and Synergy Recycling, we strive to incorporate efficient environmentally-friendly practices in our business.

Choosing the Best Landscape Lighting Light Bulbs

We’re always happy to receive feedback from our customers; especially when they provide handy tips for our products!

One customer, Jeff, recently contacted us about some landscape lighting light bulbs that he’d recently purchased from us. Jeff was looking for an solution for a landscape lighting solution that was both energy-efficient and cost effective. Luckily for both of us, he found our CFL landscape lighting light bulbs.

Jeff writes:

I reported last year that I was trying some 12V MR16 LED bulbs for our landscape lights. While they worked well, the better ones were pretty expensive at about $20 each. More recently I found a 5W Feit 12V MR16 compact fluorescent light bulbs that works very well in the landscape lights, and is less than half the price of the better LED bulbs. The Feit model number is BPESLEXN. I just finished converting all our 20W halogens to these CFLs, and they put out the same amount of light on 1/4 the power. Any noise generated by them is blocked by the step-down transformer, and the in-line X10 relay switch powering that transformer still works fine.

Thanks for the in-depth evaluation, Jeff! Triangle Laptops aims to carry the best products to suit our customers' needs. It's great to know that CFL light bulbs are proving to be the recommended choice for landscape lighting light bulbs.

Save Money With Energy Saving Bulbs

A lot of people think that it costs a little more to "go green". Not so! In fact you can save money along with energy with compact fluorescent light bulbs. CFL bulbs may cost a little more than regular incandescent bulbs on the store shelf, but they'll save you a lot more money in the long run. Each CFL bulb uses less than 25% of the power than regular bulbs, saving you big on your monthly energy bill. CFL light bulbs also last much longer, so you don't have to buy them nearly as often.

How do these energy saving bulbs work? As you may know, a normal incandescent light bulb runs a current of electricity through a wire filament. The heat from the electrical current causes the filament to glow bright.

A compact fluorescent light bulb works a bit differently: The electrical current flows through the glass tube filled with argon gas and a bit of mercury vapor. The electrified gas emits ultraviolet light that excites a phosphor coating on the inside of the glass tube. It's this reaction that emits the bright visible light that comes from the CFL light bulb.

Older CFL bulbs were known to make a low hum or buzzing sound while they were on. This understandably made people nervous about using them, worried that they were somehow unstable. Newer bulbs, especially ones rated by the Energy Star program, make no sound at all.

We know what you might be thinking... "If CFL bulbs contain mercury, aren't they dangerous?" Not at all! It's been proven that while CFL bulbs do contain mercury, none of that mercury is released from the bulb as long as the bulb isn't broken. In fact, one old-style thermometer has more mercury inside it than 125 CFL light bulbs.

The Environmental Protection Agency is a heavy supporter of the use of CFL bulbs because they use 75% less power than traditional bulbs and they greatly reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions. Even with the concerns regarding mercury, the EPA maintains that using CFL bulbs as an alternative would introduce far less mercury into the environment than traditional, energy-inefficient bulbs. Energy Star also offers proper instructions for disposing CFL bulbs on their official website.

To begin saving on your monthly energy bill, you can find the type of CFL bulbs that suit your needs in our online store.

Energy Star Revises Computer Monitor Requirements

Energy consumption is a serious concern for both the environment and the economy. Energy resources are a precious commodity; one not to be wasted.

With the advancement of flat panel technology, the Environmental Protection Agency is adjusting its requirements for its Energy Star program, tightening energy consumption standards for computer monitors by October, 2009.

The Energy Star program is a combined effort of both the EPA and the United States Department of Energy founded in the early 1990s to reduce energy waste. The Energy Star program is completely voluntary for companies looking to make their products more energy-efficient, though it is required for any products sold to the United States government. Products that meet with the Energy Star standards will display the Energy Star logo, as well as a yellow EnergyGuide label featuring the product’s estimated annual energy cost.

Approximately 45% of computer monitors in production meet with the current Energy Star standards. With the upcoming Version 5.0 of the program (which require LCD displays to consume 20% less energy than under the current version), it’s expected that the number will drop to 25%. Advancement in the use of LED backlights is the inspiration for the EPA’s decision to revise its criteria, in the hopes that more companies will cultivate this energy-efficient technology.

Along with more efficiently managing energy resources, the Energy Star program also benefits the consumer. In the current economy, more consumers are trying to either reduce their energy costs or maximize the rewards for what they already pay. The new Energy Star requirements will make it more affordable for those looking to either upgrade to a larger computer monitor or take advantage of a dual-screen setup.

For more information about the Energy Star program and its benefits, please visit the Energy Star homepage. Triangle Laptops, LLC is a “green” company that cares about the environment. We currently sell energy-saving CFL lightbulbs, which is another great way to save on your energy bill and help out the environment!