CFL Light Bulb Risks Last Update: 5/20 7:03 pm If you’re like most people, you now have at least one or two of those squiggly Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs in your home. And you may be buying more soon. Like it or not, the government is pushing us to purchase more and more CFL’s –compact fluorescent lights — because they save energy. But do they come with extra risks the stores and government don’t want us to know about? Some homeowners are wondering: Could be also be inviting a risk of explosions, fire, and even mercury poisoning? Bulb explodes without warning Tom and Nancy Heim were watching TV recently, when Tom decided to turn on the floor lamp next to his recliner chair. “I heard this loud pop…I saw what I thought was smoke, coming out o the top of the floor lamp,” says Tom. Nancy suddenly found glass in her lap. She says, “I did not see it. I just heard it, and I noticed i had glass on me.” Their concern. The bulb could have started a fire or exposed them to dangerous mercury vapor. Risk of explosion or fire So we checked with the U.S. EPA, and found found some reassuring news. The EPA says its records show the risk of a bulb exploding is extremely rare. And in most cases it has investigated, the bulb had been damaged at some point, such as having been dropped on the floor. According to the EPA, it’s almost impossible for a CFL bulb to start a fire, as all UL approved bulbs have a safety shutoff fuse in the base. If the glass breaks, the fuse cuts out, and there no more current goes into the bulb.
Is there a risk of mercury poisoning?
But what about the mercury vapor they may have breathed?
Last year, we asked Dr. Kim Dietrich, an Environmental Engineering Professor, to break and test a CFL bulb for mercury. Research Assistant Professor Joo-Youp Lee shattered a bulb inside a sealed bag…then put the bag on a mercury vapor analyzer.
No question, he says, the bulb contained a measurable amount of mercury.
However, Dr. Dietrich says the amount found is minuscule compared to thermometers we used to put in our mouths.
According to Dr. Dietrich, “It would take 100 shattered CFL bulbs to equal the amount of mercury in an older thermometer.”
What if a bulb breaks?
Despite that reassuring news, the U.S. EPA has a list of steps you should take if you break a bulb.
The EPA says open a window and ventilate the room for 15 minutes.
Then use cardboard to sweep up the remains of the bulb
Wearing rubber gloves, use a wet paper towel to wipe the area.
Finally, seal it all in a plastic bag, and dispose.
The EPA says do not vacuum the room, or you could spread mercury dust around.
The EPA says the amount in one bulb is not enough to create a health hazard.
To prevent problems
To prevent problems, and extend bulb life, the EPA suggests you:
Do not use CFL bulbs in bathrooms, or anywhere they will be turned on and off all day. Frequent powering up and down reduces their life.
Do not use standard CFL’s in dimmer switches. Low voltage reduces their life
Three-way lamps are fine, however, as the contacts on the base of CFL bulbs are different from three-way bulbs, and they will not turn on with the low voltage setting.
So while a bulb explosion may scare you, it’s unlikely it will cause a fire or any real damage.
And despite Internet rumors, a broken bulb will not turn your home into a Hazmat zone.
The government says it is safe to continue using them. As always, don’t waste your money.Is there a risk of mercury poisoning?
But what about the mercury vapor they may have breathed?
Last year, we asked Dr. Kim Dietrich, an Environmental Engineering Professor, to break and test a CFL bulb for mercury. Research Assistant Professor Joo-Youp Lee shattered a bulb inside a sealed bag…then put the bag on a mercury vapor analyzer.
No question, he says, the bulb contained a measurable amount of mercury.
However, Dr. Dietrich says the amount found is minuscule compared to thermometers we used to put in our mouths.
According to Dr. Dietrich, “It would take 100 shattered CFL bulbs to equal the amount of mercury in an older thermometer.”
What if a bulb breaks?
Despite that reassuring news, the U.S. EPA has a list of steps you should take if you break a bulb.
The EPA says open a window and ventilate the room for 15 minutes.
Then use cardboard to sweep up the remains of the bulb
Wearing rubber gloves, use a wet paper towel to wipe the area.
Finally, seal it all in a plastic bag, and dispose.
The EPA says do not vacuum the room, or you could spread mercury dust around.
The EPA says the amount in one bulb is not enough to create a health hazard.
To prevent problems
To prevent problems, and extend bulb life, the EPA suggests you:
Do not use CFL bulbs in bathrooms, or anywhere they will be turned on and off all day. Frequent powering up and down reduces their life.
Do not use standard CFL’s in dimmer switches. Low voltage reduces their life
Three-way lamps are fine, however, as the contacts on the base of CFL bulbs are different from three-way bulbs, and they will not turn on with the low voltage setting.
So while a bulb explosion may scare you, it’s unlikely it will cause a fire or any real damage.
And despite Internet rumors, a broken bulb will not turn your home into a Hazmat zone.
The government says it is safe to continue using them. As always, don’t waste your money.
Zoinks! Check Out Physicist David Mackay’s video of how the light bulb provides a graphic way of communicating to non-physicists the scale of the energy gap now facing our society! Light bulbs will always lead the way for me!
Cambridge University physicist, David Mackay, in a passionate, personal analysis of the energy crisis in the UK, in which he comes to some surprising conclusions about the way forward. The film is based on his new book Sustainable Energy without the hot air, in which Prof Mackay has calculated the numbers involved for the alternatives to fossil fuels like coal, gas and oil.
He debunks some myths about energy saving – unplugging our phone chargers, does not make any appreciable difference. After showing us what won’t work – he goes on to show what will make a difference at home, like turning your thermostat down.
But, his big point is that this will not be enough – individual efforts are not enough. Instead we need to make sweeping national changes to our energy production, and we can’t reject everything available to us. If we are going to follow the advice of climate scientists, and get off fossil fuels by 2050, which currently provide 90% of our energy, Britain’s main options are wind power and nuclear power. But to make this huge change in our power supply, Mackay says that we have to get building now!
Reporting from Frankfurt, Germany – Here’s a twist: How many lightbulbs does it take to change a person?
For Ulf Erdmann Ziegler, the answer is 3,000. That’s how many bulbs are squirreled away in his modest apartment here in Frankfurt, the number that turned an otherwise ordinary guy into a hoarder, made him the object of his neighbors’ pity and got him thinking about death and divorce.
His enormous stockpile is the fruit of a frenzied summer shopping spree. For weeks, he spent many of his waking hours on the phone and online tracking down vendors and snapping up enough incandescent bulbs to last him the rest of his life.
The buying binge was necessary, he said, to beat a ban by the European Union. As of Sept. 1, the manufacture and import of 100-watt incandescent bulbs have been outlawed within the EU, to be followed by their dimmer brethren in coming years. Once current stocks are gone, such bulbs will join Thomas Edison in the history books.
“It will run out,” Ziegler warned of the limited supply, “and everyone will be sorry.”
The ban is part of the EU’s effort to retard global warming. The object is to encourage people to switch from traditional energy-wasting incandescent bulbs to compact fluorescent lamps, which last longer and are up to 75% more efficient.
For EU officials, it’s all about the math. Ditching old-fashioned bulbs, they say, will save nearly 40 billion kilowatt-hours a year by 2020, equivalent to the output of 10 power stations. Australia has already abandoned incandescent bulbs, and the United States is set to begin phasing them out in the next few years as well.
But not everyone considers it such a bright idea. The ban has been met with some resistance in Europe, showing what happens when the collective goal of greening the planet clashes with issues of individual choice and even aesthetics.
Dissenters such as Ziegler have sprung up across the continent, people who complain that fluorescent lamps are inferior, more expensive and come with their own environmental problems. Art galleries fret over how best to display their works without the warm glow cast by incandescent bulbs. A petition to save the conventional bulb is circulating on the Internet.
There have also been reports of runs on lighting stores. In Britain, where major retailers began taking 100-watt incandescent bulbs off their shelves even earlier, in January, a retired teacher in southern England spent $800 of her pension to buy 1,000 of them.
“There’s been quite a bit of consumer backlash,” acknowledged Peter Hunt, chief executive of Britain’s Lighting Assn. “A lot of it we expected.”
To help consumers and manufacturers get used to the change, the EU decided not to ax all incandescent bulbs at once. Last month’s ban covers 100-watt clear bulbs and all frosted ones. Clear 40- and 60-watt incandescents are to be eased out by September 2012.
The advantages of the ban outweigh any deficiencies, EU officials say. Good-quality fluorescent bulbs can last years, many times the life span of regular bulbs, so although they cost more, they are more economical in the long run.
The new lamps also cut electricity bills because of their more efficient use of energy. In conventional bulbs, most of the energy is lost as heat rather than converted to light.
“You can . . . look at it the same way that you’re looking at improvements of washing machines and fridges, where consumers don’t even notice that the fridges [have] become more efficient,” said Andras Toth, a policy officer in the EU’s energy directorate.
Maybe. But then how to explain that low-energy fluorescent lamps have been around for 25 years but have never caught on with consumers? Though he supports the switch-over, Hunt acknowledges that there were good reasons why fluorescent bulbs were passed over on store shelves.
“The early ones were the size of large jam jars, they flickered, they had a cold blue light and they took a long time to switch on,” he said. “So it’s not surprising that consumers have a bad preconception of this lighting.”
The technology has improved considerably on all those counts, Hunt said. But fluorescent bulbs haven’t shaken their bad rap.
Their start-up time still lags well behind the instant on-and-off of incandescent bulbs. They cannot be used with dimmer switches. And the most commonly available ones still do not provide the same spectrum of light as the old lamps, which worries art collectors, photographers and others who need light sources that offer sharp color rendition. (Officials point out that halogen bulbs, which give off light of a similar quality to incandescent varieties, remain on the market.)
Then there is the fluorescent bulbs’ mercury content, up to 5 milligrams per bulb. Cleaning up a shattered bulb requires more than just sweeping up jagged shards: Users should ventilate the room and avoid touching pieces with bare skin.
Still, “if you compare it to other mercury content, like dental fillings, the amount we’re talking about is really rather small,” Toth said. “And you have to be extremely unlucky to be exposed to it in a dangerous way.”
None of that cuts any ice with Ziegler.
A writer and former art critic, he sees the EU’s ban as unnecessarily extreme. Why not slap a tax on the old-fashioned bulbs, rather than outlaw them entirely?
“The law just says you can’t use the best lightbulb ever invented,” he grumbled.
A few months ago, with the Sept. 1 deadline looming like a neon sign, he decided to take preemptive action.
With typical German precision, he went through every room of his apartment with a floor plan in hand, marking an X wherever there was a light fixture — about 25 in all — and noting what kind of bulb it required. Then he took the checklist to his local vendor, who worked out how many bulbs Ziegler would need for the next decade.
“I said forget 10 years,” Ziegler recalled. “I want a lifetime supply.”
That, though, posed an unanticipated question. At 50, he suddenly had to ponder — or guess — how much longer he expected to live. He drafted his wife into his existential contemplations, and together, like actuaries, they finally decided that a lifetime supply meant enough bulbs to last 30 years.
Laying his hands on 3,000 incandescent bulbs was another story. He cleaned out one supplier and went on to the next, seeking them out on the Internet. Bulky packages kept arriving at the apartment, and “I was not unaware of the pitying looks of my neighbors,” he confessed in a newspaper column.
Thankfully, his wife supported his panic buying, because she “hates [fluorescent bulbs] even more than I do,” Ziegler said.
But that sparked yet another uncomfortable discussion. Who gets custody of the hoard in case of divorce? (Stay tuned.)
For now, the incandescent cache is carefully stowed away in the attic, to which Ziegler disappears to extract an unusually shaped bulb to show a visitor the way a wine lover might disappear down the cellar to produce a prized bottle of Chateau Lafite Rothschild.
Ziegler still hopes the EU ban will somehow fail, or be repealed. He’s mulling the idea of writing a political manifesto on behalf of the incandescent bulb, laying out its history and its merits.
And he urges people to build their own stockpiles as soon as they can, before supplies dry up.
“If you want to get in on it, get in,” he said. “It’s not too late.”
Zoinks! Here is an article from the Financial Times discussing the backlash in Europe concerning the legistlation banning incandescent light bulbs. Seems that they are hoarding the little buggers!
Germans have always had a thing for incandescents! Check out this little beauty!
Germans fail to see the light on bulbs By Daniel Schäfer in Frankfurt Published: August 22 2009 03:00 | Last updated: August 22 2009 03:00 Germans, Austrians and Hungarians are hoarding energy-hungry light bulbs, which have fallen out of favour in other European countries, ahead of a European Union ban that takes effect next month. The scramble for conventional bulbs illuminates the challenges of persuading consumers to embrace environmentally friendly shopping habits – particularly in the midst of an economic crisis. Sales of incandescent light bulbs have risen 34 per cent year-on-year in Germany in the first six months of 2009, data from GfK, the German consumer research group, shows. In most other European countries, sales of old-style light bulbs have fallen at double-digit rates this year. In the UK, sales dropped 22 per cent, amid a voluntary agreement between retailers and energy companies to phase out light bulbs nine months ahead of the EU ban. Last year, the UK experienced a similar tendency to stockpile light bulbs ahead of the voluntary ban that came into effect in January. Christian Schraft, head of the consumer division at Osram, one of Europe’s largest lighting producers owned by engineering group Siemens, said he had been taken aback by Germany’s reluctance to accept energy-saving bulbs. “Germans are often sceptical about innovations. And in difficult economic times in particular, they tend to stick to what is tried and tested,” Mr Schraft said. The hoarding instinct has been heightened by an EU rule change that comes into effect in September, banning 100-watt bulbs and widely used pearl bulbs from store shelves. The move will be followed by further phase-out steps, until ultimately all conventional bulbs will be banned in four years’ time. The shopping behaviour appears to contradict the stereotypes of Germans and Austrians as environmentally conscious. But Hans-Georg Häusel, a psychologist who uses brain science to explain consumer behaviour, said they were reluctant to change. “There is a fear that they could destroy the snug atmosphere of their homes,” he said.
Have you ever seen a lightbulb being made? It is a long, fast dance of glittering, breakable parts: legs of glass and filament arms shuttled around shakily, doll versions of Charlie Chaplin in the gears, finally tested and transformed into dazzling, glowing, blinking landscapes thrown back at their heavy-metal creators. The ballet mecanique of the lightbulb can’t help but be nostalgic for an American audience. Where have our factories gone? To China, of course—where Cao Fei’s video Whose Utopia is set in a real lightbulb factory. The first part of the 20-minute video portrays the creation of a lightbulb from start to finish, and this abstract and gorgeous scenario lasts until about halfway through, when hopelessly soft human parts appear: slender female fingers pricked while sorting through tiny heaps of sharp metal bits, shoulders slumped, eyesight going. The bulb bodies take their toll on the flesh ones—an old story—but that’s not the end of it. The flesh fights back. Cao directed real workers to express themselves inside the factory: a ballerina twirling slowly within a canyon of boxes stacked to the factory ceiling, a man soft-shoeing under a sky of fluorescents, a dancer wearing angel wings working alongside everyone else at the long assembly bench. Each moment is a little protest by a still-hopeful member of China’s rapidly developing economy in the Pearl River Delta region, where Cao was commissioned by Siemens to create this video at the Osram factory—a subsidiary of Siemens. Whose Utopia is an unusually direct yet poetic study of the interlock of art and economics in contemporary China, where Cao’s father is a sculptor for the state and Cao’s awareness of her censors, both governmental and corporate, is built into her process from the start. My Future Is Not a Dream is the name of a rock band formed by a handful of the young workers, individuals who have left their hometowns and come to this industrial zone with big dreams. Their lyrics accompany the final section of Whose Utopia, in which the factory moves while individual workers stand still for portraits in work clothes, as in August Sander’s early-20th-century photographs of German workers. “Part of your life had waned and waned,” their song goes in slightly broken English. “And to whom do you beautifully belong?” Cao enlisted the workers as coauthors instead of mere subjects to empower them: “The conditions that these workers live under is generally highly invisible to a broader public,” she told the Vancouver, B.C.–based magazine Fillip. “What this project does is release the workers from a standardized notion of productivity. What we are doing is production, but a type of production that connects back to the personal. I am like a social worker. They don’t regard me as an artist. They think I’m an event organizer.” Maybe so, but what makes the video so moving is its hopelessness to those of us on the other end of rapid industrialization. This is not going to work out, we think. And the art is, in some sense, playing along by offering the carrot of a fleeting transcendence. Resistance is futile—or fatal. This is the China in which so-called “cutting-edge” contemporary artists (such as Cai Guo-Qiang of the “exploding cars” at Seattle Art Museum) produce Olympics spectacles. This is China, post–Tiananmen Square. And without being too nationalistic, it is necessary to point out that we helped to create it. In February 1989, just months before the government executed a still-unknown number of student protesters at Tiananmen Square, a large exhibition called China/Avant-Garde opened at the National Gallery in Beijing. Authorities shut it down shortly after it opened (because of a performance including gunshots), then allowed it to reopen and shut it down again, twice. It ran for only two weeks, but it marked the culmination of a movement that had been taking place throughout the 1980s in China, informed as much by Mao’s Cultural Revolution as by Russian kitsch art and American Pop. Early Pop was really invented by two fountainheads: Robert Rauschenberg, whose ROCI (Rauschenberg Overseas Cultural Interchange, pronounced “Rocky” after his pet turtle) Project visited and influenced Beijing in 1985, and Jasper Johns, whose 20 years of depicting the lightbulb (1957–76) is the subject of a small exhibition on the floor below Cao’s video at the Henry Art Gallery. Jasper Johns: Light Bulb, organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, is a nerdacious little universe of experimentation you could disappear into—but its coincidental appearance here with Cao’s study of a lightbulb factory pulls it into a broader context of economic and social history. Cao, born in 1978, is a generation beyond what Art in America termed the “Children of Mao and Coca-Cola,” and maybe not even aware of Johns’s lightbulb works, but the connections are natural. Both Cao and Johns undercut the cliché that art is something that appears magically, like a lightbulb above the head. Cao depicts light as nothing more than a commercial product (and key to a surveillance system); Johns’s lightbulbs are simply devoid of light. Made in bronze, plaster, or lead, Johns’s lightbulbs are heavy, dark, and solid: the anti-lightbulbs. In lithographs, they cast shadows rather than light. They wear the stamps of their manufacturers rather than the artist’s signature, in the classic Pop move of replacing the artist with the machine. Just as light is the product of certain systems, so are artistic ideas. The artist is a manufacturer, too; now: of what? And Johns is also a case of the co-opted critique. The most laconic of the Pop artists, his work is nevertheless today affordable only to the extremely rich. His idea-objects have been elevated to the status of the magical and the rare, an ultimate reversal of the multiple and the banal nature of his subjects: lightbulbs, maps, flags, targets, numbers. Every lightbulb has its price.
Zoinks! Its seems that not everybody is happy with the EU’s ban on incandescent light bulbs. In the following article from Germany’s Der Speigel magazine, the hoarding of incandescent light bulbs is now common place. Soon they will be a hot item on the black market! Gadzooks!
Germans Hoarding Traditional Light Bulbs The staggered phase out of energy-wasting light bulbs begins on Sept. 1 in Germany. The unpopularity of the energy-saving compact fluorescent bulbs that will replace them is leading consumers and retailers to start hoarding the traditional bulbs. As the Sept. 1 deadline for the implementation of the first phase of the EU’s ban on incandescent light bulbs approaches, shoppers, retailers and even museums are hoarding the precious wares — and helping the manufacturers make a bundle. DPA Germans are hoarding traditional incandescent light bulbs as their planned phase out — in favor of energy-saving compact flourescent bulbs — approaches. The EU ban, adopted in March, calls for the gradual replacement of traditional light bulbs with supposedly more energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs (CFL). The first to go, on Sept. 1, will be 100-watt bulbs. Bulbs of other wattages will then gradually fall under the ban, which is expected to cover all such bulbs by Sept. 1, 2012 (see graphic below). Hardware stores and home-improvement chains in Germany are seeing massive increases in the sales of the traditional bulbs. Obi reports a 27 percent growth in sales over the same period a year ago. Hornbach has seen its frosted-glass light bulb sales increase by 40-112 percent. When it comes to 100-watt bulbs, Max Bahr has seen an 80 percent jump in sales, while the figure has been 150 percent for its competitor Praktiker. “It’s unbelievable what is happening,” says Werner Wiesner, the head of Megaman, a manufacturer of energy-saving bulbs. Wiesner recounts a story of how one of his field representatives recently saw a man in a hardware store with a shopping cart full of light bulbs of all types worth more than €200 ($285). “That’s enough for the next 20 years.” And hoarding doesn’t seem to be just a customer phenomenon. The EU law only forbids producing and importing incandescent bulbs but does not outlaw their sale. “We’ve stocked up well,” a spokesman for Praktiker told SPIEGEL. And what’s ironic — in the short term, at least — is that the companies that manufacture the climate-killing bulbs are seeing a big boost in sales. According to the GfK market research company, sales in Germany of incandescent light bulbs between January and April 20, 2009, saw a 20 percent jump over the same period a year earlier, while CFL sales shrank by 2 percent. ‘Light Bulb Socialism’ The EU’s ban was originally meant to help it reach its targets on energy efficiency and climate protection. Though much cheaper to buy, incandescent bulbs have long been seen as wasteful because only 5 percent of the energy they consume goes to light production, with the rest just becoming heat. And consumers were also supposed to feel a positive effect in their pocketbooks as well. European Energy Commission Andris Piebalgs has estimated that the average European household will save €50 per year on electricity bills and that annual CO2 emissions in Europe will be cut by 15 millions tons. DER SPIEGEL Schedule for the implementation of the EU ban on flourescent light bulbs. But — like laws on bent cucumbers — many have mocked the light bulb legislation as just another example of an EU bureaucracy gone wild. Holger Krahmer, for example, a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Germany’s business-friendly FDP party has accused the EU of imposing ‘light bulb socialism.” In fact, in creating this legislation, the EU failed to address consumer preferences and the reservations of a number of other groups. For example, many have complained that the light emitted by a CFL bulb is colder and weaker and that its high-frequency flickering can cause headaches. Then there are complaints about the mercury the CFL bulbs contain, how there is no system for disposing of them in a convenient and environmentally friendly way, and how they allegedly result in exposure to radiation levels higher than allowed under international guidelines. For some, the issue is also one of broken promises. For example, manufacturers of CFL bulbs justify their higher prices by claiming that they last much longer than traditional bulbs. But a recent test by the environmentally-oriented consumer-protection magazine Öko Test found that 16 of the 32 bulb types tested gave up the ghost after 6,000 hours of use — or much earlier than their manufacturers had promised. And then, of course, there’s the issue of the light the bulbs emit. Many complain that the lights are just not bright enough and that they falsify colors. The Hamburger Kunsthalle, for example, recently made a bulk order for 600 incandescent light bulbs to make sure that it can keep illuminating the works it displays in the time-honored way. The aesthetic issue is a powerful one. For Munich-based lighting designer Ingo Maurer, the CFL bulbs are ushering in a decrease in the quality of life. “We recommend protests against the ban, civil disobedience and the timely hoarding of lighting implements,” Maurer told SPIEGEL. He also adds that he believes the ban might drive more people to use more candles, which are about as bad as you can get in terms of energy efficiency. As Wiesner sees it, Brussels did it all wrong. Rather than banning incandescent bulbs, Wiesner argues, it should have slapped a €5 surcharge on every incandescent bulb, arguing that it would have made people think a bit more before buying them. “That move alone would have been enough to allow the EU to achieve its goal,” Wiesner says. Reported by Alexander Jung
Energy saving eco-bulbs produce at least as much light as old-style bulbs, but you get what you pay for, according to Consumer magazine.
Consumer tested 17 eco-bulbs, including two dimmable bulbs, for brightness and long life, by comparing them with a standard 100W incandescent light bulb and turning them each on and off 6454 times.
It found that most eco-bulbs, or compact fluorescents, produced as much light as the old-style incandescent bulbs and good eco-bulbs produced substantially more.
A good quality eco-bulb would last well despite being turned off and on a lot. In most cases, major brand eco-bulbs lasted longer than cheaper brands.
Old-style incandescent bulbs turn just 5 per cent of electricity into light and the rest into heat, while the new eco bulbs turn about 80 per cent of electricity into light.
Spiral shapes were the best performers of the eco-bulbs, which ranged between 18W and 23W. They ranged in price from $2.93 to $25.92 each.
Zoinks! Its me Dr. Z! Would you believe that I now have my own dance contest? Zbulbs has decided to create a competition based on my “Dance of the 7 Spirals!” You can win an IPOD CLASSIC!
Zbulbs Dance Contest / OFFICIAL RULES NO PURCHASE NECESSARY
1. DESCRIPTION OF THE CONTEST: The “Dance of the Seven Spirals” Contest (“Contest”) is designed to encourage our customers and potential customers to become more involved in Zbulbs.com as an online provider of lighting products. Prizes will be awarded to those who submit the most creative and inspiring videos. Each video should appeal to Zbulbs audience, and each winner will be determined by the judges in their sole discretion, and in accordance with these Official Rules.
2. ELIGIBILITY: This contest is open only to individuals who submit original videos that they have personally created to YouTube as described below. At the time of entry each entrant must be the legal age of majority in their country, province or state of legal residence and must be a resident of the United States. Persons in any of the following categories are not eligible to participate or win the prize(s) offered: (a) Employees of Zbulbs.com. Their parent companies, affiliates and subsidiaries, participating advertising and promotion agencies. (b) immediate family members (defined as parents, children, siblings and spouse, regardless of where they reside) and/or those living in the same household as any person in (a). You must have access to the Internet and a valid email address in order to enter or win.
3. HOW TO ENTER: This contest begins at 12:01 A.M. Central Standard Time (CST) zone in the United States, on June 1st, 2009 and ends at 11:59 P.M. (CST) on December 1st 2009 (“Contest Period”). IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ENTRANTS: EACH ENTRANT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR DETERMINING THE CORRESPONDING TIME ZONE IN HIS/HER RESPECTIVE JURISDICTION.
THE SUBMISSION: Create a video that is approximately 1 to 3 minutes in length. You may submit multiple Entries, so long as each Entry meets all requirements. Each Entry should be original, creative, and appeal to Zbulbs.com audience. Be creative! To enter you must register at www.zbulbs.com To do this you will need to register with YouTube. YouTube registration is free. Once you have completed the registration process and have created your video, upload it to your YouTube account, marking it as PUBLIC.
4. You will then need to go to the YouTube group, http://www.youtube.com/group/zbulbsdancecontest join the group and add your video. Your use of the YouTube.com website is subject to the Terms of Use governing that site.
Once that process is complete, return to the contest registration page at http://www.zbulbs.com and complete the email registration requirements.
All Entries must be in English. Registration or Entries that are in any other language will not be considered. Entries that are lewd, obscene, pornographic, disparaging of the Sponsor or otherwise contain objectionable material may be disqualified in the Sponsor’s sole and unfettered discretion. Only original submissions that are personally created will be eligible to win.
5. JUDGING: Zbulbs.com will select monthly winners on or around the first of the months starting in July 2009 through December 2009. Best Monthly Video Winners will be judged again at the end of the Contest Period: (1) Grand Prize Winner will be selected by a panel of experts, who will judge each Entry, based on the following equally weighted criteria: originality, creativity, appeal to Zbulbs.com audience. In the event of a tie, the person among the tied Entries with the highest score in creativity will be declared the winner. Zbulbs.com will select one grand prize winner. The grand prize winner will be selected by a panel of experts, who will judge all Entries received throughout the entire promotion based on the listed criteria. Decisions of judges are final and binding. Winners will be notified by email and or phone and or mail at Sponsors sole discretion.
6. PRIZES AND APPROXIMATE RETAIL VALUES: Zbulbs.com will award (1) Grand Prize. The Grand Prize will consist of one (1) Ipod Classic. The approximate retail value of the Grand Prize is U.S. $250. Cash will not be substituted for any prize. Any other expenses not specified herein are the sole responsibility of the winner. Any REQUIRED TAXES AND ANY APPLICABLE WITHOLDING AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS ARE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE WINNER. All costs associated with currency exchange are the sole responsibility of the winner.
7. CONDITIONS OF PARTICIPATION. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize for an item of equal or greater value in the event all or part of a prize becomes unavailable. Prizes are awarded without warranty of any kind from Sponsor, express or implied, without limitation, except where this would be contrary to federal, state, provincial, or local law or regulation. All federal, state, provincial and local laws and regulations apply. Submission of entry into this Contest deems that entrants agree to be bound by the terms of these Official Rules and by the decisions of Sponsor, which are final and binding on all matters pertaining to this Contest. Return of any prize/prize notification may result in disqualification and selection of an alternate winner. Any potential winner who cannot be contacted within 15 days of first attempted notification will forfeit his/her prize and an alternate may be selected. Potential prize winner(s) may be required to sign and return a Declaration of Eligibility/Liability & Publicity Release within 30 days following the date of first attempted notification. Failure to comply within this time period may result in disqualification and selection of an alternate winner. The intellectual and industrial property rights to the contest submission, if any, will remain with the participants, except that these terms do not supersede any other assignment or grant of rights according to any other separate agreements between participants and other parties. As a condition of entry, participants agree that Zbulbs.com shall have the right to use, copy, modify and make available the, administration, advertising and promotion of the Contest via communication to the public, including, but not limited to the right to make screenshots, animations and video clips available to the public for promotional and publicity purposes. Notwithstanding the foregoing, ownership of and all intellectual and industrial property rights in and to the video. Acceptance of the prize constitutes permission for, and winners consent to Zbulbs.com and its agencies to use a winner’s name and/or likeness and entry for advertising and promotional purposes without additional compensation, unless prohibited by law. To the extent permitted by law, entrants agree to hold Sponsor, its parent, subsidiaries, agents, directors, officers, employees, representatives and assigns harmless from any injury or damage caused or claimed to be caused by participation in the Contest and/or use or acceptance of any prize won, except to the extent that any death or personal injury is caused by the negligence of the Sponsor. Sponsor is not responsible for any typographical or other error in the printing of the offer, administration of the Contest or in the announcement of the prize. A participant may be prohibited from participating in this Contest if, in the Sponsor’s sole discretion, it reasonably believes that the participant has attempted to undermine the legitimate operation of this Contest by cheating, deception, or other unfair playing practices or annoys, abuses, threatens or harasses any other participants, the Sponsor or associated agencies. In the event a winner/potential winner’s employer has a policy which prohibits the awarding of a prize to an employee, the prize will be forfeited and an alternate winner will be selected.
8. NO RECOURSE TO JUDICIAL OR OTHER PROCEDURES: To the extent permitted by law, the rights to litigate, to seek injunctive relief or to make any other recourse to judicial or any other procedure in case of disputes or claims resulting from or in connection with this contest are hereby excluded, and any participant expressly waives any and all such rights. Participants agree that these Official Rules are governed by the laws of the state of Nevada, USA.
9. DATA PRIVACY: Participants agree that personal data, especially name and address, may be processed, stored and otherwise used for the purposes and within the context of the contest and any other purposes outlined in these Official Rules. The data may also be used by the Sponsor in order to check participants’ identity, their postal address and telephone number, or to otherwise verify their eligibility to participate in the Contest and to receive any prize. Participants have a right to access, review, rectify or cancel any personal data held by the Sponsor by written request to Zbulbs.com (Attention: Dance of Seven Spirals Dance Contest ) at the address listed below. If participant’s data is not provided or is canceled, participants’ Entries will be ineligible. Participants agree that any personal data or other information provided on the YouTube.com website in order to participate in this Contest will be subject to the terms of the privacy policy posted on the YouTube.com website and Sponsor shall have no liability or responsibility in connection therewith.
10. WARRANTY AND INDEMNITY: Each entrant certifies that their entry is original and that they are the sole and exclusive owner and right holder of the submitted Entry, and that they have the right to submit the Entry in the Contest. Each entrant agrees not to submit any Entry that (1) infringes any 3rd party proprietary, intellectual property, industrial property, personal rights or other rights, including without limitation, copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret or confidentiality obligation; or (2) otherwise violates applicable law in any countries in the world. To the maximum extent permitted by law, each entrant indemnifies and agrees to keep indemnified the Sponsor, its parent, subsidiaries, agents, directors, officers, employees, representatives and assigns harmless at all times from and against any liability, claims, demands, losses, damages, costs and expenses resulting from any act, default or omission of the participant and/or a breach of any warranty set forth herein. To the maximum extent permitted by law, each participant indemnifies and agrees to keep indemnified the Sponsor, its parent, subsidiaries, agents, directors, officers, employees, representatives and assigns harmless at all times from and against any liability, actions, claims, demands, losses, damages, costs and expenses for or in respect of which the Sponsor will or may become liable by reason of or related or incidental to any act, default or omission by a participant under these Official Rules including without limitation resulting from or in relation to any breach, non-observance, act or omission whether negligent or otherwise, pursuant to these official rules by a participant.
11. ELIMINATION: Any false information provided within the context of the Contest by any participant concerning identity, postal address, telephone number, ownership of right or non- compliance with these rules or the like may result in the immediate elimination of the participant from the Contest. Sponsor further reserves the right to disqualify any Entry that it believes in its sole and unfettered discretion infringes upon or violates the rights of any third party or otherwise does not comply with these official rules.
12. INTERNET: Sponsor is not responsible for electronic transmission errors resulting in omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operations or transmission. Sponsor is not responsible for theft or destruction or unauthorized access to or alterations of entry materials, or for technical, network, telephone equipment, electronic, computer, hardware or software malfunctions or limitations of any kind. Sponsor is not responsible for inaccurate transmissions of or failure to receive entry information by Sponsor on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any Web site or any combination thereof, except to the extent that any death or personal injury is caused by the negligence of the Sponsor. If for any reason the Internet portion of the program is not capable of running as planned, including infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, disruption or termination of the YouTube.com website for any reason or any other causes which corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, or proper conduct of this Contest, Sponsor reserves the right at its sole discretion to immediately cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the Contest. Sponsor reserves the right to select winners from eligible entries received as of the termination date. Sponsor further reserves the right to disqualify any individual who tampers with the entry process. Caution: Any attempt by a contestant to deliberately damage any web site or undermine the legitimate operation of the contest is a violation of criminal and civil laws and should such an attempt be made, Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages from any such contestant to the fullest extent of the law.
13. If any provision(s) of these Official Rules are held to be invalid or unenforceable, all remaining provisions hereof will remain in full force and effect.
15. SPONSOR: The Sponsor of this Contest is ZBULBS.com, P.O. Box 59729, Henderson, Nevada 89016 / 3838 Rayment Drive Suite # 3, Las Vegas, Nevada 89121. YouTube.com is not associated or affiliated with this Contest in any manner.
ENTER FOR A CHANCE TO WIN
Zbulbs Dance of the Seven Spirals.
The “Dance of the Seven Spirals” Contest (“Contest”) is designed to encourage our customers and potential customers to become more involved in Zbulbs.com as an online provider of lighting products. Prizes will be awarded to those who submit the most creative and inspiring videos. Each video should appeal to Zbulbs audience, and each winner will be determined by the judges in their sole discretion, and in accordance with these Official Rules.
Winners selected monthly.
THE SUBMISSION: Create a video that is approximately 1 to 3 minutes in length. You may submit multiple Entries, so long as each Entry meets all requirements. Each Entry should be original, creative, and appeal to Zbulbs.com audience. Be creative! To enter you must register at www.zbulbs.com To do this you will need to register with YouTube. YouTube registration is free. Once you have completed the registration process and have created your video, upload it to your YouTube account, marking it as PUBLIC.
Zoinks! Its me! Dr. Z! Boy oh boy we have a treat for you all now. Two brand new video’s of my adventures in and out of Lighthouse Labratories. See me perform my most mysterious Dance of the Seven Spirals! See Mr. Y learn his lesson when he mixes guns and bad lighting decisions! Watch and Enjoy!
Zoinks! Maybe thats taking the switch to cfls too far!
Zoinks! Its me Dr. Z! Earth Day is coming up April 22 and the Environmental News Network has some Zooper tips on how we can participate. Check what is #1 on the list . Oh me oh my! Gadzooks. Changing light bulbs can make a differance!
: According to the Earth Day Network’s web site, it took us (collectively as a human race) about 125 years to use our first trillion barrels of oil. We’re going to use up the next trillion barrels in only 30 years.
It stands to reason our increased oil usage has an impact on our environment, our health and our lives. So this year as we celebrate Earth Day let’s remember there are simple yet effective steps we can take to help preserve our world. Here are 5 things you can do right now to honor Earth Day this year. 1.) Replace your light bulbs with energy star bulbs. This simple step can reduce your carbon footprint by 450 pounds per year. And all you need to do is by energy efficient light bulbs and use them! There’s more information here at the official Energy Star web site: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=lighting.pr_lighting 2.) Plant a tree. Trees are Mother Nature’s all-in-one air conditioner and heater. It’s estimated that three properly-planted trees can reduce energy bills by as much as 30% – that’s both heating and cooling. Help out by planting a tree this year on Earth Day. You can plant one in your yard or donate one to someone. If neither of those options work for you then consider donating a tree to one of our national parks. Find more at the Arbor Day Foundation’s web site: http://www.arborday.org/trees/ 3.) Celebrate Earth Day locally. There are lots of events being held on Earth Day so find one and join in! Whether you’re a student on campus, live in the suburbs or are an urban dweller you’ll find various events going on in your area. Pitch in, lend a hand and promote saving our Earth. Go to Earth Day’s web site to find what’s happening in your town: http://earthday.net/ 4.) Buy local, organic food. By some estimates our US-grown produce travels up to 1500 miles before it reaches our neighborhood supermarket. When you calculate one gallon of gas creates 20 pounds of carbon dioxide you can see how much damage produce can do — and that’s for US-grown food. Buying organic saves the Earth because you aren’t adding harmful chemicals into our eco-system (not to mention they aren’t going into your body). Check out Local Harvest’s web site for more information: http://www.localharvest.org/buylocal.jsp 5.) Ride an Optibike. According to the Earth Day web site, by the year 2030 the world will consume 47% more oil than it did in 2003. And almost all of us contribute to that statistic — especially if we drive a car. So choosing to ride the electric bicycle Optibike versus driving a car means you aren’t using oil to run the bike and you aren’t polluting the air when you do. In fact your carbon footprint from riding an Optibike is very small — Optibike gets the equivalent of 2,000 miles per gallon. No hybrid can offer you that kind of gas mileage! Find out more here: http://www.optibike.com/content/view/97/144/ Start with these and you’re bound to find many more ways you can go green this year for Earth Day — and every day after that. About Optibike: Optibike builds custom, handmade bikes that use only American-made components of the highest caliber. Combining the patented Motorized Bottom Bracket (MBB), the rider uses pedaling and the motor for a harmonious balance of electric power and exercise. Optibike boasts the best warranty available for a lithium ion battery: 3 years/30,000 miles. With its headquarters in Boulder, Colorado Optibike builds the finest electric bicycles available.
Contact Info: Craig Weakley
Marketing Director
Optibike LLC
303.443.0932
craig@optibike.com
