Come July 14, 2012, the standards for energy-efficiency in commercial lighting will change. The Department of Energy has ruled that certain general-service fluorescent lights and incandescent (and halogen) reflector lights will be banned from manufacture in the U.S. after the new standards are put in place. This will essentially eliminate lights with the lowest efficiency and cost from the market. It might be important to keep these changes in mind as they will affect available options in the near future.
General-service fluorescent lights that will be prohibited:
- All 2-ft. full-wattage and energy-saving U-shaped T12 lamps
- All 75W F96T12 and 110W F96T12HO lamps
- All 4-ft. T8 basic-grade 700/SP series lamps rated at 2,800 lumens
- Most 4-ft. linear full-wattage and energy-saving T12 lamps
- Most 60W F96T12/ES and 95W F96T12/ES/HO lamps
- Some 8-ft. T8 Slimline single-pin 700/SP series and 8-ft. T8 HO RDC-base lamps
Incandescent reflector lights that will be prohibited:
- Many R, PAR, BR, ER, BPAR and similar bulb shapes
- 130V products
As a side note, fluorescent magnetic T12 ballasts are also set to be prohibited from manufacture after June 30, 2010. This regulation was set in the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
I am in favor of this move, however, I have concerns. Will this eventually push towards elimination of more and more products with energy inefficiencies? If so, contractors will face substantial cost increases, of which will be passed on to buyers.