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Compact Fluorescent Light Manufacturers' Specifications

Increasing interest in energy efficiency -- along with government regulations requiring more efficient lighting -- have driven interest in compact fluorescent lighting (CFL). Fluorescent lights work by sending electricity through a gaseous vapor. The vapor emits invisible high-energy ultraviolet light. The ultraviolet hits the inside of the glass enclosure, which is coated with a phosphor. The phosphor absorbs the ultraviolet and emits visible light. Specifications for CFLs are related to the efficiency and quality of the light generation mechanism. The Department of Energy's Energy Star program outlines the minimum specifications for quality CFL lighting.

  1. Efficacy

    • Efficacy is more or less the efficiency of the light bulb. Efficacy is measured in lumens per watt. Lumens measure visible light and watts is a measure of electrical power usage; therefore, efficacy is a measure of how much visible light is put out for a given amount of electrical power. The specification is different for different styles of CFLs, but it's in the range of 33 to 60 lumens per watt.

    Lumen Maintenance

    • It's not desirable for a light bulb that leaves the factory putting out 800 lumens to only put out 600 lumens six months later. The Energy Star certification requires that the light output after 1,000 hours of operation be at least 90 percent of the initial light output. Energy Star CFLs are also required to have at least 80 percent of their initial output as they go further into their lives.

    Color Rendering Index

    • Some CFLs can physically mimic incandescent bulbs; other specifications show how their performance compares.

      The color rendering index (CRI) is a measure of how accurately a light source reproduces color in the objects it illuminates. Bright sunlight has a CRI of 100. The further the CRI is from 100, the less accurately color is reproduced. The Energy Star requirement is a minimum CRI of 80.

    Color Temperature

    • Incandescent bulbs belong to a class of objects called blackbodies. The color blend of the light from a blackbody depends only on its temperature. The sun, a toaster and an incandescent bulb are all examples of blackbodies. The sun is a 5000K (about 8500 degree Fahrenheit) blackbody, while an incandescent bulb is about a 2300K blackbody. Because CFLs make their light with a phosphor instead of by heating up, they don't have a blackbody temperature. But there is a measure of the closest apparent temperature, called the correlated color temperature (CCT). If CFLs do not have a CCT between 2700 and 3000K, they must state they are "cool" or "warm."

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