Wal-Mart introduces private-label CFLs
Wal-Mart set an ambitious goal of selling 100 million compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) in the United States this year. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailing giant touted the energy-saving and financial benefits of switching from power-hungry incandescent bulbs to more-efficient CFLs.
With the recent announcement that it is selling its own private-label CFLs in more than 3,000 U.S. stores, Wal-Mart is hoping that the so-called “unbeatable price” of its bulbs will spur sales.
The 9-, 13-, 18-, and 23-watt Great Value–brand spiral CFLs, which you can use in a variety of indoor and outdoor applications, come in four-packs that cost $7.58. For our October 2007 report on CFLs, “New twists in savings,” we paid about $8 or $9 per four-pack of spiral bulbs.
We haven’t yet tested the Wal-Mart CFLs, but the company claims they are Energy Star qualified. This means they meet the government’s standards for start-up and warm-up times, brightness, color, bulb life, and energy use; they also cannot hum or buzz. Our experts recommend that you use only Energy Star bulbs for those locations where you’re considering installing CFLs.
It’s worth noting that CFLs contain a small amount of mercury, so it’s important to properly handle and dispose of them. Wal-Mart CFLs, says a company spokesperson, do not exceed 5 milligrams per bulb and comply with the European Restriction on Hazardous Substance standards for mercury and heavy-metal content.—Kimberly Janeway
Essential information: Find out how the major brands of CFLs compare to one another. (This information is available to subscribers.)
Posted by: delilah | Oct 12, 2007 11:10:41 PM
great wal-mart....
i want to know who is making the bulbs? why are they so cheap??? stop promoting wal-mart, they could have done this a long time ago and are doing it now for the dollar. they care nothing for small business, fair & just labor or the environment. this company has the money to change the world and didnt do a think until they had enough people suing them or protesting them (they basically where "caught").
support people and businesses that have been doing it because it always has been the right thing to do