Lightbulb Hoarders

Thursday, 26 May 2011 | by Pat's Picks

There’s a great story in today’s New York Times about lightbulb hoarders. Interior designers, restauranteurs, restoration buffs—everyone, it seems, is worried about how the Bush-era Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 will affect their access to the soft light of incandescent bulbs. So they’re stocking up while supplies last. The owner of a new Washington DC restaurant plans to buy enough lightbulbs so he’s stocked for the entire duration of his 15 year-lease. Next year is the first deadline for the Energy Independence and Security Act various guidelines to improve the efficiency of bulbs sold in this country, which has contributed to the stockpiling. But experts say the legislation doesn’t ban incandescent bulbs outright, it just requires companies to “make some of their incandescent bulbs work a bit better.”