The bulbs are not FREE. The bulbs are not being requested by the consumer. I did not seek to buy them and don't want them. And this is false advertising!
You know, I actually gave these dumb bulbs a shot, and they last no longer than the old bulbs, and it’s a pain-in-the-patoot to dispose of them.
Here is the reply I received from my complaint to First Energy, basically they don’t care how people feel, they want their money: Thank you for utilizing FirstEnergy’s Customer Care website for your account needs. Ohio Edison/Toledo Edison/The Illuminating Company is focused on helping our customers lower their electric bills by reducing energy use and increasing the energy efficiency of their homes and businesses. CFLs are simple yet effective tools for saving energy. For example, replacing a single 100-watt incandescent bulb with a CFL of the same light output can reduce your electric bill by $10 a year. Thats $10 for every bulb you switch, so your savings can add up.
If a delivery person comes to your house when you are home, please simply ask them not to deliver the bulbs to your home, and they will move on. If you do receive bulbs either through the mail or at your door feel free to give them to a neighbor, friend or a family member. If you want to dispose of them, check if your municipality permits you to put CFLs in the garbage. If so, seal the bulb in two plastic bags and put it into the outside trash, or other protected outside location, for the next normal trash collection. If not, you will need to properly recycle the bulbs. CFL recycling is available free of charge at The Home Depot stores or your municipality might have other CFL recycling programs available.
This CFL program is part of a statewide effort under Ohios new energy law (Senate Bill 221) to reduce the amount of electricity customers use. As with most state-mandated programs that are designed to benefit all residential customers such as energy efficiency programs and environmental projects the costs incurred by the utilities to implement the program are included in residential customer rates. So all customers share the costs of the programs over a period of several years.
Sincerely,
Rachel Customer Service
I wish electrical utilities, given their monopoly status, could be legally prevented in engaging in any business that detracts from their ability to produce power at a reasonable cost to consumers and a healthy profit for them. I am tired of my bill going up year after year to pay for crap that has nothing to do with power.
You can get them for $2 a bulb in packages of 3 at Walmart.
Wait until someone gets seriously harmed by the toxic bulb - will they be able to sue? That definitely will spike consumers’ costs. Free? I don’t think so.
But what about the new electric cars Detroit is supposed to be making? This is ridiculous - we’re supposed to save a couple of kilowatts on lightbulbs but then use massive amounts of electricity on our cars?
I love my CFL bulb. The Saskatchewan Roughriders logo it projects onto my ceiling is uber-cool!
Wow, think how much you can save if only they raise the rates high enough.
Oh, and by the way, we have a new energy efficient refrigerator being delivered next week to your home, and the small monthly charge being added to your bill will only be $150/month for 48 months. We care!
Also, could we have the key to your house, so we can do unannounced energy audits. These are provided to you free* of charge (*a tiny service charge will be added to your bill for this free service). And one last thing, that dishwasher you have, it has got to go, took much energy is being wasted. (there is a $400 removal and disposal fee associated with such removal) Call to schedule removal. On the other, we have your key, no need for an appointment. We care!
Well, thank you for your business. We care!**
**Note: As we strive to save our customers money on their energy use, we have seen enormous energy reductions through the steps taken to save you money, therefore our profits have not been enough to sustain our double-digit pay increases this past year to our under-worked employees, as mandated by our 'caring' union. This is a 3-day warning to advise you we are raising your monthly rates 18% for the next 5 years, proactive to the beginning of last year.
Sincerely,
SCRU-U Energy Technologists
your hometown 'caring' company
Those mercury bulbs are an environmental nightmare. LED lights will win out because they use half the electricity and last longer. Al Gore proves he is no expert when he starts talking mercury CFL bulbs and cannot even say LED.
Only the government or other bureaucracy would have the balls to call that "free."
Just saying.
For an encore, the water department will start distributing new efficient toilets at $25,000 a shot...
"We're the gummint, and we're here to help..."
MADE IN CHINA
That’s not the half of it. Supposedly Houston received money to make low-income homes energy efficient.
Turns out the City was charge $9.00 for a single bulb...when you could go to Home Depot and buy 3 (THREE) for the same price. Don’t let idiots get hold of your tax money. PERIOD
In the mean time, BLOIT! I'm stocking up on incandescent bulbs of all sizes.
BLOIT: Buy Lots Of Incandescents Today
Fascism.
They can keep their stupid tree hugger bulbs. I have about 10K in my storage warehouse. When they are buy one get one free, I clean the shelf out and buy them all.
How exactly do the light bulbs arrive?
If they come to your house by mail or even by UPS, it could be said that if there is mercury in the bulbs, it would be hazardous.
Can the Post Office or UPS/Fed Ex be expected to handle this type of shipment?
Perhaps this can be stopped?
Hey, ho, way to go Ohio!