Modular Compact Fluorescent Lamp
date: label: date made
content: ca. 1992
label: Date made
content: ca 1992
name: label: Maker
content: Lights of America, Inc.
notes: label: Description
content: After decades of constant decline, the cost of electricity in the U.S. began to rise beginning in the 1960s. The change occurred for many reasons, one of which was continually growing demand for electric power. During the 1980s electric utilities that had traditionally concerned themselves with managing the supply of power began adopting so-called Demand Side Management programs (DSM). The idea centered on encouraging the use of special pricing and greater energy efficiency to slow the need for new power plants and transmission lines.
label: Description
content: While many DSM programs focused on commercial and industrial power users, some targeted residential consumers. One popular program involved utilities' swapping regular incandescent lamps for new, energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). The participating utility purchased a large quantity of CFLs from a lamp maker at a discount and then provided the lamps to consumers at a reduced price, or sometimes for free. Some governments provided subsidies to help cover the costs.
label: Description
content: Bulb-swaps introduced many people to energy-efficient CFLs. They also provided a market demand during the early years of CFL production when lamp makers were still paying for the new production lines needed to make the new lamps. As more lamps were produced, prices began to decline. This "Super Q'Lite" modular lamp from Lights Of America was offered by Washington, DC utility PEPCO in 1994 as part of a DSM program. Using only 27 watts, it replaced a regular lamp that used 100 watts.
label: Description
content: Lamp characteristics: A modular compact fluorescent lamp with two parts—a tube assembly and a base-unit. The original package and coupon book were collected with this lamp. The tube assembly consists of a four-tube glass structure with two electrodes, mercury and an internal phosphor coating. Plug-in style base. The base-unit has a medium-screw shell and houses the ballast and starter equipment. A receptacle on top accepts the plug-in base of the tube assembly.
place: label: Place Made
content: United States: California, Walnut
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Electricity
label: See more items in
content: Energy & Power
label: Exhibition
content: Lighting a Revolution
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: Manclark, Bruce. Of Sockets, Housecalls, and Hardware
label: Related Publication
content: Polsby, Emily. Putting Energy-Efficient Lighting in Its Place
label: Related Publication
content: Trombly, Jeanne. Mixed Results from Traer's Light Bulb Retrofit
label: Related Publication
content: Lighting A Revolution exhibition website
label: Related Web Publication
content: http://americanhistory.si.edu/lighting/
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: from Potomac Electric Power Company
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1996.0357.05
label: accession number
content: 1996.0357
label: catalog number
content: 1996.0357.05
objectType: label: Object Name
content: fluorescent lamp
label: Object Name
content: discharge lamp
label: Other Terms
content: discharge lamp; Fluorescent
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: glass (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: mercury (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 8 1/4 in x 2 3/4 in; 20.955 cm x 6.985 cm