With darker days ahead, there’s no time like now to spruce up your lighting. As always, WBC has what you need for lighting home improvement.

But while you’re in your local WBC looking for a good deal, you might find yourself wondering “What do I pick? There’s just SO many options out there!”

Well, one option you don’t have is the old incandescent light bulbs. Tom Edison’s bright idea is pretty well gone now. So…that leaves you with basically two options: florescent (CFL) and LED bulbs. Let’s look at the pros and cons of each:

cfl vs ledCFL Pros:

  • Popular
  • Cheap
  • Easy to replace

CFL Cons:

  • Short life–often less than a year
  • Don’t fit in many of the roles that incandescents did–like lights that turn on and off frequently (because of heat-up times), recessed bulbs (because of high bulb heat) etc.
  • Poisonous–they contain mercury, which can be deadly (or at least a hassle) if the bulb breaks
  • Hot–some have even argued hotter and thus less efficient than incandescents

LED Pros:

  • Long life
  • Replace old bulbs easily
  • Highly effiencent
  • Cooler (as in colder)–pun intended
  • Great as decorative lights

LED Cons:

  • More expensive than CFLs (though prices continue to drop)
  • Less great for diffused light (not as great for general room ceiling lights)

Overall, it seems that that LEDs win out, especially since its technology is improving all the time. Time will tell.

Whichever you choose, WBC has you covered: we have indoor and outdoor light bulbs, all kinds of lighting fixtures, sockets, faceplates, and, last but not least, holiday lighting. See the vast product line here. In fact you can get all your electrical needs from Western Building Center–just check out our Electrical page.

Check out this sampling of our products below:

[product_category category=”lighting” per_page=”12″ columns=”5″ orderby=”date” order=”desc”] [divider_flat]

And enjoy these videos for ideas from landscaping, efficient lights to safety this season…as well as a great article with photos from Houzz. Then come by your local WBC to pick up what you need or visit DoitBest.com, pick from their vast selection of lighting supplies, and ship them FREE to your local store.

As a Laura Gaskill, a Houzz Contributor who covers topics ranging from decorating ideas to interviews with designers and architects, says: “A well-lit room looks, works and feels better; it’s as simple as that.” Check out her ideas here:

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