This made my day and truly brings out the science geek in me! Saving money through empirical scientific experimentation. I absolutely love it. Fascinating, more please!

At our house we call our youngest an Electric Rhino. Ever since she was little — well before she could even reach a light switch — she became obsessed with turning off lights in empty rooms. I just showed her this article. As I was explaining it to her, the biggest smile came across her face. She feels vindicated.

I love mythbusters. SCIENCE RULES !

@Claire: Most components are rated several times what is needed and inrush current typically has little effect on the life of the bulb, be it incandescent or CFL or whatever. What DOES make a huge difference on it’s lifespan is the heating and cooling of the components. If you just turn a bulb on and leave it on it will last hundreds of times longer than turning it on and off. This is due to the expansion and contraction of the components causing mechanical failure. For example, the incandescent filament is made of tungsten, which works fine, but eventually all the heating and cooling causing the expansion and contraction will cause it to fail. Like bending aluminum back and forth, eventually it just breaks.

Thanks for the comments!!