In The last days of the Obama administration, the Energy Department banned the production and distribution of your three-way bulb, the globe lightbulb and others. Many companies planned to stop making them today. Donald Trump signed an executive order today that stops the regulation.
The globe and three-way bulbs are back!
The 2007 light bulb ban in effect outlawed most incandescent light bulbs by imposing efficiency standards on ordinary light bulbs. Congress exempted a few types of light bulbs, including bug lights, three-way bulbs, “rough service lamps,” and some decorative bulbs, such as globe-shaped bulbs. In the waning days of the Obama administration, the energy overlords banned most of the remaining exempted bulbs. The light pollution scenario is bunk. There is no pollution. Pollution implies contamination and there is none. Some don’t like the fact that it lights up the sky but that’s not pollution. The new lights do the same thing.

Good to hear!

Not so in California. They passed a state level law retaining the Obama era law. So, no more 3 ways and decorative lamps here.

Figures. I thought Federal Law "trumped" local?

getting all punny are we?  Anyways, I'm no legal expert but I do believe that the individual states can set their own laws that are more restrictive than federal laws just so long as they aren't ruled unconstitutional. Something similar to this happened after the net neutrality repeal. Some states set their own net neutrality laws that were more restrictive to ISP's while there were no longer any federal net neutrality laws in effect.

Now if Trump could reverse the stupid ban on mercury lamps and probe start ballasts.

This is great news!  I know 3-ways incandescents are still alive and well and I hope they don’t stop coming to our stores 1-1-2020. GE still has manufacturing in Hungary today and my newest 3-way bulbs I’ve bought a few weeks ago were made in September 2019.

Makes me wonder where the Sylvania 3-ways are going to come from now that the historic factory in St. Marys PA is closed.  Most likely China, but they could be sourced from GE’s Hungarian factory or come from the Osram factory in Molsheim France. Interesting thoughts!

I don’t the incandescent bulb will ever disappear because they’re used for specific specialty applications like lava lamps, salt lamps, oven light bulbs, and other places where the heat emitted/heat resistance is important.

They never disappeared. I just saw 3-Way bulbs for sale here. Ditto for MV and probe start MH. Unless I’m missing something, like the ban was to happen next year or something. Bush was and still is the worst president ever. What with his bans and the wars based on lies.

Bush simply made it super easy for Obama to do more bans otherwise the man wouldn’t have bothered with bulb bans. Too much work with a not so friendly Congress.

I kind of suspect that the ballast and luminaire manufactures were looking to get out of making mercury ballasts though as even though mercury ballasts and luminaires were never banned in Canada, they were effectively made unavailable in Canada after they were banned in the US with the only new mercury luminaires being sold here post ban being the 175w mercury yard lights. Ballasts were pretty much unobtainium although I suppose you could import them/produce them yourselves if you find a company that still makes them.

Probe start metal halide ballasts were never banned here as far as I know, you can still get them from lighting and electrical supply houses. Same thing for 3 way incandescent lamps, I think they were one of the types that were exempted here along with rough service lamps.

Everyone, please tone down on political related topics except about the ban/unbanning of lamps and light fixtures and ballasts.

They never disappeared. I just saw 3-Way bulbs for sale here. Ditto for MV and probe start MH. Unless I’m missing something, like the ban was to happen next year or something. Bush was and still is the worst president ever. What with his bans and the wars based on lies.

Bush simply made it super easy for Obama to do more bans otherwise the man wouldn’t have bothered with bulb bans. Too much work with a not so friendly Congress.

Everyone, please tone down on political related topics except about the ban/unbanning of lamps and light fixtures and ballasts.

It’s still related to the bans. Bush started it in 2007 with Obama following up in 2015 or 2016. It’s possible Obama wouldn’t have had a chance for making bulb bans happen if bush hadn’t touched  them. Democrat president in his last two years with a mainly Republican Congress wills make for a tough fight. Bush as Republican had Republican Congress in both house and senate in 2007~ so it wasn’t too hard for him to ban lights.

Now I’m waiting for Trump to obliterate the MV ban. Hopefully before this impeachment thing takes full hold and kick him out. Mebbe Pence would obliterate the MV ban but I dunno much about the Vice President.

I attached a graph showing which party dominated senate and house by year along with President’s leanings.

  FTW!

That is fine as long as it’s a civilized discussion related to lighting issues. I just meant refrain from political posts on non lighting subjects, such as wars. Civilized discussions on this should be done in the Off Topic forum.

It’s still related to the bans. Bush started it in 2007 with Obama following up in 2015 or 2016. It’s possible Obama wouldn’t have had a chance for making bulb bans happen if bush hadn’t touched  them. Democrat president in his last two years with a mainly Republican Congress wills make for a tough fight. Bush as Republican had Republican Congress in both house and senate in 2007~ so it wasn’t too hard for him to ban lights.

Now I’m waiting for Trump to obliterate the MV ban. Hopefully before this impeachment thing takes full hold and kick him out. Mebbe Pence would obliterate the MV ban but I dunno much about the Vice President.

I attached a graph showing which party dominated senate and house by year along with President’s leanings.

  FTW!

For the sake of things lets say all bans were eliminated, be it by Trump or whoever the next president is (and I'm disregarding the impeachment goings on - at some point there will be a next president)...

I see incandescent hanging around (for residential use) for years to come. Some people simply don't like CFLs or LED.

For commercial/business/government use:
I don't see MV making any sort of comeback....and sadly HID in general I see it as continuing to die off in favor of LED.
Fluorescent like HID I also see as eventually being killed off by LED as well.

^neither are common in residential, without the large commercial market, they simply won't be cost-effective to manufacture anymore.

In both cases (HID & Fluorescent) the exceptions will be specialty lamps like aquarium/plant/decorative/medical/etc

---------
This all being simply my opinions...in big part based on how quickly LED is taking over even without HPS/MH/Fluorescent being banned.

That is fine as long as it’s a civilized discussion related to lighting issues. I just meant refrain from political posts on non lighting subjects, such as wars. Civilized discussions on this should be done in the Off Topic forum.

I didn’t mention the wars to start, ahem, a war in here. We had two Bush for President so I had to mention which one it was. I dunno much what the 1980s Bush did but I do know what the 2000s Bush did. As for impeachment, I don’t see that going anywhere, Senate will kill it. So we get another year of Trump, mebbe 5.

Back on track, I see incandescent surviving in residential but not for another 50 years. 25 years mebbe. People doesn’t want to spend too much on electric bills and light bulbs are easy to lower the bill. Major appliances or renovations (insulated windows and such) are costly. People tend to put those off unless something costly breaks and they’d have to replace it or remodel.

After 25 years or so. It’ll be niche mainly for lava lamps or ovens. If they haven’t gone to halogen by then.

If ya got room, collect them by the dozens if you want to keep with the classics while they’re still around in stores.

Candles and kerosene lanterns are still sold, so why not incandescents? I bet they'll be here for decades, yet. Maybe even centuries in some form or another.

Candles and kerosene lanterns are still sold, so why not incandescents? I bet they'll be here for decades, yet. Maybe even centuries in some form or another.

I’m afraid kerosene lanterns and candles are still around because they don’t need electricity to run and power going out here and there still happens even in first world countries. LED flashlights and lanterns obliterated incandescent ones. Lots of light with little power consumption. Extremely important with limited fuel or batteries to power lights during power outages.

Sorry as much I like collecting incandescent bulbs. I’m not seeing much of a future for them beyond 2050s. If lava lamps still are favored by then. Then mebbe bulbs for them will still be made. Oven lights is iffy. Maybe someone will invent something that lets LEDs handle the high temps of ovens one day.