[Greenbuilding] Questions I couldn't answer: please help?

[Keith Winston]

Oh well, I can only answer one reliably and off the top of my head 
(though I could wax poetically about composting toilets!)...

> * QU: Are there any halogen or incandescent lights that are as energy
> efficient as fluorescents?
> * ANS: 
> <http://www.sustainablebuildingcentre.com/forum-topic/qu_are_there_any_halog
> en_or_incandescent_lights_that_are_as_efficient_as_fluorescents?
>   
No. Although it's a little tricky: efficiency in lighting pertains to 
whether the lighting serves your purpose, and is simultaneously less 
energy-intensive than other choices. Compact fluorescents tend to use 
about 20% of the energy of incandescents. A great list of the 
lumens/watt of most common lightbulbs can be found on (where else?) 
wikipedia (wow I like that thing!):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lighting_efficiency

But the misleading thing is, LED's for example put out a fairly focused 
beam, which (if it serves your purpose) may do more with less: if you 
don't need to illuminate the entire room, then they might be far more 
efficient than they appear (about 1/2 - 1/3 as efficient as 
fluorescents, for white LED's).

Keith