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While they've been around for about two decades, better prices, long-term cost savings, product improvement and concern about the environment have shined new interest in compact fluorescent bulbs.

Home Depot in South Attleboro, Lowe's in North Attleboro and Aubuchon Hardware in Plainville say they have seen sales of CFs increase in the past year as prices have come down and people learn about how much energy and money they can save.

"More people are starting to notice them," said Bill Downey of Aubuchon.

Jean Gregorio of Lowe's said sales have increased in the past year, especially with coupons being offered on some packages.

"People are buying more of the three packs," she said. Home Depot's Tom Gore said CF bulbs are now "huge sellers, mostly because the prices have come down."

In some cases, a six-pack of bulbs equivalent to 60 watt incandescent bulbs can cost as little as $4.

"When they first came out, they were $10 to $12 a bulb, and even with coupons they would still be $6 per bulb," Gore said. "Now, flood lights are available and work outdoors better. They can work to 20 degrees below."

Gore said a slight drawback to some fluorescents is that when they are first turned on, they may not be at their full brightness.

"They may come on at 80 to 85 percent, but in less than a minute they're at a full 100 percent," he said.

Other improvements have also made the CF bulbs more attractive, including decorative covers to hide the spiral shape of the bulbs, which had turned some people off.

And you can now buy a three-way CF light, though it cost more than the standard light, and the dimmer control is also more expensive. One of those bulbs can cost $11 or $12.

But despite the extra cost, customers still save money over time, he said.

Paul Beauregard at Home Depot said that he replaced every standard bulb in his house while updating the electrical system in his 1948 home, and realized a savings of 75 to 80 percent over the previous year.

Outside the area, the switch to CF bulbs is gaining momentum fast. The Australian government recently announced plans to phase out old-style bulbs nationwide and replace them with energy-efficient ones as a way of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

A California legislator plans to propose a bill to ban the use of incandescent bulbs in that state, and a New Jersey lawmaker has called to switch to fluorescent lighting in government buildings within three years.

In Ottawa, Canada, there has been an effort to get every household to replace at least one lightbulb through Project Porchlight, providing every household with one free CF bulb. Wal-Mart started a campaign last year with the goal of selling one CF bulb to every customer within a year.

A "Ban The Bulb" blog campaign launched in 2005 in conjunction with Earth-Info.Net, encourages taxing or banning standard bulbs in favor of CFs to fight climate change.

National Grid for the past several years has been participating in the Energy Star program and offers coupons to customers for CF lights redeemable at home improvement, hardware and drug stores.

"We have seen some uptick lately, mostly I think because of the awareness of global warming," said Deborah Drew, a spokeswoman for National Grid. "We've seen an increased interest by community groups and individuals."

Massachusetts citizens pay some of the highest energy prices in the nation, behind only Hawaii and Washington, D.C., according to the U.S. Department of Energy. An average household allocates 11 percent of its energy budget to lighting.

Use of new lighting technologies can reduce energy use by 50 to 75 percent.

Fluorescent bulbs also save money because they last 4 to 10 times longer than standard bulbs, according to the DOE's Web site, energy.gov.

CFs last up to 10,000 hours per bulb, compared with less than 1,000 hours for an incandescent.

So, in addition to energy savings, consumers don't have to buy light bulbs as often.

Common concerns by consumers have been the bright white of the lights that can make them inappropriate within some home settings and their inability to be adapted to older lighting fixtures.

Today's CFs offer brightness and color rendition that is comparable to incandescent lights, according to the DOE . Consumers, however, might want to check colors and designs to determine whether particular CFs will fit their particular lighting needs within certain areas of the home.

Product improvements have also made them more practical for outside lighting, according to the DOE and industry Web sites. In the past, fluorescent bulbs did not work well in extreme cold.

CF torchieres use 60 to 80 percent less energy, can produce more light and do not get as hot, compared with halogen types, which can be a fire risk because the bulb can get too hot.

CFs contain trace amounts of mercury, and therefore must be disposed of properly. People may need to contact their local authorities to find out the best way to dispose of them.

Still, they are a good bet as far as the overall environment is concerned.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the highest source of mercury in our air comes from burning fossil fuels such as coal, the most common fuel used in the U.S. to produce electricity.

A power plant will emit 10 mgs of mercury to produce the electricity to light one incandescent bulb, compared with 2.4 mgs of mercury to run a CF bulb for the same length of time.