THE lights are about to go out on the 60-watt light bulb.

Our bulb of choice for lounges and bedrooms up and down the land is about to go out of production, leaving home-owners to find new answers to their lighting problems.

It might not seem much now, but just wait until you have to go out and replace your bulbs.

The 60-watt bulb goes on the endangered list from September 1, when an EU-wide ban on the manufacturing and importing of 60W incandescent clear light bulbs comes into force.

Customers will still be able to get hold of a 60W bulb but once stocks run out, it will go the same way as candlelight and gaslight before it. It produces as much heat as light, and that means it has no future in a world of energy conservation.

Instead, people will have to use energy-saving light bulbs, which can run for up to 10,000 hours, use up to 80 per cent less electricity and will pay for themselves in a year of use.

The vast majority of the 600 million light bulbs in UK homes are the doomed tungsten filaments and people are still buying them.

The market share of incandescent bulbs was 56% in 2009, down from 85% in 2005, according to retail analysts Mintel. The compact fluorescent lamp accounted for 23% of the market in 2009 compared with only 3% in 2005.

The 60W is the latest old-fashioned light bulb to be switched off in favour of the fluorescent lamps, energy-saving halogen bulbs and LED lights. Many of the major retailers stopped selling the bulbs well ahead of the European deadlines.

Bulbs of 100W and greater have already ceased production, as well as all pearl bulbs, and the same fate awaits all remaining clear incandescent lights next year.

If you want to get ahead of the game and fix up your home with lights and bulbs that won’t cause you any problems when the new regulations come into effect, why not go and talk things over with your local lighting experts.

Comet Lighting in Newton Abbot have been serving local households and DIY enthusiasts for 25 years and currently have a range of special offers available.

Newton Electric Light Company in Newton Abbot is another long-established independent firm, offering sales and advice for more than two decades.

In Teignmouth, S.JNewton offer anything from a complete house rewire to a simple light bulb, and will be pleased to advise on the changes.

The Torbay Electric Light Company in Preston boast that their services go all the way from a bedside light to a disco set-up.

Rely on them to be in tune with the latest developments.