Category: Lighting

AskEnergySaver: LED Lights

LED lights are six to seven times more energy efficient than conventional incandescent lights, cut energy use by more than 80 percent and can last more than 25 times longer. | Photo courtesy of Dennis Schroeder, NREL.

To help you save money by saving energy, we launched #AskEnergySaver — an online series that gives you access to some of the Energy Department’s home energy efficiency experts. During 2014, experts from the Department and our National Labs will be answering your energy-saving questions and sharing their advice on ways to improve your home’s comfort.

Did you know that about 10 percent of the average household’s energy use goes to lighting costs? If you are looking for ways to cut your energy costs, one of the fastest ways is to upgrade to energy-efficient lighting. One type that holds particular promise is LED bulbs — they are six to seven times more energy efficient than conventional incandescent lights, cut energy use by more than 80 percent and can last more than 25 times longer.

To help you understand this clean energy technology, we turned to Jim Brodrick and his team in the Energy Department’s Solid State Lighting Program to answer your LED questions. Through research and development, the Solid State Lighting Program is spurring improvements in LED efficiency and performance while helping to lower manufacturing costs for LEDs — making them cheaper for consumers and businesses. The Department is also working with industry to speed up the development of good-quality, high-performing LEDs to help the country achieve significant energy savings — switching entirely to LED lights by 2030 could reduce America’s electricity consumption for lighting by nearly 50 percent and save $250 billion in energy costs.

Why do incandescent bulbs seem to project light farther [requiring me to install] more LED bulbs around the house?– from Andrew Strong on Google+

Jim Brodrick:

Incandescent bulbs do not emit more light or project it farther than comparableLED bulbs. If an incandescent bulb seems to project light farther than a particular LED bulb, it means the two bulbs aren’t comparable.

Comparable bulbs are those that have the same lumen output. Lumens are a measure of the light a bulb emits and a better way to buy light bulbs than comparing watts. The more lumens, the more light.

The Lighting Facts label that the Federal Trade Commission requires on the packaging of every light bulb shows the lumen output, light appearance and estimated life and energy costs to make it easy to compare different products.

Fixtures are rated for certain size bulbs based on watts. Can LED bulbs be used in any fixture as long as it is below the recommended watt light?– from Phillip Krajewski via email

JB: Yes, that’s correct — as long as the mounting base (also called a socket) is the same size and type, you can use an LED bulb in an existing fixture. If the mounting base isn’t the same size and type, the LED bulb won’t fit into the socket.

You should never use a bulb with a higher wattage than what is recommended for the fixture, but keep in mind that watts are not the same as the amount of light emitted. Watts are a measure of the electric power. LED bulbs have much lower wattage than incandescent bulbs, so it’s important to know the light output (in lumens) for the bulb you’re replacing. For example, a 60-watt equivalent LED bulb should emit at least 800 lumens, and many on the market only draw 11 watts of power.

What is the best way to replace metal-halide lamps (around 12,000 lumens) with LEDs?– from @TrasherAlfonso on Twitter

JB: That level of light output (12,000 lumens) is common in outdoor and high-mounted fixtures. The best option is to replace the entire fixture (also called a luminaire in the lighting industry) with one that’s specifically designed for LEDs. In some cases, retrofit kits that adapt the existing fixture to LEDs are available.

Both options come with the LED light bulb included, and both are designed to be more efficient — and to take better advantage of LED technology — than merely replacing the metal halide lamp with an LED lamp.

Whatever option you choose, look for products that have the same lumen output as the lamp you’re replacing, and make sure that the other performance characteristics — such as color rendering and color quality — are at least comparable.

This article is from the US Department of Energy and is Public Domain

Light your home using the same amount of light for less money. By replacing your home’s five most frequently used light fixtures or bulbs with models that have earned the ENERGY STAR, you can save $75 each year. New lighting standards took effect in 2012, and money-saving options such as halogen incandescent, CFL, and LED lightbulbs are available today. For high-quality products with the greatest energy savings, choose bulbs that have earned the ENERGY STAR.

NEW LIGHTBULBS: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

Traditional incandescent bulbs use a lot of energy to produce light and are no longer manufactured. When burning an incandescent bulb, around 90% of the energy is given off as heat. That lost energy is money we are throwing away. Newer energy-saving lightbulbs provide the choices in colors and light levels you’ve come to expect. They are also much more efficient — so they help you to save!

WHAT ARE MY LIGHTING CHOICES?

Three of the most common energy-efficient lighting types include halogen incandescents, CFLs, and LEDs. You can find these in most hardware and home improvement stores.

Halogen Incandescents

Halogen incandescents have a capsule inside that holds gas around a filament to increase bulb efficiency. They are available in a wide range of shapes and colors, and they can be used with dimmers. Halogen incandescent bulbs meet the federal minimum energy efficiency standard, but there are now many more efficient options to meet your lighting needs.

CFLs (Compact Fluorescent Lamps)

Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) are simply curly versions of the long tube fluorescent lights you may already have in a kitchen or garage. Because they use less electricity than traditional incandescents, typical CFLs can pay for themselves in less than nine months, and then start saving you money each month. An ENERGY STAR-qualified CFL uses about one-fourth the energy and lasts ten times longer than a comparable traditional incandescent bulb that puts out the same amount of light. A CFL uses about one-third the energy of a halogen incandescent.

CFL bulbs are available in a range of light colors, including warm (white to yellow) tones that were not as available when first introduced. Some are encased in a cover to further diffuse the light and provide a similar shape to the bulbs you are replacing. If you are looking for a dimmable bulb, check the package to make sure you purchase a CFL with that feature.

Fluorescent bulbs contain a small amount of mercury, and they should always be recycled at the end of their lifespan. Many retailers recycle CFLs for free. See EPA’s website for more information.

LEDs (Light Emitting Diode)

The light emitting diode (LED) are a type of solid-state lighting — semiconductors that convert electricity into light. Although once known mainly for indicator and traffic lights, LEDs in white light, general illumination applications are one of today’s most energy-efficient and rapidly-developing technologies.ENERGY STAR-qualified LEDs use only 20%–25% of the energy and last up to 25 times longer than the traditional incandescent bulbs they replace. LEDs use 25%–30% of the energy and last 8 to 25 times longer than halogen incandescent.

LED bulbs are currently available in many products such as replacements for 40W, 60W, and 75W traditional incandescents, reflector bulbs often used in recessed fixtures, and small track lights. While LEDs are more expensive at this early stage, they still save money because they last a long time and have very low energy use. As with other electronics, prices are expected to come down as more products enter the market.

This article is from the US Department of Energy and is Public Domain

Lumens and the Lighting Facts Label

When you’re shopping for lightbulbs, compare lumens to be sure you’re getting the amount of light, or level of brightness, you want. The Lighting Facts Label will help. This new label will make it easy to compare bulb brightness, color, life, and estimated operating cost for the year.

BUY LUMENS, NOT WATTS

We typically buy things based on how much of it we get, right? When buying milk, we buy it by volume (gallons). So, why should light be any different? For decades, we have been buying lightbulbs based on how much energy they consume (watts) — no matter how much light they

WHAT’S A LUMEN?

Lumens measure how much light you are getting from a bulb. More lumens means it’s a brighter light; fewer lumens means it’s a dimmer light.

Lumens are to light what

• Pounds are to bananas
• Gallons are to milk
• Lumens let you buy the amount of light you want. So when buying your new bulbs, think lumens, not watts.

The brightness, or lumen levels, of the lights in your home may vary widely, so here’s a rule of thumb:

• To replace a 100 watt (W) incandescent bulb, look for a bulb that gives you about 1600 lumens. If you want something dimmer, go for less lumens; if you prefer brighter light, look for more lumens.
• Replace a 75W bulb with an energy-saving bulb that gives you about 1100 lumens
• Replace a 60W bulb with an energy-saving bulb that gives you about 800 lumens
• Replace a 40W bulb with an energy-saving bulb that gives you about 450 lumens.

WHAT SHOULD I LOOK FOR ON THE PACKAGE? THE LIGHTING FACTS LABEL

To help consumers better understand the switch from watts to lumens, the Federal Trade Commission requires a new product label for lightbulbs. It helps people buy the lightbulbs that are right for them.

Like the helpful nutrition label on food products, the Lighting Facts label helps consumers understand what they are really purchasing. The label clearly provides the lumens — or brightness — of the bulb, the estimated operating cost for the year, and the color of the light (from warm/yellowish, to white to cool/blue).

This article is from the US Department of Energy and is Public Domain

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