Get the LED Out and Go Green

Eco-friendly technology is improving daily providing new ways to reduce our individual carbon footprints.  The consumer and commercial lighting industry is one industry that, until recently, had seen very little change. Today, the industry offers several alternatives to efficient energy saving lighting.  Incandescent light, compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) and light-emitting diode (LED) lighting give the same results but at varied efficiency rates.

Incandescent lighting is most common in the home and the most inefficient.  Ninety percent of the energy generated by incandescent bulbs is heat.  The remaining ten percent is visible light.  Invented 130 years ago by Thomas Edison, the incandescent light bulb is still widely used for residential lighting.   The low cost to manufacture and low price are reasons the incandescent bulb is still widely used.

CFLs use significantly less power than the incandescent yet emit the same amount of light, also called lumens. Although CFLs cost more than the incandescent bulb, they last up to ten times longer, offsetting the price.   Available in the swirl design or as a tube lamp, CFLs has gained popularity for their energy saving efficiency, but one major drawback is that they contain mercury.   To prevent the release of mercury into the environment, disposal and recycling of florescent light bulbs are regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).  Some retailers and hardware stores offer recycling or safe disposal of florescent lamps.  A list of retailers that offer recycling and disposal in your area are available here.

Light-emitting diodes, also known as LEDs are now available as a replacement for the screw-in incandescent and CFLs.  The benefits of replacing incandescent and fluorescents with LED light bulbs are numerous.  LEDs offer the most efficient and a longer life expectancy compared to incandescent and florescent light.  Life spans of LEDs are rated as high as 50,000 hours, compared to 1,000 for incandescent and 8,000 hours for florescent.

Because LED’s use solid-state technology, they operate at lower temperatures reducing energy consumption.  Moreover, LED bulbs use a fraction of the energy of conventional lighting.  For example, a 7-watt LED bulb is equal to a 60-watt conventional incandescent bulb, and a16-watt bulb can replace a 150-watt incandescent bulb.

LEDs are more durable with no glass tubes to break and shock resistant, with the diodes firmly supported internally and are mercury free.

LEDs are used for a variety of applications and are ideal for decorative, architectural and general-purpose lighting, emitting bright white-light. Using LED’s for holiday lighting will reduce your energy consumption and give you vivid monochromatic (color) light.

Until recently, LEDs were cost-prohibitive for most consumers at a price of $30.00 to $60.00; however, with prices steadily falling, coupled with an exceptionally long life span, LED lighting is a smart investment.