LED: The Future of Illumination
By now, we know you’ve heard all about energy-saving benefits of switching from incandescent and compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) to light-emitting diode bulbs (LEDs): The better bulbs.
There are many reasons to adopt LED lighting. They produce less heat, come in a variety of decorator styles, and produce an eye-pleasing lighting effect.
While LED lighting has become a predominant light source in new construction, many existing facilities still use, and maintain costly and inefficient lighting fixtures.
In 2015, 404 billion kilowatthours (kWh) of electricity in the U.S. was used for lighting by the residential and the commercial sector.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), this was about 15 percent of the total electricity consumed by both sectors and about 10 percent of total U.S. electricity consumption.
Incandescent vs. CFLs vs. LED: Who wins?
Incandescent bulbs are lit by heating a wire tungsten filament until it begins to glow. Around 90 percent of the energy generated in these bulbs is heat instead of light, so while incandescent bulbs do produce a warm radiance and soft glare of light, they also emit a useless and high amount of heat.
Some have replaced incandescent bulbs by CFLs – saving energy and curbing carbon emissions. CFLs are lit by an electric current that is sent through a tube containing argon, and a small amount of mercury gases.
The result generates an invisible ultraviolet light which then stimulates a fluorescent coating on the inside of the tube, producing visible light.
The CFLs life span is approximately 10,000 to 15,000 hours – about ten times longer than an incandescent bulb.
The downside of CFLs is the mercury inside the bulbs. That amount however, is smaller than the tip of a pencil, so it is very important to dispose of them properly. CFLs are not dimmable, and are not efficient in recessed lighting.
New LED lighting technologies are more durable and efficient. We’re talking about an 80 percent more. Now, that’s a big difference!
LED light bulbs will eventually be what we use to replace incandescent bulbs. CFLs are the placeholder for LED lights, and are a temporary solution to energy-efficient lighting.
An electrical current passes through semiconductor material, which illuminates the tiny light sources we call LEDs. The heat is absorbed into a heat sink.
LEDs are even more efficient than CFLs, and last longer. The quality of their light, to the eye is far warmer than what you get from CFLs.
Even better, the prices for LED lighting have dipped to an all time low making it a viable option for the average consumer to utilize.
The basics of LED lighting:
- Low cost
- LED lights emit less heat than incandescent
- Decorative LED lighting adds ambiance to a room
In comparison to incandescent and CFLs, LED bulbs can last anywhere from 20,000 to 50,000 hours, or up to five times longer than any comparable bulb on the market.
LED light bulb advantages:
- Light up immediately
- Don’t heat up much at all – stay cool to the touch even after use
- Last up to five times longer than CFLs
- Do not contain mercury
- Available in soft, warm, and bright white hues
A common incandescent bulb needs 60 watts to produce 800 lumens, for a lumens-to-watt ratio of 13.3. Most CFLs use only 14-15 watts to get 800 lumens, and the LED bulb emits 800 lumens but require just 9 or 10 watts to do it. You get less juice, but same brightness. So the winner is? The LED light bulb.
Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who’s the brightest of them all?
The facts say it – the LED light bulb takes the win for most efficient, and durable light bulb of all three. But before you switch to LED, here are options that will make your LED shopping successful. When we think of light bulbs, we usually think off watts, but the 21st century has changed the way we shop for light bulbs.
When you shop for LED light bulbs, compare lumens to be sure you’re getting the right amount of light, or level of brightness you want.
Lumens measure how much light you’re getting from a bulb – the more lumens, means it’s a brighter light, the fewer lumens means it’s a dimmer light.
The brightness or lumen levels of the lights, vary widely so here’s a little rule of thumb:
- 100-watts of an incandescent bulb = 1600 lumens
- 75W bulb = 1100 lumens
- 60W bulb = 800 lumens
- 40W bulb = 450 lumens
If you want something dimmer, go for less lumens, and if you prefer brighter light, look for more lumens.
Why should you convert to LED lighting?
LED technology offers the latest advancement in the lighting industry. By replacing incandescent bulbs with LED light bulbs, a typical home can save up to $3,260 over their 23-year lifespan.
LED lighting is more durable, efficient, and it’s hard to argue against a product that pays for itself. Switching to LED saves on energy bills and lowers energy usage (90% more efficient) – it’s a win-win scenario.
City Electric Supply offers more than ever high-quality lighting choices for all market sectors that include flood lights, retrofit, surface mount fixtures, rope and strip lighting, LED replacement bulbs, and other LED lighting solutions.
The high efficient LEDs are the future wave of illumination. Have you switched to LED? It’s a bright idea.