Posts Tagged ‘Bulbs’

This video shows the massive effects that climate change are having on our planet. Global warming is producing climate change that has cauased natural disasters. The energy saving light bulbs is a very positive contributor to environmental sustainability. Evergy traditional light bulb that is changes for an energy saving light bulb can save 100kg in C02 emissions.

Energy costs are becoming more and more of a deciding factor that home buyers weigh in on when choosing to buy a particular home or condo over another. You can get a quick snapshot of the current owner’s energy use and monthly expense by contacting the local utility companies. As a new owner you can challenge yourself to improve the home’s carbon footprint by exploring energy saving alternatives. One simple and quick way to get started is to consider converting to compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. CFL bulbs are well known for conserving energy. They also are designed to last at least six times longer.

However, CFL bulbs cost a lot more upfront.

Aside from purely environmental considerations, do they actually save money? Possibly even more to the point, do they really last?

For weeks, I was skeptical. In my experience as a homeowner, I have found that some light bulbs from the same package last longer than others. This is especially true for bulbs placed inside ceiling fixtures. Heat gets entrapped inside the fixtures where there is nowhere for it to escape. Some break even before they even get connected properly within a socket. It seems there could be reasons NOT to invest in them if the objective is to save a few cents worth of electricity each month.

To investigate, this week I sampled a package of four CFL spiral bulbs at a home improvement store. The box cost $7.88, compared to $2.39 for a set of incandescent bulbs with the same brand. Both products were designed to generate approximately 800 lumens of light. Interestingly, the CFL bulbs came in a new, smaller “T2″ size, meaning they are designed to fit inside most fixtures. After I noticed that, I read the fine print on the packaging: to my surprise, the manufacturer actually offered a two-year replacement warranty. Changing a set of three bulbs in a ceiling fixture once every two years instead of once every four months? Sign me up!

To calculate possible monthly savings, consider that the incandescent bulb consumes 60 watts, the CFL, 13. After subtracting the difference, convert that to kilowatt hours (kWh) by multiplying by 0.001, as a kWh is 1,000 watts operating for one hour. The current price per kWh in my geographical area, including taxes, is 10.1705 cents. Let us say you rely on a 3-bulb ceiling fixture to provide light for an average of four hours a day. Within 30 days, you’ll save $1.72 from this fixture alone—and more if you do much work from home.

Parting Tip #1: CFL bulbs do go on sale! Watch for them within ads from nearby home improvement stores.

Tip #2: As you install the product into fixtures, hold the bulb from its ballast, which is the middle plastic portion, instead of from its glass. Otherwise, the extra force on the glass can cause damage.

Tip #3: CFL bulbs CANNOT be thrown away. However, there are all kinds of recycling programs in place, including some located within home improvement stores. Check the Internet for many more options.

People nowadays are very much educated with respect to current global warming and climate change conditions and hence, they prefer to go for energy saving light bulbs for their home and business lighting needs. But in order to achieve this desire as well as get the perfect lighting, you need to make a careful selection of a reputed brand which saves maximum energy. Make the right distinction as to which bulb produces the proper lighting because some of these bulbs produce less light. Electricians or lighting experts are the best people to approach if you are finding it difficult to find the right energy saving lights for your lighting fixture.

Once you have fixed the energy saving bulbs, do not expect your electricity bill to go down right away. It always takes some time to see a noticeable difference in your bill and this cost saving increases as you use these bulbs more and more. You will notice the actual savings over a period of maybe a year and when you calculate the saving over the duration, you will be a satisfied customer and you will feel that the energy saving light bulbs you bought are actually worth the money you paid for. You can replace almost all the light bulbs in your house with energy saving ones. Doing so will considerably reduce your energy bills.

Of all the different types of bulbs available, the decorative ones are the most used and tend to use up a lot of power. So if you want to really save money on lighting and help the world, then these are the bulbs that you should be willing to change or replace with energy saving ones. But always keep in your mind that lights are an important part of your home décor and great care should be taken with respect to this matter. So put in a good amount of time and energy while selecting energy saving bulbs for your house.

What are the different kinds of energy saving light bulbs available? There are different kinds of bulbs depending upon their functionality and cost. Some of them are MR16, Tune, xenon, candle blunt tip, halogen, and fluorescen. You can test them by the way they illuminate a given space. You have to set these light up in such a way that you get the perfect illumination to complement the interior of your house.

If energy is not a a constraint then fluorescent bulbs are the best lighting fixtures available in the market. But care must be taken to ensure that they are properly installed. Fluorescent lamps have the property of diffusing light equally in all directions. Some people might find this property pretty irritating and that is the main reason not many people opt for this kind of lighting system. But nowadays we get advanced fluorescent fixtures with advanced properties, which do not only act as good light fixtures but also elegant decorative items.

Halogen Light Bulbs

Then there are the halogen light bulbs. These bulbs have a tungsten filament and a gas-filled gas enclosure. These lights are considered to be the brightest energy sources available in the market today. If you are looking for spot lights to highlight certain parts of your house like the fireplace or a painting on a wall, then halogen light bulbs are a good option. You can go for larger halogen bulbs if you want to use them in a home theater or entertainment room where bigger spot lights are needed.

Government sources claim that residential garbage from the United States weighs more than 210 million tons every year. Most of this material could be recycled reducing the ever increasing need for virgin material. From this huge amount of waste about 40% consists of paper and paperboard; the good part is that most of the paper can be reused and processed, thanks to the special ways to recycle that are particular to each collecting program.

Other ways to recycle efficiently include focusing on food and yard waste, they are totalizing 25% of the solid waste. Then, metals can also be recycled easily, soft drink cans and tin cans are to be found everywhere and collecting companies are always eager to take them away. Last but not least, glass is another material that can be found with a minimum of effort, nevertheless remember that bulbs, dishes or ceramic aren’t accepted as glass by recycling companies.

Plastic is one of the biggest enemy of ecologists, its chemical structure prevents it from decomposing in nature, and it can last for hundreds of years without suffering any change. The creation of bio-degradable plastic brought a change. But the disadvantage with this solution is that recycling companies won’t accept it mixed with classical plastic because the price is much lower for this mixture. So bio-plastic is one of the ways to recycle but it would be efficient only if it would replace most of the classical plastic production.

When we read a label we should make the difference between “recycled”, which means it contains a percent of recycled material and “recyclable”. Finding new ways to recycle requires a lot of creativity, first of all if you don’t use an object anymore find someone who would. Sell those things you don’t use, which have piled up around the house: you can either organize a yard sale or give them to a school or a church that may need them.

Books and technical magazines are never to be recycled as simple paper, many children would use them with pleasure so talk with the first teacher you encounter about your book collection. There are also other ways to recycle that you can take advantage of in your own home, all you need is a little care and some dedication to the matter.

Reduce the number of paper and plastic bags you use and try carrying things with reusable textile bags, don’t buy so many paper towels, plates and napkins and choose their reusable equivalents. Change your old batteries with rechargeable ones, and recycle the old ones. Saving energy in your house keeps the bills small and reduces pollution in major cities.

Is this Real? I don’t know, I”m interested, I hope more testing is done and information is brought out What is dirty electricity or electrical pollution? Electrical pollution refers to low frequency electromagnetic waves that have unwanted effects, such as badly shielded electric cables that induce disturbances in electrical devices nearby. Imagine turning on a light bulb and within 20 minutes you notice skin problems. “When I looked in the mirror and saw my face I was absolutely horrified. I didn’t exactly know what had caused it or whether it could be controlled or whether it was short term or long term. So, I was just completely aghast.” And there are others, who complain about getting dizzy, extremely arthritic, nagging pain and headaches. When Jane Petiluck changed all her bulbs in the basement of her St. Catherines, Ontario home, a mysterious rash started to appear. Since then she has changed all the bulbs back to incandescent. The first concern is what may be coming off from the bulbs. Ultraviolet Radiation. Scientists say the bulbs, give off UV. Like the sun gives off. We know this because Health Canada – they’re the people who make sure the products and drugs you use are safe – told us that in an email that “CFLs are not provided with a prismatic diffuser that filters ultraviolet radiation out. Therefore, there may be skin sensitivity issues, especially in people with certain skin diseases” Health Canada is currently testing the bulbs to see if, and how much …

Want to find LED Bulb Light? The Green Lantern website offers a searchable led catalog, spec sheets and photometric files. A variety of LED household and industrial lights includes Energy saving lamps, full spectrum light bulb, led light bulbs etc. www.nyleds.com

Just how many GE hosts does it take to screw in a light bulb? I don’t know, but I do know that if every US household installed one ge compact flourescent light bulb replacing a 100 watt incandescent bulb, over the bulbs lifetime we’d save enough energy to power more than 1 million US households for an entire year. Watch and learn more at ge.ecomagination.com

Video Demonstrating the Energy saving Light bulb of an LED and the light comparison to a standard Incandescent light bulb. Thanks for looking. The www.theinternetswitchstore.co.uk Team

Recycle light bulbs, tips from a conservation expert, and learn about the Household Hazard Waste Collection Program in thisfree environmental video. Expert: Nili Nathan Contact: earth911.org Bio: Nili Nathan, host of “Great Healing Getaways”, is the creator of a television series and Web site on holistic health, where she researches, writes, and reports. Filmmaker: Nili Nathan

A compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), more commonly referred to as an energy saving light bulb (ESB) is a type of fluorescent lamp. The energy saving light bulb has been created to substitute for the standard incandescent lamp that many people still use. They fit into exactly the same standard light fixtures as incandescent light bulbs so you needn’t have to spend on new fittings to accommodate them.

Energy saving bulbs emit the same amount of visible light but use less power to do so, plus they have a longer rated life. While the purchase price is typically a more than that of an equivalent incandescent lamp, the extended lifetime and lower energy use will more than compensate for the higher initial cost. For example making the change in your home can save approximately twenty pounds in electricity costs over the course of a year. The average rated life of a these bulbs is up to 15 times more than that of an incandescent bulbs with a rated lifespan of between 6,000 and 15,000 hours, whereas incandescent lamps are usually expected to have a lifespan of 750 hours or 1,000 hours.

For a given light output, energy saving bulbs use 20-33 percent of the power of equivalent incandescent lamps. Around 10% of UK household carbon emissions come from light bulbs so the environmental benefit of these bulbs could be enormously significant.

Energy saving bulbs are produced for both alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) input. DC energy saving bulbs are often used in recreational vehicles as well as in households. Interestingly, they can also be operated using solar powered street lights, using solar panels located on the top or sides of a pole and luminaries that are specially wired to use the lamps. This makes them an even more eco-friendly feature.

Although incandescent bulbs reach full brightness a fraction of a second after being switched on energy saving bulbs manufactured after 2009 also turn on within a second, but they do still take time to warm up to full brightness. Some energy saving bulbs are marketed as “instant on” and have no noticeable warm-up time scale, but others can take up to 60 seconds to reach full brightness or longer in very low temperatures.

It is important that we all play a part in trying to reduce our own carbon emissions. Every little bit we do, even if it’s as simple as changing a light bulb contributes towards slowing down global warming and protecting our future.

The modern florescent lamp was first conceived by Peter Cooper Hewitt in the late 1890s and they were initially used for large industrial buildings and photographic studios.

This technology was later applied in the first commercially practical compact florescent light bulb (CFL) designed by George Inman and the General Electric Company. Although this development was designed over 70 years ago it was the forerunner to the modern CFL invented by Ed Hammer and General Electric in response to the 1973 oil crisis. Although a successful design, the invention wasn’t manufactured due to the expensive costs of production and the potential investment needed. The design was subsequently leaked and copied by other leading manufacturers leading to a gradual increase in usage and continued improvements.

Due to the rising cost of electricity in both the UK and the US many households and business, keen to reduce costs, have switched there lighting to CFL bulbs as they are on average 10 times more efficient. CFLs also help to reduce carbon emissions leading to a planned phase-out by the EU ensuring incandescent bulbs are no longer available by 2011. Despite the potential cost saving gained there remain staunch critics to CFL energy saving bulbs in the popular press. Much of this criticism involves popular myths associated with ‘energy savers’ that have long since been ironed out by manufacturers.

With headlines such as ‘Environmentally friendly light bulbs ‘can cause skin cancer’’ (2008) and ‘Revolt! Robbed of their right to buy traditional light bulbs’ (2009) the Daily Mail is leading the campaign against Energy Saving bulbs. Such reports have been slammed by the government and the Lighting Association as irresponsible ‘scare stories’ to sell newspapers and last year the Energy Saving Trust set out to convert the public by introducing the ‘Pepsi Challenge’. This survey, to study people’s reactions to energy saving bulbs, allowed people to enter two different rooms, one lit by energy savers and the other by traditional light bulbs. The study found that half the people could not tell the difference and additionally 2 out of 3 people preferred the energy saving ones.

Concerns over the mercury content of energy saving bulbs have also been one of the papers ‘buzz topics’. Realistically however most modern CFLs use amalgam, a mercury substitute that is completely safe to handle, transport and store and poses no direct risk to humans or the environment. Other bulbs use recycled mercury and their price included a recycling charge making them far more environmentally friendly than incandescent bulbs.

With climate change a continual threat to our way of life, is it irresponsible for the Daily Mail to wage war against energy saving products? The paper reported almost continually throughout the beginning of the recession on ‘money saving tips. There promotion earlier this year to distribute a free 100w bulb to every reader has been criticised by some environmental groups as ‘climate suicide’.

The paper tends to use outdated views of CFLs to convince its readership that they are being policed into buying something they don’t want. However, is it not true that in many aspects of our advanced capitalist society? Indeed wasn’t the UK’s newspaper media guilty of ‘barging out’ the smaller niche newspapers in order to create a greater market share (and limited consumer choice).

As paper news becomes ever more obsolete, newspapers need bigger gimmicks and more shocking headlines to shift units, this results in more questionable facts and more outlandish claims. I encourage anyone to seek a balanced view in the topic, and I am confident that reducing energy cost and carbon emissions is a good thing. I encourage you to take a look at Greenhouse Organisation should you require energy saving light bulbs.

Learn how to make a cool vase out of recycled light bulbs! Don’t throw them away

Changing out older incandescent bulbs for an energy saving fluorescent bulb is one of the most simple ways to start saving energy. The common name for these bulbs are compact fluorescents. Yes. they can be expensive, but only if you buy one at a time. Don’t buy single compact fluorescent bulbs, buying in bulk can save you as much as $2.00 to $3.00 per bulb.

Reducing Energy Costs for some my seem a little overwhelming. All this talk about Solar, Wind and Thermal can be confusing to the average person. Below you will see the benefits of using compact fluorescent’s as a simple way to start reducing your energy cost .

Replacing your existing incandescent bulbs with super efficient compact fluorescent bulbs is one of the easiest ways to start Reducing Energy Cost immediately and anyone can do it. The best way to purchase CFL bulbs is in bulk, they’ll average around $1.75 to $2.50 each in bulk. The cost will also depend on the brand you buy. GE, of course is one of the top rated brands and has a decent price in bulk.

Is the high cost worth the the trouble? I think it is, I’ve replaced all of mine. But, you can buy a 4 pack of incandescent bulbs for $2.00-$3.00. Well, keep in mind that each compact fluorescent bulb replaces the life of 8 incandescent bulbs. That’s a saving of $5.50 just on bulbs. A compact fluorescent will save you an average of $38.00 per bulb life span according to the folks at GE.

Let’s look at the five year average:
If each compact fluorescent can save you and average of $38.00 and the average household has around 20 bulbs. The yearly savings would be around $152.00 per year for just one Energy Reducing Idea.

According to the U.S. Dept. of Energy the life span of a compact fluorescent bulb can be affected by the number of times it is cycled, meaning turned on and off. So if you leave a room a plan to revisit that room within the next fifteen minutes, it’s best to leave the light on. You will still be reducing your energy costs using the compact over incandescent, even though you leave the light on longer. Just don’t leave the lights on for hours……

GE claims their 13 watt CFL bulbs are guaranteed to last 8,000 hours based on a 5 year consumer average of 4 hours per day. Nothing is mentioned by GE about the number of cycles affecting the life span of their bulb. Each manufacturer has different specifications, so make sure an read each life span claim on the product packaging before buying. Amazon is a excellent place for customer ratings before you purchase.

Benefits of Compact Fluorescent over Incandescent Bulbs:

1. Saves an average of $38.00 per bulb
2. Uses a quarter of the Energy of an Incandescent
3. Produces more light per watt than Incandescents.
4. Produces less heat, 80%-90% less.

Benefits of Incandescent Bulbs over Compact Fluorescent :

1. Produces heat for applications where heat is needed by light, ie; non insulated well houses.
2. Color rendition is far better than CFL, however CFL’s have made lot’s of improvements in this area.
3. They look better, I personally think CFL are ugly. So if you like decorative lighting, CFL’s are not for you.

Compact Fluorescents Can Only Do So Much, Learn How You Can Cut That Energy Bill In Half at www.reduce-energy.info

It’s human nature. We’re always eager to explore the newest product, especially the ones touted to improve our lives. At the same time, we can be skeptical about new product technologies, and it can be hard to decide what, and whether, to buy. This is certainly the case with energy-saving light bulbs. The Energy Independence and Security Act, passed in December of 2007, started the clock ticking on the end of the inexpensive and reliable incandescent light bulb. While it’s true that a few bulb manufacturers have flirted with the idea of nudging the energy efficiency of Mr. Edison’s classic up enough to meet the law’s requirements, it now appears likely that U.S. consumers will need to convert to 21st century green light bulbs for most uses starting in 2012.

The mainstream media has been full of news about the coming light bulb revolution. In the last week of May alone, both The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times ran high profile articles addressing emerging trends on CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lamps) and LED (Light Emitting Diode) bulbs.

Since they cost more than traditional bulbs, most people buy energy-saving light bulbs for two main reasons: they save money in the long run and they’re better for the environment. Specifically, because green light bulbs use much less energy to produce the same amount of light, they reduce harmful gas emissions from coal-fired power plants (which generate 50% of the electricity used in the United States).

So consumers should immediately replace all their incandescents with energy-saving light bulbs, right? Well, not so fast. With lighting, quality matters especially in our homes where we gather, read, cook, eat, celebrate and entertain. There’s a perception that green light bulbs require sacrificing light quality. Don’t believe it. Many eco-friendly light bulbs cast soft, beautiful light. And no one should feel guilty about not switching out every fixture containing a regular light bulb. Invest first in replacing the bulbs used most frequently. Savings will be bigger and pay back periods shorter with this approach. And truth be told, there are scenarios where the best bulb is the old-fashioned incandescent.

7 Keys to Choosing the Best Green Light Bulbs for Your Home or Office

Choosing from the many energy-saving light bulbs on the market today can be tricky. Gone are the days when all that mattered was bulb wattage and shape.

By keeping these seven simple guidelines in mind, you’ll be on a path to making smart decisions about what to buy to meet your needs for energy-saving light bulbs in this new green age:

1. Pay more, not less – to save money in the long run, your new green light bulbs should be able to last for several thousand hours. If you buy the cheapest ones you can find, the odds are greater that they won’t.

2. Pick your spots – if a fixture is completely enclosed or is lit for less than 15 minutes at a time and less than two hours a day, CFLs are a poor investment. Low energy, mercury-free halogens are available that are worth a look in these situations. Wait until the existing bulb burns out (or hold onto it for later use – see #6).

3. Nobody likes the blues – the bluish light cast by many fluorescent tubes is not appealing to most homeowners. When buying CFLs and LEDs choose “warm white” or “soft white” labels for color that will look pleasingly familiar. Energy-saving light bulbs labeled “cool white,” “natural light,” or “daylight” are blue-hued and best for targeted applications like reading, task lighting and exterior fixtures, not for living areas, atmosphere or accent lighting.

4. Dimming for dummies – most CFL and LED bulbs can’t be used with dimmer switches. Look for green light bulbs that are boldly labeled “dimmable.” And while the industry has made great strides in recent years, most energy-saving light bulbs do not dim as well as traditional incandescent bulbs. However, the big energy savings are compelling for most homeowners. Making the switch to dimmable CFLs or LEDs in a busy family kitchen can be a real money saver, including reduced cooling costs because neither type generates as much heat as incandescents. Last point: the dimmer switch should be compatible with the green light bulbs you buy.

5. Let’s do the twist – spiral or “twister” CFLs are the least expensive type. If these green light bulbs are hidden behind a shade (though not totally enclosed), buying a spiral lamp will cut the payback period versus glass covered CFLs.

6. Stay out of the closet – most closets need short bursts of instantaneous light. This is usually true of powder rooms, basements, attics and garages. Among energy saving light bulbs, CFLs in particular aren’t suited for this purpose. Traditional bulbs (or again, low energy halogens) are best in these scenarios until something better comes along.

7. Innovative, intriguing, expensive – mercury-free LED bulbs are the future of lighting, case closed. These green light bulbs use less electricity than even CFLs and they last 30,000 hours or more. However, current prices per bulb are as high as $100, which means the payback period for most home-based uses is too long to justify the price. If you are curious about this new technology and live in an area with high retail electricity costs, you might consider LED replacement bulbs for one or two fixtures that get a lot of use (6+ hours per day). Re-read Key #1 before you invest in these types of energy-saving light bulbs.

Ignore the Naysayers – Green Light Bulbs Are Here to Stay

One last point: mercury makes CFLs (and fluorescent tubes for that matter) work. Some serious people, including syndicated columnist George Will, say we should avoid energy-saving light bulbs for this reason. We disagree. Coal-fired electricity generation is the largest contributor of mercury to the environment. Through reduced electricity consumption, a single CFL will keep a lot more mercury out of the environment over its lifetime than it contains. Still, releasing any mercury into the environment is a bad idea, so it’s important to recycle CFLs when they stop working. Recycling your used green light bulbs is getting easier all the time. Visit www.lamprecycle.org for resources.

Green light bulbs are here to stay. This is good news for our wallets and our world because the cheapest, cleanest kilowatt of electricity is the one that is never produced in the first place. Become smart enough to buy the right energy-saving light bulbs and don’t look back.

This is a video that features energy saving bulbs called induction lamps. They last 100000 hours and reduce energy use by over 60%. Talk about going green…