LEDs & energy-efficient lighting
Start saving today with LEDs
Energy-efficient LED lights use up to 80% less energy than standard (incandescent) lamps. As soon as you make the switch and convert to LED, you’ll start making savings.
We’ll talk you through the best way to install LED lighting in your new home. Or easy ways to retrofit LEDs. Making the switch to LED is worth it.
5 facts about LED lighting
- LED lights can last for up to 25,000 hours. Standard incandescent bulbs last around 1,000 hours.
- LED bulbs do not contain mercury; a toxin that is found in fluorescent lamps and commonly ends up in landfill.
- LED lights come in warm white and cool white.
- The cost of LED lights has dropped significantly over the last few years. Single LED lamps (light bulbs) can cost as little as $12.
- LED lights are dimmable.
The difference between incandescent lamps and LED lights
Incandescent lamps generate light by heating the filament to a very high temperature. The warm yellow “glow” creates the light. Incandescent light is highly inefficient, with 95% of the energy input emitted as heat.
LED (light-emitting diode) light bulbs are semiconductors and do not get hot. As electrons pass through the semiconductor, they are turned to light. LED lights are more efficient at turning energy into light, therefore, less energy radiates from the bulb as heat.
The hottest outside surface of an LED light can be half the temperature of an equivalent incandescent or halogen bulb, and around 20% cooler than fluorescent bulbs.
LED bulbs produce more light with less energy. If you’re replacing a 100W incandescent bulb, you’ll only need to use a 15W – 18W LED bulb.
Comparing the cost of LEDs to standard bulbs
| 12w LED bulb running for 3 hours a day for 1 year will cost | $3.55 |
| 100w incandescent bulb running for 3 hours a day for 1 year will cost | $29.57 |
Each LED bulb could save you $290.
Based on the lifespan of one LED lamp used to replace one standard 100W lamp using a variable electricity price .24c/KWh.
*From www.energywise.co.nz