As a source of both ambient and task light, recessed downlights (“cans”) are widely used in American kitchens. These fixtures push light down and away to light an area and a work surface at the same time. To enable the homeowner to add ambience, they’re often controlled by a dimmer switch.

For homeowners motivated to make a small investment to reduce their electricity use and/or carbon footprint, a simple light bulb retrofit in their existing kitchen fixtures is a smart and easy strategy. Simply remove the existing high wattage (commonly 65-90 watts) bulbs, and insert lower wattage eco-friendly lamps which yield equivalent light output (lumens). But since there are two types of lower cost energy-efficient lighting options from which to choose, which is preferable in this application?

High-Efficiency Halogen Lamps Beat Compact Fluorescent Lamps

We’ve looked at this question from many angles and have concluded that screw-in (self-ballasted) CFL reflector lamps, for many the obvious choice, are an inferior, energy-efficient lighting solution. Very few consumers are familiar with the new high-efficiency halogen lamps (“HEH”) which have hit the market in the last few years. The best of these models already exceed the energy efficiency requirements for incandescent reflector lamps scheduled to take effect in July 2012.

Here, we cite nine reasons why we believe high-efficiency halogen lamps, controlled by a pre-set dimmer switch, offer overall superior, energy-efficient lighting value to CFLs starting with the most important factor for electric light sources, whether energy efficient or not: light characteristics.

Reason 1 – Great Light:

Halogen light is legendary for being white, bright, crisp, and punchy and making colors appear vivid.
The light cast by CFL reflectors, while typically warm white, is average at best.

Reason 2 – Superior Illuminance:

“Illuminance” describes the amount of light on a horizontal surface, measured in “foot candles.”
High-efficiency halogen lamps, especially those with a PAR (Parabolic Aluminized Reflector) configuration, throw concentrated light downwards measurably better than CFL reflectors.
The result? Much more artificial light where it’s needed.

Reason 3 – Effortless Dimming:

No artificial light source dims better than an incandescent lamp. High-efficiency halogen lamps use improved incandescent technology and don’t require special dimmer switches.
Dimmable CFLs cost more than non-dimmable versions. But dimmable doesn’t translate into impressive dimming performance.

Reason 4 – Dimming = Longer Lamp Life:

Dimming any lamp is an energy-efficient lighting strategy because it reduces electricity consumption and harmful gas emissions. There’s an added green benefit when dimming high-efficiency halogen lamps: it extends the lifetime of the lamp.
For example, constant dimming by just 15% (a pre-set dimmer enables this) will triple the life of the bulb, thereby reducing landfill waste and replacement costs.
For premium high-efficiency halogen lamps, this translates into 9,000 to 12,000 hours, roughly the same as the average rated life of an Energy Star rated CFL reflector (whose projected life is static even if dimmed).

Reason 5 – Instant On:

Just like non-halogen incandescent bulbs, halogen lamps reach full brightness with the flick of a switch.
State-of-the-art CFL reflectors will start instantly but take 30 seconds to a minute’s time to reach full brightness (depending on the ambient room temperature).

Reason 6 – Mercury-Free:

High-efficiency halogen lamps operate without the use of mercury.
All CFLs contain mercury which must be vaporized to create ultraviolet energy and subsequently, visible light.
Since mercury is a toxic substance, this necessitates proper recycling at the end of a CFL’s life.
Further, while breakage in a recessed can is a low probability risk, an accident would cause mercury to contaminate the area below.

Reason 7 – Reliability:

High-efficiency halogen lamps don’t contain any electronic components.
Unlike a screw-in CFL, which contains a precise electronic component called a ballast, neither frequent on/off switching, nor trapped heat will affect the performance or lifespan of these energy-efficient lighting solutions.

Reason 8 – Lumen Maintenance:

Lumens are the measure of the amount of light emitted by a light source. High-efficiency halogen lamps maintain their initial lumens for as long as they operate.
CFLs, using different technology, will gradually dim by about 25% over their lifetime.
Why does this matter? Studies have shown that at age 65, the eyes need three times more light to see as well as at age 20.
With CFLs in a kitchen, vision needs and light output are moving in opposite directions as time passes.

The Rest of the Story – High-Efficiency Halogen Lamps Are Greener

Reason 9 – Better, REAL Energy-Efficient Lighting:

The commonly used metric for comparing energy-efficient lighting is lumens of output per watt of electrical input. This method is appropriate for omni-directional bulbs such as traditional A-shape lamps and spiral CFLs.
Directional lamps (floodlights, spotlights) are different. Their job is not to glow, but to throw light into a defined area or onto a specific surface.
Compare the measured light (illuminance) on a horizontal surface from two floodlights, a 16 watt CFL BR30 (630 lumens) and a 34 watt HEH PAR30 (1) (612 lumens).
The CFL has 39 lumens per watt vs. 18 for the HEH. Thus, by conventional measures the CFL is more than twice as energy efficient.
Measured illuminance tells a very different story: the CFL floodlight casts just 15 foot candles of light onto the work surface in this demonstration. The HEH? 51 foot candles.(2)
Therefore, at 1.5 foot candles per watt, the HEH bulb is 60% more efficient in real terms than the CFL (0.9 foot candles per watt).
Or viewed another way, using typical recessed downlight fixtures, to produce an equivalent amount of light on a kitchen countertop or table, where important tasks such as food preparation and schoolwork are performed, a 54 watt CFL floodlight would be needed.
Not only would such a lamp be more expensive to purchase, it would cost 36% more to operate and generate 36% more air pollution than the high-efficiency halogen lamp.

Notes for Previous Example

1. A 40 watt model was dimmed by 15% to reduce lumen output from 720 to 612.

2. Measured distance of each light source to the surface of the light meter instrument was 50 inches.

Illuminating the Perks of Energy-Efficient Lighting

Impressive consumer value is sometimes found where it’s least expected. We’re all for selectively installing energy-efficient lighting around the home and place of business because it leverages the fact that the cheapest and cleanest kilowatt of electricity is the one that’s never produced in the first place. But if light bulb buyers only paid attention to the popular media or followed Energy Star prescriptions, they would only know to consider CFL reflectors as an affordable, energy-efficient lighting solution for their oft-used recessed downlights.

The public has not been able to purchase products at high prices because a huge part of their salaries and incomes have been taken away by electricity bills. Many businesses have even come to an end due to these reasons; even people have lost jobs as many companies had to shut down business or adopt measures to reduce cost. People have not been able to properly save money and they have ended up spending more than they should; this is mainly due to increase in the tariffs of electricity bills.

Currently Compact Fluorescent lighting has been replacing Incandescent lighting system; this is because CFLs do not waste energy and help save energy. This can even aid in decreasing electricity bills for those who use this system. Currently researchers and manufacturers are giving importance to LED lighting. This form of lighting is believed to be more energy efficient than CFLs and incandescent lighting system. It even does not promote air pollution and keeps the environment clean.

The new and energy efficient lighting system needs to be considered by people and businesses in order to solve recession and the issues created by shortage of energy. If manufacturers use these new systems they will be able to lower down their cost and will be able to produce goods and services at low prices; thus the public will be persuaded to purchase from local market and this will result in economic growth. When economic growth takes place; businesses revive and people find new and plenty opportunities for employment. If households start using the new lighting system; they will be able to save more money and conveniently spend on other necessities.

There are many benefits of energy efficient light bulbs and a lot of people are sceptical about whether they are genuine or not and the answer is: yes! Many researchers have tried, tested and improved the energy saving lighting over the past 30 years; the most popular being CFL lights. This lighting hugely reduces electricity bills by 10% thus saving you money and reducing your energy usage.

CFL lights are the most popular energy lights and have been approved by the Energy Star program, despite this they are always attempting to improve them further. It is recommended by experts that energy efficient lighting should be used wherever possible in and around your home and workplace. They use 1/3 of the power that the regular incandescent lights use and last up to 10 times longer which reduces the amount of recycling needed for bulbs and saves you many trips to the supermarket for more.

Many cases of areas of energy saving bulbs becoming more popular in the world have been recognised by the media and published in an attempt to encourage others to begin using them too; one of which is the Times Square New Year’s Eve Ball. Phillips has been the Times Squares’ light bulb suppliers for over 12 years and it populates over 32,000 light bulbs which glitter up the square. In 2012 they plan to replace these bulbs with more energy efficient sources of light thus primarily saving 80% more energy.

Another case of replacing regular bulbs with energy efficient bulbs is San Francisco Long Beach airport where they have upgraded 75 lights. Initially they had metal halide and fluorescent bulbs and all of these have now been changed to ultra-efficient LED bulbs which again use 80% less energy.

It is obvious that there is a new revolution when it comes to light bulbs and many people are realising this and joining in themselves. You can expect to see many more businesses and popular land marks replacing their bulbs with energy efficient in the next few years ergo providing a better world for all of us. If researchers can do this with bulbs then technology advances in the future may be changed completely in order to provide all of us with a much more energy saving lifestyle. Do your part in changing and saving the world and purchase some of these life-changing bulbs.

Lighting your home with LED lights is only just emerging but why wait for it to become main-stream when you can enjoy the benefits and savings today. Domestic LED’s is still somewhat of a novelty for most people but once you make the conversion others will see how easy and cost effective LED Home Lighting really is. For example a house of standard incandescent bulbs will cost around $1200 over 5 years, compact fluorescent tubes will cost $220 and LED fixtures will only cost an astounding $60 over 5 years.

It is clear that lighting with LED’s is far superior to any other light and will save you substantial amounts of money regardless of how these savings actually match your own circumstances. LED lights can be used everywhere around your home for numerous different applications.

Use battery operated candles to safely create glamorous settings with authenic candle flicker.
Say goodbye to incandescent bulbs and welcome LED Replacement Bulbs
Get Cool with LED Fixtures
Discover the brilliance of LED Desk Lamps
Be safe and calm darkness fear with LED Night Lights
Light up your childrens rooms with fun Kids Lighting
Add light to your shot – Billiard Light
Reduce eye strain when at your computer, get some Computer Lights

Along with the current global warming and energy crises, the lighting industry is pouring huge amounts of resources into developing cheaper home lighting and the domestic LED light seems to be the way of the future as they produce no heat and require only a tiny amount of electricity to operate.

Sketching a Blueprint

Getting the most out of your outdoor light fixtures begins with creating an efficient design. Begin by sketching a rough blueprint of your outdoor lighting needs. It doesn’t have to be the best drawing as long as the measurements are accurate. This way, you can take you sketch to the nearest garden lighting store and ask for some hands on advice as to what lighting solutions are best for your yard. Make a few copies of your blueprint and you can pencil in your own designs until you find a happy medium between your needs, wants and budget.

Low Voltage

Low voltage lighting is a great way to get an energy efficient lighting system in your yard or garden without sacrificing on lighting needs. Low voltage lighting is perfect for walkways, garden paths, decks and sidewalks. These ground, railing and lamp post low voltage lights can be hooked together in multiple arrays to allow for a wide variety of controlling options. Some low voltage controllers offer timers, photosensitive switches and motion detectors to activate the lighting, saving on precious energy. Low voltage lighting fixtures are also easy to install yourself making them an affordable investment as well. Low voltage outdoor lightings biggest drawback is that it can be tough to get a powerful spotlight or security lighting without going up to a full voltage unit.

Solar Lighting

With the advent of modern technology, solar panels have increased in power absorption and decreased in size and cost, making solar powered outdoor lighting the lights of choice for outdoor areas seeped in sunshine. Solar powered lights are typically thought of as weak or dim, but many newer solar powered spot lights or lamp posts can burn brightly all night long on a single charge. Solar panels are commonly set in an area where sunlight is at its maximize exposure throughout the day while the actual light is placed where it is needed most. The only drawback about these solar powered security spotlights is that if your solar panel power cord isn’t long enough to reach the spotlight, then it’s not going to work efficient enough to justify its purchase.

Benefits of Economical Lights

It’s easy to see the advantages to using the new bulbs. Each old bulb, incandescents, have a use life equal to about 800-1,000 hours. CFL’s, however, last typically 10,000 hours, which means 10 times more bulb life. Additionally, CFL’s use only 25% from the souped up that an incandescent bulb requires.

Although the new energy savings light bulbs are more expensive up front, real consumer savings are realized over the lifetime of the bulb. For instance, a CFL bulb provides a $30 savings over its lifetime, and pays for itself within six months. It is a win-win situation for consumers.

Disadvantages to Energy Saving Lights

CFL’s do have some drawbacks, but most of those are insignificant. One problem, for example, is the fact that CFL’s often burn less brightly toward the end of the lives. In other words, the sunshine emitted is a bit dimmer right before it burns out.

The most significant disadvantage, obviously, is the fact that the mercury used in the merchandise must be carefully disposed of and recycled. While the tiny quantity of mercury within each bulb is miniscule, that certain small dot, based on Stanford University researchers, can contaminate 1,000 gallons of water. Mercury can harm anyone but is most toxic to children, and also the U.S. Epa has dedicated years to containing mercury’s misuse. While mercury is proving to become a plus for energy savings, its environmental impact can’t be ignored.

Recycling Centers for CFL and HID Light Bulbs

The rapid utilization of CFL’s and HID’s has outpaced the capability of current recycling centers. Approximately 300 million economical bulbs were bought from 2008. At the same time, merely a handful of states have free utility operated collection programs. The states offering this particular service include California, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and Wisconsin.

A number of other states offer recycling of one’s saving bulbs through local cities or counties. Consumers need to contact their local waste disposal agencies to see if any recycling is available for these materials.

Some home retail stores have stepped toward serve as recycling sites for new technology light bulbs. Of these are IKEA, Home Depot, Orchard Supply Hardware, True Value Hardware, Ace Hardware, and Menards.

Other retail stores, for example Wal-Mart, sometimes offer eventually recycling events.

Steps to the Proper Disposal of recent Light Bulbs

Before a consumer transports a new lamp to a recognized recycling site, some prudent steps should be taken, especially if a CFL or DIH bulb has broken:

If a CFL is not broken but must be replaced, follow these steps:

Step one: Carefully remove the bulb from the fixture, then store it in a airtight container until it may be recycled. It’s often better to change it inside the cardboard container it came in for extra protection before sealing it away. Though air tight plastic bags may be used to store them, it’s better to use a plastic or metal container.

Step 2: Mark the container that it is not accidentally damaged or added too the garbage.

Step 3: Take to a recycling center.

If the CFL lamp has broken, take the following precautions:

Step 1: Remove children and pets from the area.

Step two: Switch off heat or ac and open windows; ventilate the area for at least 15 minutes.

Step 3: Gather the next materials before you decide to attempt cleanup: gloves, cardboard or stiff paper, plastic bags, duct or masking tape, and wet sponges.

Step four: After wearing gloves, pick up and place the larger pieces of glass into a resealable plastic bag.

Step five: Using cardboard or stiff paper, scoop in the rest of the pieces. Discard into plastic bag bag.

Step 6: Make use of the sticky duct or masking tape to pickup any leftover residue. Discard into plastic bag.

Step 7: Wipe down the affected region having a wet paper towel or hand wipes. Discard into plastic bag.

Step 8: Vacuum the region, then discard the disposable vacuum bag into a plastic bag and seal. If using a canister style vacuum, discard vacuum sweepings into a plastic bag. Then, using wet paper towels, wipe down the canister. Discard the used paper towels in a resealable plastic bag.

Step 9: If shoes have come into connection with the breakage, clean them thoroughly before wearing again.

Step 10: If clothing originates into direct connection with the breakage, throw them away. Washing them may disperse the mercury throughout your washer.

Step 11: Air the room the next rare occasions once you vacuum the affected region.

Step 12: Create a intend to carefully recycle the above mentioned materials.

As the technological advances surrounding energy efficient bulbs still offer improvement, it’s easy to observe how they’ll replace that old fashioned incandescent bulb. Already the newer generation of CFL’s, for example, are being produced with less mercury per bulb. Currently when concern for energy savings is really a priority, these innovations are revolutionizing the way in which people adopt the new technology. Consumers are learning that in order to save environmental surroundings and financial cost, proper disposal of recent bulbs is simply one better step toward a healthier and cleaner world.

The LED bulbs are now popularly being used in various residential and commercial buildings. Different industries like hospitality industry, manufacturing units etc. will also be opting for these lighting solutions because they are energy efficient and therefore are environmentally friendly. There is many companies which deal in LED retrofitting and can help you get the right lighting solution for hospital or other industries. Some of them offer advanced lighting solutions also so that you can improve quality lighting for the industry.

If you’re concerned about cellular phone charges associated with the LED lighting you’ll be able to contact the likes of Energy Smart industries. The organization offers flexible installation plans and also provide a unique zero out of pocket expense program. Under this you do not have to cover installation and also the companies collect its payment with the savings that you make on energy bills. Thus you can easily obtain the energy efficient lighting for the hospital lighting.

Compact fluorescent light bulbs use a different technology: they contain a gas that produces invisible ultraviolet light (UV) when the gas is put in the presence of electricity. The UV light hits the white coating inside the fluorescent bulb and also the coating changes it into light you can observe. Because fluorescent bulbs avoid using heat to create light, they’re far more energy-efficient than regular incandescent bulbs.

Based on the U.S. United states doe, if all households in the United States replaced just ONE regular incandescent light bulb with an Energy Star approved compact fluorescent bulb (CFL) we’d save enough energy to light a lot more than 3 million homes for a year, more than $600 million in annual energy costs, and stop greenhouse gases equal to the emissions in excess of 800,000 cars.

This type of savings can be done because a fluorescent bulb creates light utilizing an entirely different method that’s much more energy-efficient, in fact, 4-6 times more effective. This means that you can buy a 15-watt compact fluorescent bulb that creates exactly the same quantity of light as a 60-watt regular incandescent bulb.

ENERGY STAR qualified lighting provides bright, warm light but uses about 75% less energy than standard lighting, produce 75 % less heat (cutting energy costs associated with home cooling), and lasts up to Ten times longer. They save about $30 or more in discovered another means over each bulb’s lifetime, are available in different sizes and shapes to suit in almost any fixture, for indoors and outdoors.

For drawbacks, CFLs don’t operate well in frigid conditions, limiting their use for exterior lighting in cold areas. But the biggest trouble with them is their mercury content. It’s recommended to recycle CFL bulbs, since breaking or incinerating them releases mercury in to the air. The poisonous metal can then find its way into soil, water, fish and fish-eating humans.

The mercury issue will be ignored through proper handling and recycling of the bulbs. Other than that, given that lighting makes up about roughly 7% from the average lighting bill (compact fluorescents will reduce that by over half), CFLs make sense for just about everybody, both financially and environmentally.

Most solar lighting is equipped with high-powered LEDs, fluorescent, or halogen bulbs therefore the brightness and intensity is just as bright as standard hard-wired electric ones. Solar spot lights are also well equipped to illuminate any area you want to highlight, be it a bush, flower garden or perhaps your house numbers.

There are lots of types of solar lights available today. They come in many sizes, shapes, materials and colors. You are able to choose plastic, stainless and copper depending on your preference. There are styles suitable for pathways, spotlights of varying kinds and many different unique designs. You will find styles which have colored or white lights and there are a handful of that alternate between different colors.

Town store usually stock the standard solar pathway lights and solar landscape lights Several stores online have many more to choose from. Make a dwarf or gnome statue holding a spot light, your dog statue holding a solar lantern, a snail have a solar glow light, a light to stipulate your deck. You will find wall-mounted lights that may be configured with remote solar power panels, allowing for installation under covered areas for example porches and overhangs.

For a lot of, the cold, flickering light made by fluorescent fixtures is intolerable. Fluorescent lights typically can’t be dimmed and are thus frequently too bright, causing eye strain when working. The light emitted by florescent bulbs is uneven (it’s concentrated in peaks and missing in valleys) across the lighting spectrum which mutes and distorts colors. Frankly, a lot of us think it is depressing.

Traditional incandescent bulbs produce rich, full-spectrum light and are easily dimmed. Unfortunately, traditional incandescent bulbs are terribly inefficient. They emit relatively little light per watt of power consumed and they burn out frequently necessitating replacement.

Enter halogen lighting. Halogen lighting provides an excellent compromise for people who won’t be satisfied with low quality light but still desire to be environmentally responsible.

Halogen bulbs offer several advantages:

1. Halogen bulbs produce excellent, full-spectrum, crisp, white light. The light is equally as easy around the eye as traditional incandescent bulbs, but the light is whiter (less yellow than traditional bulbs) and renders colors accurately.

2. Halogen lamps possess a higher efficacy than normal incandescent bulbs. This means that they convert more energy into light and fewer into heat producing more light per watt than incandescent bulbs. A 60 watt halogen bulb will produce just as much light as a traditional 100 watt bulb. Halogen bulbs require effectively 40% less power than standard incandescent options.

3. Halogen bulbs come with an average lifespan twice those of traditional incandescent bulbs. This means less hassle to replace them and less space inside a landfill.

4. Halogen lights might be dimmed easily and also the light they produce is precise and directional. The small filament and precise reflectors used in halogen bulbs make them ideal for confining and controlling their light to specific areas (for instance, illuminating the office but not your pc monitor). This really is critical when trying to reduce eye strain in work environments.

5. Finally, halogen bulbs are relatively compact. This allows these phones be utilized in a variety of innovating lighting fixtures.

Halogen bulbs do have some disadvantages:

1. Halogen bulbs do cost a nothing more than their established traditional competitors, but they’re much less expensive than LED of CF options.

2. Although more than traditional incandescent bulbs, the lifespan of a halogen bulb is shorter than fluorescents.

3. Halogen bulbs become hot when operating. Care should be taken not to touch operating lamps.

For larger rooms, consider halogen decorative track lighting as an energy efficient solution to produce abundant quality light. Track systems permit the directional heads to become aimed in a direction which is important thinking about the precise beam of many halogen bulbs.