LED or CFL

[JohnW2]

We have debated what happens to light? I would assume if light hits a dark surface it is absorbed and turned into heat, so colour of curtains and drawing the curtains before switching on lights must also effect the room heat, even ignoring the heat lost by conduction and convection.

Other than for any light which escapes 'as light' through windows etc., I can but presume that it must all eventually get turned into heat, since it cannot continue 'building up' within the building. Even if it is largely reflected by each of many (maybe white and shiny) surfaces it bounces off, I presume that at least some gets absorbed by each reflection, so that it will eventually all be absorbed, and turned into heat.

Kind Regards, John

 

[ericmark]

I have been cleaning up two houses, getting rid of years of "I'll keep that it may come in handy." I have found never used packs of tungsten and CFL bulbs, it goes against the grain to dump never used bulbs, must be around 50 all together, however nearly every light bulb fitting now has an LED bulb, still got CFL in garage, most also moved from BA22d to E14 so could not use old bulbs in main rooms even if I want to.

In my heart of hearts I know I should dump all the old type bulbs, at least cut down the stock. This is where I admit the LED lamp is so much better than CFL with a BA22d or E27 or E14 cap.

However there are always exceptions, the strips of LED where you can adjust the colour use nearly as much power as the old tungsten. And the red bulb in the fire has to be tungsten or the device which makes it flicker will not work.

I still remember the out side loo, the light was never turned off in the winter, it stopped the pipes freezing.

 

[JohnW2]

I have been cleaning up two houses, getting rid of years of "I'll keep that it may come in handy." I have found never used packs of tungsten and CFL bulbs, it goes against the grain to dump never used bulbs, must be around 50 all together ... In my heart of hearts I know I should dump all the old type bulbs, at least cut down the stock.

Exactly the same here. The incandescents are gradually diminishing (although I've still got quite a lot left), but I have lots of CFLs which will probably never be used - but "haven't got the heart" to chuck them out.

Kind Regards, John

 

[ericmark]

Exactly the same here. The incandescents are gradually diminishing (although I've still got quite a lot left), but I have lots of CFLs which will probably never be used - but "haven't got the heart" to chuck them out.

Kind Regards, John

Glad it's not just me.

 

[JohnD]

I'm using up my stock of CFLs in lamps that are on for long periods, such as porch and stairways.

I don't know if the point has yet been reached where the small saving in electricity is greater than the cost of buying a new lamp. What are LEDs now, about £4?

An 18W CFL would burn for about 55 hours on 1kWh of electricity, so f it has a lifetime of 5500 hours, it will use 99kWh of electricity costing me £13.86. If a 12W LED gave equivalent light, in that time it would use 66kWh of electricity costing £9.24, plus I would have spent £4 on the lamp.

I wonder if my figures are right....

 

[JohnW2]

I'm using up my stock of CFLs in lamps that are on for long periods, such as porch and stairways.

I'm doing much the same, and a good few of them are proving to be far more long-lived than they 'ought' to be It's the incandescents which are really the problem.

I don't know if the point has yet been reached where the small saving in electricity is greater than the cost of buying a new lamp.

I agree that there is not much of an immediate cost argument, although it obviously gets stronger as the price of LEDs falls. In the longer term, one also has to factor in the fact that decent LEDs should have an appreciably longer life than CFLs, thereby reducing the replacement cost in the future. However, it's the slow start-up of CFLs (certainly most of those I have) which puts me off them, rather than anything to do with costs.

Kind Regards, John

 

[ericmark]

I'm using up my stock of CFLs in lamps that are on for long periods, such as porch and stairways.

I don't know if the point has yet been reached where the small saving in electricity is greater than the cost of buying a new lamp. What are LEDs now, about £4?

An 18W CFL would burn for about 55 hours on 1kWh of electricity, so f it has a lifetime of 5500 hours, it will use 99kWh of electricity costing me £13.86. If a 12W LED gave equivalent light, in that time it would use 66kWh of electricity costing £9.24, plus I would have spent £4 on the lamp.

I wonder if my figures are right....

Likely correct, however even if a 4 foot fluorescent lamp lights the living room is better and costs less to run, my wife would not let me fit one, the same goes for gradually swapping CFL for LED, no way would she allow this, must change all together, so 6 x 18W CFL and one fails, want to change to LED cost is 6 x £4 but to stay with CFL is likely £1 so a some point one has to bite the bullet and change the lot. Then try to find some where to use the remaining 5 bulbs rather than put good bulbs in the bin.

At the moment two of the 8W globe CFL I removed when I went over the LED are being used to keep my beer being brewed at the right temperature. Some times it has nothing to do with maths.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

You could always try selling your stocks of incandescents on eBay.