Current Events > Do LED lightbulbs really save a lot on a monthly electric bill?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I used to think they were stupidly expensive but saw a bunch of 2-packs for like $3.50 at Walmart. Thinking about counting all my lightbulbs in the house to replace them with LEDs if it's really that big of a money saver.

Or is the savings mainly from them lasting for like 10 years so I won't be buying new bulbs every couple months
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What type of bulb do you have now? If incandescent, then yes, it saves a lot of power. If you use CFLs, then the power consumption difference is much lower.
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uwnim posted...

What type of bulb do you have now? If incandescent, then yes, it saves a lot of power. If you use CFLs, then the power consumption difference is much lower.

Many CFLs actually use close to the same power as incandescent and do not last near as long.

That said, LEDs are way more efficient, however, I am not sure how power billing is where you are at.

Here, usage is only approximately 10% of the bill; so it doesn't save a lot of money. LEDs have other benefits though; instant on, no heat, and no flickering.
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my light is flickering it's haunted? why did he curse my house i'm too sick to deal with this today

i'm coughing up a lung for you.
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MaverickXeo posted...

no heat

Oh damn I never knew that was a feature for them
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They produce some heat but it is nowhere near as bad as incandescent bulbs.
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Tired-Insomniac posted...

I used to think they were stupidly expensive but saw a bunch of 2-packs for like $3.50 at Walmart.

Mine has four packs for 97 cents (limit 6 per household). I wouldn't be surprised if someone's subsidizing the costs. The local power company loves to pretend they want people to save power.

MaverickXeo posted...

Many CFLs actually use close to the same power as incandescent and do not last near as long.

You also can't just throw a CFL in the garbage. Well, you CAN but it's like batteries where you're not supposed to. Also, an incandescent is far, far better than a CFL in any situation were you're only using the lights for brief periods. Like say, a hallway or closet. Flicking them on and off is bad for their lifespan. LEDs meanwhile, have none of those issues.
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They definitely produce heat, lol. I work at a place that makes LED light fixtures and when testing the larger ones, you can feel the heat. <_< Nowhere near as much as just a regular household incandescent bulb though.
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LEDs on average use 1 watt per hour. Compact fluorescent, 10 per hour. Depending on how much you pay on your electric bill, some charge by the kilowatt (1000 watts). There's about 8,760 hours in a year, and about a quarter of that (2190) you have your lights on. So your LED will use 2.19kw, and the Compact 21.9kw. That's 19.71kw difference, just on one bulb. So multiple that by the number of bulbs you are running, factor in how much you pay per/kw and you have how much you spend on lights alone in a year.
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I changed out 1400 8ft bulbs for LED without a ballast, and it's going to save us thousands per year at my job.
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Yeah I went through and inventoried the bulbs in my house. The previous owners were inconsistent as fuck. Nice mix of CFL, LED, and incandescent.

Gonna go buy about 20 LEDs tomorrow
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Boom, my house is efficient as fuck now

You're welcome, Earth
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