Power Consumption

Do you have a desk or floor lamp in your office? Switching from an incandescent lamp to a carbon fluorescent lamps or LED lamp can reduce your lamp's power consumption by up to 75 percent. Facilities Management has published a guide to purchasing carbon fluorescent lamps. Also remember to always look for the Energy Star Logo when purchasing carbon fluorescent lamps and LEDs; this ensures you are purchasing a quality product.

Choosing a carbon fluorescent lamp

The type of bulb you choose for your lamp or light fixture makes all the difference in concerns for brightness, cost, heat and greenhouse gas emission. Below is a comparison of an incandescent bulb, a compact fluorescent and a light emitting diode.

Benefits of LED lighting

Long-lasting—LED bulbs last up to ten times longer than compact fluorescents and 50 times longer than typical incandescent bulbs.

Durable—Since LEDs do not have a filament, they are not damaged under circumstances when a regular incandescent bulb would be broken. Because they are solid, LED bulbs hold up well to jarring and bumping.

Cool—These bulbs do not cause heat build-up; LEDs produce 3.4 British thermal units per hour, compared to 85 for incandescent bulbs. Common incandescent bulbs get hot and contribute to heat build-up in a room. LEDs prevent this heat build-up, thereby helping to reduce air conditioning costs in the home.

Mercury-free—No mercury is used in the manufacturing of LEDs.

More efficient—LED light bulbs use only 2-17 watts of electricity (1/3rd to 1/30th of incandescent or carbon fluorescent lamps). LED bulbs used in fixtures inside the home save electricity, remain cool and save money on replacement costs since LED bulbs last so long. Small LED flashlight bulbs will extend battery life 10 to 15 times longer than with incandescent bulbs.

Cost-effective—Although LEDs are initially expensive, the cost is recouped over time and in battery savings. LED bulb use was first adopted commercially where maintenance and replacement costs are expensive. However, the cost of new LED bulbs have gone down considerably in the last few years and is continuing to drop.