{"id":18262,"date":"2024-06-28T06:18:12","date_gmt":"2024-06-28T06:18:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.rayzeek.com\/?p=18262"},"modified":"2024-06-28T06:18:15","modified_gmt":"2024-06-28T06:18:15","slug":"efficient-home-lighting-choices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.rayzeek.com\/hi\/%e0%a4%ac%e0%a5%8d%e0%a4%b2%e0%a5%89%e0%a4%97\/efficient-home-lighting-choices\/","title":{"rendered":"Efficient Home Lighting Choices"},"content":{"rendered":"

Instead of trying to put a CFL in every socket, savvy homeowners interested in energy efficiency are increasingly pursuing a more nuanced strategy: Choose the right technology for each application to deliver optimal performance and cost-effective energy savings.<\/p>\n\n\n

Understanding Lighting Terminology<\/h2>\n\n\n

The most familiar (but perhaps the least useful) way of comparing lightbulbs to each other is wattage, which tells you how much power is consumed but tells you nothing about how much light the bulbs will provide\u2014or whether you will like their light quality. Other key terms include:<\/p>\n\n\n

Wattage Equivalent<\/h3>\n\n\n

Most energy-saving lightbulbs claim wattage equivalent, often in bold, colorful text at the top of the package. Ignore this! The federal government declined to regulate how manufacturers calculate and report wattage equivalency, so the claims products make are all over the map and often deceptive. It\u2019s smarter to shop on the basis of measured light output instead.<\/p>\n\n\n

Lumens<\/h3>\n\n\n

Lumens are the measure of the absolute amount of light a bulb provides. An integrating sphere is one measuring tool that\u2019s used. It first captures the bulb\u2019s total light output in all directions across all the different wavelengths of light. Then, it weights the resulting values to reflect the human eye\u2019s sensitivity to each wavelength, summing up all the weighted values to give an overall measure of \u201cuseful\u201d light output. Dim bulbs may only deliver 200 lumens or so, while really bright ones can deliver 2,500 lumens or more.<\/p>\n\n\n

Efficiency<\/h3>\n\n\n

If one lighting technology can deliver more lumens of light per watt of power consumed, it is said to be more energy efficient. Lumens per watt is the figure of merit for efficiency, but that almost never appears on product labeling or packaging, so you have to calculate it from the values that are provided separately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, say a standard 60 W incandescent is rated at 750 lumens\u2014that\u2019s 12.5 lumens per watt. Compare this to a 14 W compact fluorescent rated at 900 lumens\u2014that\u2019s 64.3 lumens per watt. Efficiencies can range from as little as 5 to more than 100 lumens per watt, depending on the technology you choose and the amount of light you need.<\/p>\n\n\n

Lifetime<\/h3>\n\n\n

Lifetime is now reported in years on product labels and assumes three hours of operation per day (a little higher than typical usage according to utility studies). Also, remember that the difference between a projected lifetime of 20 years and 25 years on two products is probably not meaningful, given the uncertainties in the accelerated lifetime testing process and the degree to which new lighting products will continue to improve between now and then. From a practical standpoint, the warranty a manufacturer offers is more useful – the highest-quality products usually offer a 10-year warranty.<\/p>\n\n\n

Color rendering index (CRI)<\/h3>\n\n\n

Color rendering index (CRI) tells you how accurately a bulb renders a particular subset of colors (primarily pastels). A CRI of 80 or greater is usually recommended by lighting experts, but there is debate in the lighting community about the merits of paying extra money for products with a CRI greater than 90\u2014most users can\u2019t tell the difference under typical household lighting conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n

Correlated Color Temperature<\/h3>\n\n\n

Correlated color temperature (CCT; reported in Kelvin, K) tells you how \u201cwarm\u201d or \u201ccool\u201d the light from a bulb appears.  Residential users typically favor warm (approximately 2,700 K) CCTs similar to incandescent bulbs, or 3,000 K (similar to halogen bulbs). In the 4,000 K to 6,000 K range, the resulting light can appear bluish. It is common for people who live in very sunny and tropical locations to favor bulbs with higher CCTs, given their greater similarity to daylight or midday sunshine.<\/p>\n\n\n

Energy Star Label<\/h3>\n\n\n

The Energy Star label appears on energy-efficient products that deliver good performance in most of the attributes listed above. But thousands of models now qualify for it, so you need to be more selective to find the best performers. Also, be aware that many new energy-saving lighting products are introduced to the market a few months before they have completed enough accelerated lifetime testing to earn the Energy Star label. The manufacturer will later change the packaging to reflect receipt of that certification, but the product inside the package can often be the same as the one selling a few months earlier without the logo.  This means that the most recently introduced models without an Energy Star logo can occasionally be more efficient and affordable than older models that are labeled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More specialized information can often be found on product packages or manufacturer websites, including beam angle and center-beam candlepower for reflector lamps, compatibility with common dimmers, etc. If you are buying a large number of efficient bulbs, check online reviews to find products that have been consistently popular with other users, or buy from a retailer that will allow you to return the products for a refund if you are unhappy with their performance.<\/p>\n

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