Energy Saving » Lights

I HAVE 2 RECESS LIGHTS IN MY KITCHEN,120W REFLECTOR FLOOD LIGHTS. WHAT OPTION IS THERE TO SAVE ENERGY?

admin — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:33:23 +0000

Question by Dinosaur:
I have 2 recess lights in my kitchen,120w reflector flood lights. What option is there to save energy?
Can I use those CFL energy star light bulbs that are built in the frame of the light bulb?
i have dimmer also.

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Answer by mike b
Yes they make CFL flood lamps. However if your lights are controlled by a dimmer switch you need specific CLF lamps that have a dimmable ballast.

http://www.nam.lighting.philips.com/us/consumer/marathon/display.php?mode=2

http://www.nam.lighting.philips.com/us/consumer/marathon/display.php?mode=3

Answer by Itsmoved
Turn them off.

Answer by John himself
Put in smaller watt reflector bulbs. Other types of bulbs might over heat the fixture.

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IF YOU USE LIGHTBULBS, DOES THAT SAVE ON ELECTRICITY INSTEAD OF REGULAR LIGHTS OR LAMPS?

admin — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 00:35:00 +0000

Question by bgall2777:
If you use lightbulbs, does that save on electricity instead of regular lights or lamps?

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Answer by frederick.0001
What kind of a stupid question is this ???

Answer by Travelier
It depends on the wattage of lightbulbs. Light bulbs provide more heat which cause it to take more electricity and it is not brighter than regular lamps, making it uneconomical to use.

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DOES TURNING OFF YOUR LIGHTS REALLY SAVE WATER IF YOUR ELECTRICITY COMES FROM A HYDRO-ELECTRIC DAM?

admin — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 08:34:27 +0000

Question by Shannon B:
Does turning off your lights really save water if your electricity comes from a hydro-electric dam?
Just curious as some BC Hydro informational people told me this today. It would make sense but does it directly or indirectly save water?

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Answer by generbee
yes…. if there are more of you doing this. definitely you will save some

Answer by ThinkTank™
No. Unless everybody will shutdown lights at the same time then tell the electro plant to shutdown the water driving the plant’s turbines.

Answer by skraith
It will not save any water at all. The point of a hydro-electric dam is that the water flows through without being lost. Granted, because of bad seals inside the turbines there is probably some water lost, but it’s negligible. For all practical purposes each bit of water that enters the dam exits the other side unchanged.

Therefore turning off lights will not save water, it’ll just mean the power company has to pass less water through the dam.

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DO I SAVE ELECTRICITY BY KEEPING THE LIGHTS ON RATHER THAN SWITCHING THEM OFF/ON OFTEN?

admin — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:33:02 +0000

Question by Leslie P:
Do I save electricity by keeping the lights on rather than switching them off/on often?

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Answer by rredrumm00
yes, u save elect. when u keep ur lights on rather than swtch n on n off

Answer by hoover
Contrary to popular belief leaving anything on will cost more. The damage is not in the electric bill but in the apparatus that is being turned on and off. The surge that comes with suddenly turned on is where most of the wear and tear is on anything electrical.

Answer by sun m
keep them on or off

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DO WE REALLY SAVE ELECTRICITY WHEN WE SWITCH OFF THE LIGHTS? DOES IT CONSUME MORE WHEN WE SWITCH LIGHTS ON?

admin — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 08:33:13 +0000

Question by Lola:
Do we really save electricity when we switch off the lights? Does it consume more when we switch lights on?

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Answer by Dr. Mick
omg lol mythbusters tested htis myth… the only time it is worth keeping ur light on is if its those huge long florsent pipe bulbs… turning those on consume as much energy as it being on for 29 sec. so if ur only ugnna be out of the room for 29 sec. leave it on if not turn it off… on the other hand if u have the small bulbs it takes the energy it takes 2 begin up is .2 sec of keeping it running so unless ur out of the room for 1/5 of a secound turn it off… ur superior off turning them off once u levae the room. hope i helped

Answer by ♥Shorty♥
If you have regular lights, then turn them off when not in use…
If you have fluorescent lights, then leave them on.

Answer by ranfot
it does consume when its on.
and it doesnt when its off

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TURNING LIGHTS ON AND OFF USES ENERGY, BUT HOW LONG SHOULD THEY BE OFF IN ORDER TO SAVE ENERGY?

admin — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 20:33:04 +0000

Question by Corey W:
Turning lights on and off uses energy, but how long should they be off in order to save energy?
When I was younger, my mom always yelled at me for turning the lights on and off rapidly, but i suppose i never understood why, and to this day still. If I use a light for 5 mins and turn it off leave for 10 mins and come back to turn it on for 5 more, am i using more energy than keeping it on for 20 mins straight? Thanks!

hopefully information on Incandescent, CFL, and Fluorescent lights could be explained to me! thanks!

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Answer by john
Install movement sensors in each room to operate the lights to turn them on and off when no one is in the room. It cuts way down on your bill.

Answer by whsgreenmom
Basically any time you turn it off you are saving energy. CFL’s use about .2 watts more for about 10 seconds when they are turned on, so even leaving the room for a minute or 2 you would use more energy leaving them on. Many people state that you wear out the bulbs quicker if you turn them off and on too frequently, but I have not seen a difference in any of the bulbs I have.

Answer by Harmony
The Mythbusters actually covered this myth! Turning on a light does indeed use more energy than a light bulb that is continually burning, but only for a fraction of a second, and it is minimal. Even if you are going to leave the room for a minute, if you turn off the light you will save energy. If you do that each day for a year, you would save enough energy as a light bulb that has been on needlessly for over five hours!

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TURNING LIGHTS ON AND OFF USES ENERGY, BUT HOW LONG SHOULD THEY BE OFF IN ORDER TO SAVE ENERGY?

admin — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 20:33:04 +0000

hopefully information on Incandescent, CFL, and Fluorescent lights could be explained to me! thanks!

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Answer by john
Install movement sensors in each room to operate the lights to turn them on and off when no one is in the room. It cuts way down on your bill.

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Q&A: IMPORT ENERGY SAVING LIGHTS FROM CHINA?

admin — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 20:34:11 +0000

Question by Gaza:
Import energy saving lights from China?
I am thinking of importing energy saving lights lights from China. I have not done this before but i have a feeling that it will be successful.

Does anybody have any advice or steps or process i should follow?

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Answer by Suspension Notice
one word . candles .

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Q&A: DOES IT SAVE ELECTRICITY TO KEEP LIGHTS ON PRIER TO TURNING THEM ON AND OFF ALL THE TIME?

admin — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 04:33:07 +0000

Question by funshopper:
does it save electricity to keep lights on prier to turning them on and off all the time?
my friend and i keep have an argument about lights she stated it’s a scientific fact that it saves electricity to keep lights on then turning them on and off when you need them she states that it uses a lot of electricity to turn them on and off but i tried to tell her when you turn a light on it’s just another wire touching another wire but she still will not believe me please help me with so prof PLEASE

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Answer by The Hulk
Your friend is wrong. That is a myth.

The idea that lights use extra electricity to begin up is a myth. You will save electricity each time you turn the lights off, no matter how short the OFF duration, and whether they are regular lights or fluorescents.

You might have heard that you wear out your lights quicker by cycling them off and on, but that effect is so small it’s not worth worrying about, and you can safely turn your lights off each time you leave the room, no matter how short the duration.

(All of the above was cut and pasted from the link below.)

Edit: The second link below has THIS to state on the subject:

Fluorescent Lighting:

The cost effectiveness of turning fluorescent lights off to conserve energy is a bit more complicated. For most areas of the United States, a general rule-of-thumb for when to turn off a fluorescent light is if you leave a room for more than 15 minutes, it is probably more cost effective to turn the light off. Or in other words, if you leave the room for only up to 15 minutes, it will generally be more cost effective to leave the light(s) on. In areas where electric rates are high and/or during peak demand periods, this period might be as low as 5 minutes.

Fluorescent lights are more costly to buy, and their operating life is more affected by the number of times they are switched on and off, relative to incandescent lights. Therefore, it is a cost trade-off between saving energy and money by turning a light off “frequently” and having to replace the bulbs “more” frequently. This is because the reduction in usable lamp life due to frequent on/off switching will probably be greater than the benefit of extending the useful life of the bulb from reduced use. By frequent we mean turning the light off and on many times during the day.

It is a popularly held belief that fluorescent lights use a “lot” of energy to get started, and thus it is superior not to turn them off for “short” periods. There is an increase in power demand when a light is switched on, and the exact amount of this increase depends on the type of ballast and lamp. The ballast provides an initial high voltage for starting the lamp and regulates the lamp current during operation. There are three basic types of ballasts: magnetic (of which there are energy-efficient and not so energy-efficient types), cathode-disconnect, and electronic. All types can operate two or more lamps simultaneously. There are three main methods that are used in a lamp’s ballast to begin the lamp: preheat, rapid-start, and instant-start.

Answer by Ken B
It does not take “a lot of electricity” to turn a light on — it uses the same energy as one that is already on.

And, even if it were true that it used more electricity, how much more could it use, versus the percentage of time the light is off versus on? Suppose you were to keep it on 8 hours a day. Do you really think it takes the equivalent of 16 hours of electricity to turn it on?

Now, there is some debate, as I comprehend it, as to the longevity of a typical filament lightbulb, and the wear that turning it on causes. (Have you ever seen a lightbulb burn out while it’s on? Or only at the instant you turn it on?) This is, of course, a completely different question.

Answer by Dims
It saves electricity turning lights off whet it is not needed.

But frequent turning lights on and off tears light bulbs at a higher grade.

So, if we talk about saving money, it is a question, what comes first.

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DO YOU SAVE ELECTRICITY WHEN YOU USE DIMMERS IN YOUR LIGHTS?

admin — Sun, 01 May 2011 08:37:35 +0000

Question by Buffalo Soldier:
Do you save electricity when you use dimmers in your lights?

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Answer by DOTTY C
Yes, when you turn them down, less wattage is being used.

Answer by fordman
yes, it limits the current flow through the lamp

Answer by woehlerout
ya, my electric bill just had a tiny info on how to save money and dimmers was on the list

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