February 2007

A New Lighting Leader?

Widespread use of super efficient bulb on the horizon

Hopefully you’ve seen our articles touting the benefits of compact fluorescent (CF) lighting.

If you haven’t, CF bulbs are a great alternative to using common incandescent bulbs. They last ten times longer and use only one-fourth the energy. In the long run, just one lamp equipped with a CF can save $30 to $40.

This 60 LED array fits in a common lamp socket and uses only 3.1 watts of electricity. Bulb courtesy Atlanta Light Bulbs.

But an even better bulb may be just a few years away.

What if you could buy a bulb that was 40 times more efficient and lasted a hundred times longer than a standard incandescent bulb?

Science fiction? Nope­–you probably already own some of these light bulbs, just on a smaller scale.

Light emitting diode (LED) lighting is everywhere-in toys and flashlights, as indicator lights on electronics and replacing old-fashioned bulbs in traffic signals. In applications like these, LEDs work and work well.

For general lighting though, LEDs don’t perform so well. So why are researchers spending the time and trouble trying to adapt them? The payoff should be worth the effort.

LED lighting is extremely efficient. Not only will this save the end consumer money, it will also decrease electrical demand on generating plants and the power grid.

Just how efficient? A light bulb that now costs 10 cents a day to operate will only cost 1 cent when it is replaced by LED lighting of the same size.

Forget about changing bulbs. The average incandescent bulb is rated to last 1,000 hours. A CF bulb can last 10,000 hours. LED lights have a lifetime of anywhere from 50,000 to 100,000 hours–that’s over 11 years of continuous operation.

LEDs are tough. They’re less susceptible to vibration damage since they don’t have a filament or glass to break. They also do well in temperature extremes, making them well adapted for harsh locations.

They’re cool. LED arrays get slightly warm to the touch. On the other hand, incandescent lighting can get hot enough to start a fire.

Reduced heat also means air conditioning has to work less–a potentially huge energy saver for commercial applications.

LED lighting is beginning to show up in limited uses for homes. Since LEDs produce directional light, most applications have involved task or accent lighting. But new multi-LED arrays are being developed to fit in standard lamp or light fixture socket.

So why isn’t everyone rushing out and buying LED bulbs?

First, the supply and selection is limited. Second, and most important, they’re expensive.

A typical LED bulb can range anywhere from $30 to $60 or more. Even though you’ll come out ahead overall during the life of the LED bulb, it’s still hard to shell out that much for just one bulb.

But don’t despair. When CF bulbs first hit the market, they were expensive too. Now you can find CF bulbs on sale for less than $2.

“It will be years before LED lighting is common in homes,” says Doug Root, a lighting expert with Atlanta Light Bulbs. “But LEDs are used all the time in commercial applications."

Root points to exit signs as an example. When the energy savings is coupled with the reduced maintenance cost of the signs, using LEDs turns out to be a no-brainer.

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