Electricity is expensive, lighting is needed and money is not abundant. People are faced with a lot of expenses at the same time, so that unnoticed more money is fleeing the wallet than is necessary. A good remedy is to cut back. Cutting back on electricity can save a lot of money on an annual basis by replacing the lamps at home or at the office, among other things. But what kinds of lamps are there, and what should be paid attention to?
The halogen lamp
A halogen lamp is based on the same principle as an incandescent lamp. The difference is that a halogen bulb is filled with one inert gas, a halogen such as fluorine. Due to the presence of this gas, a halogen lamp is slightly more efficient than an incandescent lamp, but it is not very energy efficient. With an average halogen lamp of 18 watts, a light output of 23 watts will be achievable. Some of the energy will be converted to heat, making the halogen lamp not remarkably efficient in its use. Halogen lamps are also not very durable: after approximately 2,000 burning hours, halogen lamps are obsolete and must be replaced. The advantage is that halogen lamps are very cheap to purchase.
The energy saving lamp
The energy-saving lamp is a slightly more expensive lamp that also has to do with a warm-up time, a period after switching on the lamp when the lamp does not shine at full intensity. Despite this warm-up time, the CFL is significantly more economical than the halogen lamp: less heat is emitted and the consumption is much lower for the same light output of a halogen lamp. A CFL also lasts much longer, with an average lifespan of 10,000 burning hours. The efficiency of the energy-saving lamp is due to the presence of mercury vapors in the lamp, which makes the energy-saving lamp pose a health risk during use. There are also energy-saving lamps in which the mercury has been replaced by xenon, although these lamps are significantly less efficient.
The fluorescent tube
Fluorescent lights are often used in workplaces, offices and sheds. Fluorescent lights are known to emit only white light, but technological advancements also make it possible to have fluorescent lights that emit warm white light. Fluorescent tubes are very economical in their consumption: the specifications are the same as an energy-saving lamp. A fluorescent tube is based on the same principles as a CFL, except that a fluorescent tube has to do with different fixtures, holders for the fluorescent tube. Due to the different fixtures, there are also different fittings for the fluorescent tubes, which can cause confusion. A fluorescent tube also has an additional component in the fixture: the starter, which facilitates the ignition of the lighting. This makes the fluorescent tube last longer, with an increase of about 20% of its average burning hours.
LED lamp
The most energy-efficient option is the LED lamp. This lamp lasts an average of 35,000 hours, with a maximum lifespan of 60,000 burning hours. In addition, it is important that the number switching cycles known as it can affect the lamp life. The consumption of an LED lamp, on the other hand, is so low that the number of lumens per watt is 8 to 23 times higher with an LED lamp than with a halogen lamp. This, in combination with the long lifespan, makes LED the best option to save energy. Due to the relatively high purchase cost of the LED lamp, this can be a disputed option to adopt, but in some cases the investment is already paid back after one year.
Consideration
Halogen lamps are not too economical and do not last long. The European Union has decided to ban the sale of these lamps from 1 September 2018 due to their high consumption. The specifications of the lamps are shown in the table below.
Kind of lamp | Costs at purchase | Average number of burning hours | number of times lumen / watt compared to halogen | Health ricico |
---|---|---|---|---|
Halogen | Very low | 2,000 | 1 | Halogen gases |
Save / tl | Low | 10,000 | ~ 4 | Mercury fumes |
LED | Relatively high | 35,000 | ~ 8-23 | No |
The CFL and the fluorescent tube are good options to save money if the purchase and the transition to LED is difficult. These lamps last a relatively long time and are economical in their consumption. If you still want to save more and do not mind high initial purchase costs, LED lamps offer the solution due to their long age and very low consumption.