The Battle of the Bulbs
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO 
on 05. 6.06
We've devoted many a post to the virtues of both compact fluorescent light bulbs and LED bulbs over traditional incandescents, and even pointed to attempts to "Ban the (Incandescent) Bulb." The folks at Productdose.com, though, have taken the battle of the bulbs a step further, and created a handy spreadsheet (in MS Exel) that lays out the facts of each bulb choice side-by-side so you can easily see the benefits and drawbacks of purchasing a particular bulb type. Among the details they note:
- LED bulbs are, by far, the best choice for energy efficiency. Even with a comparatively high upfront cost, their frugal use of electricity and long life end up creating the biggest savings over the long run. The drawbacks: that high upfront cost (the bulb they tested runs just under $55), a slight loss of brightness, and "a very direct field of light" which makes them less than ideal for standard floor and table lamps.
- CFLs look like the best choice for all-around lighting. They're relatively cheap (PD paid $2.98), very energy efficient, and useful in just about any fixture.
- Traditional incandescents have one advantage: they're cheap to buy. Their short lifespan and energy-hogging means you end up paying through the nose in the long term, though.
This is a great resource to keep nearby when it's time to buy new bulbs, proving once again that conservation isn't just a virtue -- it also makes a difference in the household budget. ::productdose.com: Incandescent vs. CFL vs. LED Light Bulb Challenge
Follow @TreeHugger on Twitter & get our headlines with @TH_rss!
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
- Clean Your Light Bulbs for 20% More Light
- Create a Go Green Plan: Follow Wa$ted!'s Salon Example
- Why Building Community is the Greenest Thing You Can Do
- Save Over $1,000 with These Six Green Tips
- Chipotle Goes Green, Plus Recipe for Hormone-Free Braised Pork with Chipotle Peppers
- Trust Stella McCartney: Meat-Free Mondays are Hip, not Hippie!
It would be nice to see that spreadsheet re-done with several sets of each bulb at comparable candlepower.
if you break just one of your LED bulbs, i suspect your savings over CFL just got blown. i don't mind paying $3 for a CFL, but it kills me when I break even one of those. i have a few exposed bulbs in my basement and hallways, BTW, so not everyone's bulbs are going to be susceptible to getting broken.
What a spiffy spreadsheet, and really handy to have around. I shall have to look into making a version of that to make the prices and all the other details appropriate for the Philippines. Fluorescent bulbs are actually more commonly used here, so it'd be fun to find out WHICH fluorescent bulb is the most energy-efficient.
The last time I tried a compact flourescent bulb, I couldn't find one that generated a pleasant-colored light. I tried them side-by-side with "natural light" incandescent bulb, an the incandescent was *much* less harsh, and much more pleasant. Has anyone done a side-by-side trial lately with "natural light" bulbs?
I use the compact flourescent bulb on my porch, though -- it's great out there!
I've had the same problem with the light-temperature/color of the fluorescent bulbs. I was so excited when they started becoming affordable, rushed out to replace all my bulbs, and then found that the harsh, green-tinted light drove me nuts. If only broad-spectrum or daylight balanced fluorescents were more affordable/available...
It would be nice to see that spreadsheet re-done in a universal format, like PDF !
Problem is a pdf is that it wouldn't be dynamic and you couldn't input your own data in it to see how much energy/money you'd save..
Hey Honey,
Maybe we should switch? Looks like there's a HUGE difference. (I never knew it was this much.)
xxx
What about the mercury in the ballasts of the CFLs? I've pretty well converted my house over, but then read the small print at the bottom of the CFL bulbs. They must be disposed of as hazardous material, since they have the mercury, right?
How many CFLs do you suppose end up in the landfill? How many get properly disposed of?
Ben, TreeHugger wrote about this before. Link.
CFL light is a bit different from incandescent, but if you get them in the 2700k, its not bad at all. One trick to converting is to do it in stages, mixing them in with incandescent. Then keep replacing one more incarnadined with a CFL as they blow. You'll never notice the difference. Once you're used to CFL, you're good to go.
One problem I have with the CFLs is that the are about 1/4 longer and don't fit in many of my enclosed fixtures.
Unfortunatly, my wife won't let me put them in the fixtures where you can see the bulb.
I've been buying CFLs similar to GE's "soft white" incandescents, and the light is much less harsh. Still takes a little getting used to, but works fine.
gnomic---they make CFLs now that are the same size as regular bulbs, also they make enclosed CFL's so you dont see the flourescent spirals.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.greenhybrid.com/share/files/9/2/4/tinybulb.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.greenhybrid.com/share/image485.html&h=467&w=640&sz=39&tbnid=WIkVQL5IHFDs0M:&tbnh=98&tbnw=135&hl=en&ei=j19eRLfEPMXWJKKotPcP&sig2=3G3sYZsbXWMqs5dpnguQ4A&start=30&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcfl%2Bbulb%26start%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN
Wow, I just got around to checking the numbers, and it looks like you need to put in your personal info before checking the outcome.
The biggest difference came for me when I changed the default kWh on the form (about $0.23) to my rate (which ranges from $0.04 to $0.07 depending on usage). At first, I just assumed that the figure for the rate was similar to my own, but it was 3-6 times what I pay for energy now.
When I changed the rates, CFLs went from a distant second to a clear first place in terms of dollars and cents saved.
IKEA will accept their own CFLs for recycling, so that the mercury is re-used. They used to sell CFLs that were the same length as standard incandescent bulbs. They still do, but the ones they carry now are too narrow for a standard bulb socket.
I've noticed there are two sets of CFLs. I like the daylight type but in comparison to incandescents it can seem harsh. There is another set in warm white light that pretty much have a similar soft yellow glow as incandescents
I use the Panasonic Gen IV. They have 5000K lumens (bright white) or 2800k lumens (softer)
I use the 2800k Lumens which gives a nice light but not too bright like other CFL.
Problem, they are expensive and hard to find.
I recently purchased my first spiral bulbs. Since there is a shade around the lamp, I don't really notice a change to the color of the light. I do have the same problem as others though, with it sticking a little higher than the shade. It was $6 for a pack of two. Hope it lasts as long as the packaging says.
Yeah, the warm-light CFLs are hard to find here in India, but I did manage to get a few Philips CFLs for my bedroom and living room...too bad they're not very resistant to the occassional voltage surge courtesy of high winds that make untrimmed tree branches touch the overhead local power lines! I'm really proud of the savings in electricity and gas due to our 10 year old overhead solar water heater...about 95% of all new homes here in Bangalore have them, contributing to massive savings! Rock on Treehuggers worldwide!
This spreadsheet ant analysis is totally flawed and perpetuates the myth that LEDs are incredibly efficient. Why? The incandescent & CFL lights they used had a light output of 800 lumens, the LED had 120 lumens! The LED light they used had a sixth of the light output as the others! These are real numbers - you can't justify it by saying "Oh, they look about the same" as they've done because it's just not true.
What IS relevant is lumens/watt. Good quality CFLs get about 60 lumens/watt, the best current LEDs reach about 40 (the Lumileds 1W luxeon, most are less) while incandescents are around the 10-15 lm/w range. So for the same light output you'd need about 6-7 of those high wattage LEDs which then use quite a bit more power than the CFL and cost a lot more too.
High quality (linear)fluorescent tubes with electronic ballasts can get up to 100 lm/w and sodium vapour lamps (those orange streetlights) get a lot more but are not very white or very practical for general use(slow turn on etc).
It really frustrates me when well meaning but ignorant environmentalists make bad comparisons like this and conclude the wrong thing.
The real story: good quality CFLs rule. Get the "warm white" ones (about 3300K colour temperature) and they will have the same light as your old incandescents.
Benjamin
Oh, and one more thing - here's a better alternative to this spreadsheet:
http://www.ecobulb.co.nz/MoneySavingCalc.aspx
Benjamin
in the spreadsheet 60,000 hours at 5 hours per day is 32 years. in 32 years time LED technology will probably be obsolete. Also 32 years of savings look great but why not show a per year saving for a timescale of 5 years (10,000 hours) and it would be more realistic for the average user