Energy Saving Tips 1: Lighting
In this series of blogs we’re going to be breaking down our Energy Saving Tips to help you to save the planet, and reduce costs, during a turbulent time for energy markets. We’ve spoken to our Senior Project Engineer, Ben Hogarth, who’s provided us with everything you need to know, starting off with Lighting.
Artificial light is amazing and the advances in the technology in the past 20 years have allowed for huge energy savings. Prior to 2000 the main types of bulbs used were incandescent, which used a filament inside a glass container which when switched on would glow white-hot. Post-2000 energy-saving lightbulbs became much more widespread however, they initially came with big draw-backs including being more expensive than traditional bulbs, and being hard to dispose of. LEDs followed both of these and provided huge energy savings, whilst remaining cheap and accessible.
Here are our quick tips to help you save costs when lighting your home:
If you have multiples lights in one room, consider using a floor or desk lamp with a single lightbulb. This means you can adjust which lighting unit you’d like to use in different scenarios. For example, when preparing for bed, only the smaller desk light may be required, as opposed to powering the overhead light.
Always turn lights off when they’re not in use
Open blinds and curtains to provide natural lighting for as many hours of the day as possible
Ensure the lumens (the brightness of the bulb) is adequate for your needs. You can purchase LED bulbs with special element effects, but their output is often less than ones with regular elements. For example, Ikea sell a bulb called Tradfri which has an output of 250 Lumen at 2.7W, this is a low light level bulb for setting a mood. Ikea sell a bulb called Solhetta which has an output of 470 Lumen at 2.9W, this is what would be a more “normal” light level. The Solhetta gives a 1.88 times higher light output for only 0.2W extra energy cost, making it more efficient.
Know your Kelvin Scale. The Kelvin (K) Scale is use to express how “cool” or “warm” light is. This scale is used on light bulbs, the lower end of the scale (1000K) is comparable to candle light, a “warm” light bulb is around 2700K and a “cool” light bulb is around 4000K.
Lighting is essential in any home and following these tips can have a bigger impact than you may initially think. Particularly in the lead up to winter, where natural light is more sparse, it’s worth considering making these changes as soon as you can.