5 Things you didn’t know about LEDs + International Comparisons

  • Tuesday, 1st August, 2017

We thought we’d share with you a few things you might like to know about energy saving LED products!

Energy Efficiency

LEDs use energy far more efficiently with little-wasted heat, unlike incandescent bulbs, which release 90 percent of their energy as heat.

Light Life

Good-quality LED bulbs can have a useful life of 25,000 hours or more — meaning they can last more than 25 times longer than traditional light bulbs. That is a life of more than three years if run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Environmentally Friendly

LEDs contain no mercury and have a much smaller environmental impact than incandescent bulbs. They also have an edge over compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) that is expected to grow over the next few years as LED technology continues its steady improvement.

Different Uses

From traffic lights and vehicle brake lights, to TVs and digital alarm clocks, LEDs are used in a wide range of applications because of their distinctive features. Including compact size, ease of maintenance, endurance, little to no heat and the ability to focus the light in a single direction instead of having it go every which way.

Less Power!

Here is a fact… LEDs use less power (watts) for maximum lumens (LED light output).

International Comparisons

In 2012, about 49 million LEDs were installed in America — saving about $675 million in annual energy costs. Switching entirely to LED lights over the next two decades could save $250 billion in energy costs, reduce electricity consumption for lighting by nearly 50 percent and avoid 1,800 million metric tons of carbon emissions.

In Australia, progress for LEDs is limited compared to the U.S and we fall short. Although the estimated costs to deliver the program over a 3-4 year period for street lighting alone, are just over $2m plus access to external financing; the overall benefits of the program would include annual energy savings of between $35 and $52m for public lighting customers and greenhouse savings of 400,000 to 635,000 tonnes of greenhouse emissions.

References:
Energy Rating. 2017. Lighting | Energy Rating. http://www.energyrating.gov.au/products/lighting.

Related