Why You Should Convert Your Home to LED Lighting

LEDs have the power to potentially change the future of the lighting industry. LEDs in homes use at least 75% less energy and last 25 times longer than incandescent lights, decreasing not only the cost of electricity bills, but also the costs of replacement lights. “By 2027, widespread use of LEDs could save about 348 TWh [1 TWh = 1 billion kWh] (compared to no LED use) of electricity: This is the equivalent annual electrical output of 44 large electric power plants (1000 megawatts each), and a total savings of more than $30 billion at today's electricity prices” (US Department of Energy 2016).

When LEDs were first introduced to the lighting market in the early 2000s, most consumers were turned off by their high cost. However, the prices of LEDs have experienced a game-changing drop in recent years. Consumers can now find affordable LED bulbs at their local home improvement store.

If you converted your house to only LED lighting, your electricity bills would be cheaper, you would avoid replacement costs for about ten years and you would reduce heat production. If you switched just one 60 watt incandescent bulb to an equivalent 10 watt LED, your change in wattage would bring about $153.30 in savings each year. (Calculations based on operation for 12 hours a day, 5 days a week, at $.14/kWh)

While energy savings may be the driving factor of switching to LED lighting, LEDs have other great features such as limited heat production and lower UV emissions. Traditional incandescents and fluorescent bulbs release 80-90% of their energy as heat, but LEDs are designed to have cool surface temperatures, creating a more child-friendly home and lowering air conditioning costs. In addition, the low UV radiation of LEDs prevents attracting insects and damaging artwork over time.

Within the past two years, the number of Americans who have purchased LEDs for their home has doubled. While the rate of LED interest is growing, ⅓ of homeowners in the United States have still not purchased LEDs for their home (Tweed 2015). When your current light bulbs go out, we hope you’ll consider how LEDs can influence your home!