Up-Front Costs
The one issue people find with LED bulbs is the fact that they cost more. Light bulbs are often given little priority, being purchased on price alone. Standard incandescent bulbs typically cost around one dollar while LED options range around seven or eight dollars. Before you make your decision, be sure to read on to see why this initial cost is a drop in the bucket compared to the long-term savings you can expect!
Life Expectancy
One major advantage LEDs hold is their longevity over standard light bulbs. An incandescent bulb is rated to last roughly 1,200 hours during regular use. If you are using one bulb eight hours a day, you can expect 150 days worth of productivity before replacement. LEDs, on the other hand, are constructed to shine for more than 25,000 hours! That same heavy-use room can benefit from an LED installation that will provide illumination for more than 312 days!
Replacement Demands
Replacing light bulbs. When one goes out, nobody is happy to install a new bulb. If your property features home lighting fixtures that are hard to reach or are rather dangerous to work with, LEDs are a smart choice. Over the course of a decade, consumers utilizing incandescents eight hours a day can expect to change their bulbs roughly 25 times. This adds up! LEDs, on the other hand, average out to 1.2 bulb changes per decade. When you thinking about hopping on that ladder, this stat can make a big difference!
Long-Term Costs
Your energy usage will improve immediately when swapping incandescents out with LEDs. Remember that eight hours of use a day equates to 29,200 hours over the course of a decade. With a 60-watt incandescent, you’re likely spending about $210 dollars in that decade for a single bulb (assuming a rate of $0.12 per kilowatt hour). At this same rate, your 10-watt LED bulb will cost about $35 over a decade.
When you combine the costs of operation with the cost of bulb replacements, it can be easy to see why LEDs are the top choice:
- Incandescent costs over 10 years (8 hours/day) – estimated $245 total
- LED costs over 10 years (8 hours/day) – estimated $42 total
Eco-Friendly Advantages
Beyond being very efficient and safe to the touch, LED bulbs are also better for the environment. Simply put, incandescents are more wasteful. The design of standard light bulbs off-put a lot of heat during operation, with only five percent of the energy being converted into light. LEDs are much more efficient, converting 95 percent of their energy into light with the remainder consisting of wasteful heat. If everyone in our country switched to modern light bulb solutions, major changes could be made to help our environment!
LED bulbs cost less for both your wallet and the planet we love. Making the switch can provide a range of advantages, but keep in mind that certain limitations may affect the success of your residential lighting project. If you’re in need of a lighting store in Omaha with more than 60 years of experience, be sure to stop by The Light Palace or contact us today for assistance!
