Traditional lights and light strings can use a surprising amount of electricity. However, an alternative to traditional incandescent bulbs emerged with incredible savings. LED lights are brighter, better, and even spread cheer to your wallet.
LED light strings have come a long way since their introduction and come in a wide spectrum of vivid colors. If you’re planning a Griswoldian winter wonderland, keep reading to learn about the cost and energy savings of LED lights and light strings.
How much Electricity do LED Lights Use?
In general, LED Lights use less electricity and last longer than incandescent or CFL bulbs. This EarthEasy chart breaks down the electricity usage and cost savings of LEDs, and shows thousands of dollars of savings over 25,000 hours when you switch from incandescent bulbs to LED bulbs.
LED lights also use very little electricity in comparison to traditional incandescent bulbs. The Washington Post investigated LED lights as compared to incandescent lights. Their researchers found that a string of 25 incandescent bulbs used 175 watts of electricity, amounting to $15.12 over the Christmas season. However, a comparable strand of LED lights used only 2.4 watts and cost $0.21 — less than a quarter!
Are LED Lights Cheaper to Run?
LED lights are definitely cheaper than their counterparts. Not only do LED’s consume less energy, but the bulbs also use energy more efficiently, which saves a lot of money. The Indiana University of Pennsylvania found that LED lights convert 80-90% of their energy into light, whereas incandescent bulbs only convert about 10-20% of their energy into light.
According to the Department of Energy, “LED lights consume 80% less energy than their traditional counterparts and last 25 times longer,” making them cheaper to run. The Department of Energy also compared the estimated cost of lighting a six-foot tree for 12 hours a day for 40 days, as you can see on the following chart:
Type of Energy
Cost
Incandescent C-9 Lights
$10
LED C-9 Lights
$0.27
Incandescent Mini-lights
$2.74
LED Mini-lights
$0.82
That’s a huge cost savings! They also compared that same cost over 10 holiday seasons.
Type of Energy
Cost
Incandescent C-9 Lights
$122.19
LED C-9 Lights
$17.99
Incandescent Mini-lights
$55.62
LED Mini-lights
$33.29
Over the years, switching to LED’s can save a lot of money on your electric bill, which gives you more money to spend on other things.
Do LED Lights last longer?
Anything can last for a while if you take care of it, but light bulbs only have so many hours of light. LED lights last far longer than incandescent holiday lights. Much of LED lights’ durability is due to the way LED lights are made.
Incandescent holiday lights burn like an ember due to the heated filament in the bulb that an electric current passes through. As more electric current flows through the filament, the light will burn brighter and burn out the filament. This breaks or opens the circuit in which electricity flows. As a result, it’s not difficult to burn out your incandescent lights.
LED bulbs, on the other hand, use a sophisticated diode and semiconductor to create a current that moves electrons from the negative to the positive side. The resulting reaction is light, which is why they’re called Light-Emitting-Diodes. The United States Department of Energy predicts that a single string of LED lights “could still be in use 40 holiday seasons from now.” Talk about long-lasting!
Where can I find LED lights and light strings?
If you would like high quality LED lights that perfectly match your decor, look no further than LED Lights Unlimited. We offer custom energy-saving LED light strings, perfect for your decoration needs.
Have any questions about LED lights? Give us a call at (800) 321-2547.
Are you tired of skyrocketing energy bills and looking for ways to cut down on your electricity consumption? LED lights have become a popular choice for households and businesses, thanks to their energy efficiency and longevity. Gone are the days when we had no choice but to pay for hefty electricity bills, no thanks to halogens and light bulbs known for consuming a lot of energy.
But, do LED lights use a lot of electricity? In this blog post, we will delve into the world of LEDs and discover how much energy they really consume compared to traditional incandescent bulbs. So, sit back and let's shed some light on this commonly asked question!
Table of Contents:
To answer this question, we first need to understand the concept of power consumption. Power consumption is the amount of electricity used by a device over a period of time, usually measured in watts (W). The higher the wattage, the more electricity a fixture uses.
So, how do LED strip lights compare to traditional incandescent bulbs when it comes to power consumption? Let's take a look at a typical 60-watt incandescent bulb and compare it to an equivalent LED strip light.
A 60-watt incandescent bulb consumes 60 watts of electricity per hour. If left on for 10 hours, it would consume 600 watt-hours (Wh) of electricity. On the other hand, an equivalent LED strip only consumes around 9-12 watts per hour, depending on its brightness. This means that if left on for 10 hours, an LED strip would consume only 90-120 watt-hours of electricity, versus the 600 watt-hours from the incandescent bulb.
One of the main reasons why LED lights use less electricity than incandescent bulbs is their energy efficiency. LED lights are much more efficient at converting electrical energy into light than incandescent bulbs. In fact, LED lights are up to 80% more efficient than traditional bulbs.
This is because LED lights produce light through a process called electroluminescence, which involves the emission of light from a semiconductor material when an electric current is passed through it, simply put, LEDs are instant-on. This process is much more efficient than the process used in incandescent bulbs, which involves heating a filament to produce light. As a result, LED lights produce much less heat, and most of the energy they consume is converted into light.
While LED lights are generally more energy-efficient than traditional bulbs, there are some factors that can affect their power consumption. These include:
Brightness: The brighter the LED light, the more electricity it will consume. However, even the brightest LED lights consume significantly less electricity than their incandescent counterparts. There are several types of LED strips that impact brightness.
12V and 24V Rated LED strips, the later being brighter due to higher voltage rating
Standard
vs
High Density
LED Strips, the higher density being brighter since the LEDs here are more compact.
COB lights
, this LED is bright and compact but are still more energy efficient than traditional lighting systems.
Color temperature: LED lights come in a variety of color temperatures, ranging from warm white to cool white. The color temperature can affect the power consumption of the LED light, with warmer temperatures generally consuming less electricity than cooler temperatures. This may be true with other manufacturers. With Hitlights this depends on the type of LED used, if the LED strip is standard density power consumption will be the same across the different color temperature, the same goes with high-density strips, however, this may be true with other manufacturers.
Usage time: The longer an LED light is used, the more electricity it will consume. However, as we saw earlier, even when left on for extended periods of time, LED lights consume significantly less electricity than traditional bulbs.
If you're looking to switch to LED lights to reduce your electricity bills and energy consumption, there are a few things to keep in mind when selecting LED lights. Here are some tips:
Look for high-quality LED lights: High-quality LED lights are more energy-efficient and last longer than cheaper, low-quality alternatives. Look for LED lights that are UL listed, which means they have been tested and certified to meet safety and quality standards.
Choose the right brightness level: Select an LED light with a brightness level that meets your needs without being excessively bright. This will help reduce power consumption and ensure that you're not wasting energy.
Go with standard density if your aim is to get subtle lighting
Your perfect fit for high density LED strips will be general to task lighting applications
Consider color temperature: If you're looking to save energy, choose an LED light with a warmer color temperature, as these tend to consume less electricity than cooler temperatures.
This will vary depending on the manufacturer of choice
Ideally, this depends on the make of the LED strip if it has a varying power consumption per different color temperature. Best to check the specifications that shows the wattage per foot consumption of the LED strip per color temperature.
For any additional questions or concerns, you can also get in touch with any of our expert engineers and tech at 1 (855) 768-4135.