Lighting up your home or business represents 20% to 25% of your electricity bill (the variance accounts for the different tariffs at play from your electrical supplier). This is a large part of anyone’s electricity bill and with the darker evenings upon us the average bill will only be on the increase.
We discuss below some energy saving tips that will reduce the dreaded electricity bill. Lighting is one of the easier areas to achieve energy saving whilst also saving you money. Let’s start with the obvious ones but we would make a bet we could all get better at doing them:
- Get into the habit of turning off lights in areas/rooms that are not being used
- Open curtains in the morning rather than switching the light on
- Use light colours on walls to help make the most of the reflection of natural light
- Use lamps rather than the full (big) light – results in less light and energy required to illuminate the whole room
- Security lights – make sure they have a motion sensor rather than being always on
- If there is a room that needs to have the light on all night i.e. the bathroom the use of sensor will save energy and thus provide cost saving
- Use the lowest watt bulb you can get away with
- If you have a skylight make sure there is a diffuser at the bottom which ensures that the light is evenly spread, meaning you are getting the most from your skylight and the natural light potential in the room.
Now for the less obvious but possibly one that if taken can be the most effective in energy saving:
Switching to LED from incandescent bulbs.
This is easier than you think and while the initial outlay may hit the pockets or the budget it is definitely something you should look to complete as part of your energy saving plan. With prices continuously coming down it is a good time to make the switch. You have options with regard to the budget you want to spend, such as:
Option 1:
You can replace all light fittings for LED solutions which is the more expensive option.
Option 2:
Alternatively, you can move to LED by replacing all your incandescent screw in light bulbs with screw in LED bulbs. Only thing to watch out here is replace the existing bulbs with the LED bulb that matches the spec of the incandescent bulb for screw in purposes.
Why is LED so good at energy saving; LED lighting solutions use a lot less energy and last a lot longer than the traditional incandescent lighting solutions.
Did you know? LED lights are more flexible with light direction resulting in more dramatic lighting solutions especially in the commercial and retail environments.
LEDs are available in three colour temperature options: Warm White, Cool White and Day Light and they are dimmable, but you may need to replace your existing dimmer switch as there could be a compatibility issue with the new LED solution.
So, to recap – Lighting is one of the easiest areas to save and energy and money. Some energy saving tips are pretty obvious and probably one of the most effective tactics for energy saving is switching to LED lighting solutions.
If you would like to chat about your lighting solution and how you can save energy today – call one of our lighting experts in Electric Skyline on +353 (0)94 9360954 or send us an email to info@electricskyline.ie.