In the quest to save more money, finding ways to save home energy is quickly becoming a top priority for a lot of folks. That’s understandable because reducing your home’s utility bill is easy to do if you know how.
Consider home lighting. Twenty-five percent of the average home’s electricity bill is directly attributed to light usage. Just by switching to more efficient energy lighting such as saving energy bulbs throughout your home, you can increase your energy light savings practically overnight.
Here are 5 Efficient Energy Lighting Tips that can quickly and easily lower your home energy costs:
1. Switch to Fluorescent Compact Bulbs
- If you haven’t already replaced your incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, you are leaving major money on the table. These saving energy bulbs use 75 to 80 percent less electricity, last ten to twelve times longer, produce far less heat and emit the same amount of light as incandescent bulbs.
- You can save $30 or more over the lifetime of one fluorescent compact bulb. They cost a little more than the incandescent bulbs, but the increase in energy savings more than justifies the cost.
2. Consider using LED Bulbs
- LED light bulbs are the most efficient energy lighting solution on the market today. These saving energy bulbs, unlike incandescent bulbs, don’t generate a lot of waste heat. This means the energy these bulbs consume goes to directly generate light. The useful life of LED bulbs can range anywhere between 50,000 to 100,000 hours. That’s three to ten times longer than fluorescent bulbs, and 30 to 60 times longer than standard incandescent bulbs.
- LED lighting technology has been around for decades and is commonly used in street lights, ornamental signs and pole lights. Interestingly, these saving energy lights are also used in cell phones, digital clocks, camera flashes and bicycle lights. Until recently, LED bulbs were not manufactured for use in most home lighting fixtures, but that’s changed. Today, they are readily available for most home applications, including holiday lighting.
3. Look for Energy Star Logo
- If you’ve decided to start using saving energy light bulbs, as with a lot of things, you will want to avoid purchasing counterfeits. The only way to know you are getting efficient energy lighting is to make sure the light bulb package has an Energy Star logo on it.
4. Use Home Light Timers
- Installing home light timers inside and outside your home is another efficient energy lighting idea well worth considering. This is especially true if you are in the habit of the leaving the lights turned on when you leave a room or after you fall asleep. An outdoor light timer can also increase the safety of your home by allowing your lights to turn on and off automatically giving the appearance that someone is home while you are away.
- There’s a wide variety of home light timers available. Plug-in timers plug right into the electrical socket. The screw-in varieties fit into a lamp’s socket, and then your bulb does into the timer. Other types that replace typical wall light switches include electronic auto-off, spring-wound and programmable or digital timers.
5. Use Dimmer Switches
- Using dimmer switches throughout your home allows you to increase or decrease lighting levels so you have the proper illumination for the need. There’s actually two ways a dimmer switch can save you money. First, they save energy by using only the amount of electricity needed. Second, a dimmer switch extends the useful life of a bulb because it reduces strain on the filament.
Increase your energy light savings by putting these efficient energy lighting tips into practice today. Inventory your current home lighting situation. Make a list of each light bulb used in your house. Determine if using timer and dimmer switches can save you money. Now, start the replacement process. You will be glad you did when cheaper electricity bills starting rolling in.
