I’m sure you’ve all heard that one of the ways you can reduce your energy bill is by replacing your incandescent light bulbs with CFL bulbs, but if you’re like me, you’re probably also worried about the possible risks associated with doing so. CFL bulbs contain mercury, a neurotoxin that can cause kidney and brain damage, turning a minor mess of broken glass into a HazMat situation.
Because of this, we’ve been very hesitant to use CFL bulbs in our household, so I was very intrigued when The Home Depot contacted me about their new line of LED light bulbs. LED bulbs actually supply just as much light as traditional incandescent bulbs but use far less electricity — a whopping 85 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs and up to 50 percent less energy than CFL bulbs.
I was also amazed to learn that LED bulbs an extremely long life expectancy that, 100 times longer than incandescent bulbs! Each bulb can last up to 100,000 hours or 11.42 years! I know we have several fixtures that are a real hassle to change, so my husband would be thrilled if he only had to do so every ten years or so.
More interesting LED facts:
- Replacing incandescent bulbs with energy-saving lighting options, such as LED lights, is a simple way to reduce your energy bills.
- Replacing standard light bulbs with energy efficient LED bulbs will bring you immediate savings on your electricity bill.
- In fact, innovative LED technology uses up to 85 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs, without sacrificing lighting quality.
- LED bulbs supply just as much light as your old bulbs but use far less electricity. In fact, the innovative technology uses up to 85 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs, and up to 50 percent less energy than CFL bulbs.
- LED bulbs also have an exceptionally long life expectancy that is 100 times longer than incandescent bulbs. Each bulb can last up to 100,000 hours, or 11.42 years.
Sounds great, huh? So you’re probably wondering what’s the catch. The bad news is this great new technology comes with a price tag that’s significantly higher than we’re used to paying for incandescent bulbs. Expect to pay about $17.97 for an LED bulb that’s a 40W equivalent.
However, the good news is that the price is rapidly coming down. In fact, just two years ago, a 60-watt equivalent cost $90 and a 100-watt dimmable bulb went for $360. Wow!
New legislation is requiring that most incandescent bulb production be discontinued by 2014, so it’s definitely important to start looking at other options. While the initial investment may seem steep, it’s important to consider the savings in energy coupled with the longevity of LED bulbs.
Next week I’ll take you shopping with me at my local Home Depot to purchase LED lighting for several fixtures in our house. But in the meantime, you can win a $50 gift card to The Home Depot!
To enter: Just check out the LED lighting page on HomeDepot.com and tell me one cool fact you learned about LED bulbs. Would you purchase LED light bulbs? Have you already started using LED light bulbs in your household?
This giveaway will close at 2:00pm EST on 1/13/11.
The Home Depot works with bloggers such as myself to conduct product reviews. They do not tell bloggers what to say about their products or how to say it. THD fundamentally believes that people should be free to form their own opinions and share them in their own words. The Home Depot often provides product – free of charge – to bloggers for review as they did for this post. The Home Depot’s policies align with WOMMA Ethics Code, FTC guidelines and social media engagement recommendations.
Claudia
E-mail subscriber.
chico
I knew that LED lights used less energy but I didn’t know they lasted so long. I hope this is also true of the LED Christmas lights that I switched to last year. I would love to replace my outside lights to LED so they wouldn’t need to be changed so often. My only concern would be choosing the correct bulb and hoping it looked “right” because at that price it would be expensive to try different ones.
Laurie
LEDs can last up to 100,000 hours, 100 times longer than regular incandescent bulbs.
Alex
LED lights last 100,000 hours & run on chips that emit light.
shirley g
We’ve been replacing our bulbs w/CFL’s, but I’m amazed that LED’s use 85% less energy and last 20 yrs longer than incandescent bulbs. I love products that help save me money!
JoAnn R.
LED’s use less electric! We’ve been using them for the past year. They are a little more expensive up front but they save money in the end!
Danielle Schulz
I never heard of these until just now. As a direct quote: “Just imagine, you could install an LED bulb in your newborn’s room today, and probably not have to replace that bulb until your child is off to college.”
I find this to be amazing. Between the life of the bulbs and the fact that they don’t contain toxins (including mercury), these sound great!
holly
They save more energy then CFL, are safer, and don’t cause the heat that the others do. I am in love with the thought of 100,000 hours.
Jennifer Hokanson
Using 85% less energy is a good thing. We have started using them at home.
Erin Walsh
I love the fact that They emit no harmful UV rays.
And yes I will definitely purchase them, I hated the fact that the CFL bulbs contained mercury, but now that there is a safe alternative, I can just replace existing light bulbs as they burn out.
ewalsh40(at)gmail(dot)com
anna
LED light bulbs come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes and uses!
Amy S.
The LED lightbulbs can last for years and years! They also do not contain mercury and other toxic material!! Yay for my family and the earth! Yes I will buy them…not all at once though $$
Christy
learned they don’t put out any heat! with little ones in the house, this is great to know!!
natalie smith
I learned that they last the time of a newborn to college. Wow, that is amazing,and I am def going to switch to LED, due to energy savings.
sally dyer
they last for about 100,000 hrs and are 85% more efficient than incandescent bulbs.
I have started using them in some of the lighting in my home.
Angella Webb
LEDs do not contain glass, filaments, UV light, or mercury.
Danielle
I learned that they use 85% less energy than regular bulbs. We’ve switched some of our bulbs to LED and I definitely prefer them over incandescent bulbs.
asmith
I learned they are used in stop lights and exit signs, I haven’t purchased any before as the cost comes down probably will
Helen
LEDs last up to 100,000 hours, 100 times longer than incandescent bulbs.
If the prices go down, I would love to use them.
Amy
I learned that they are 85% MORE efficient. I love their long life – but because of the cost I consider them a major home improvement project. I love that they also are brighter than the cfl’s I currently use.
Mandi
I am so glad to learn that they contain no harmful mercury or UV rays. I currently have not tried them but would love to try them out especially if they were not as pricey as they are currently
kristen nadolski
I like that they are dimmable. The standard CFLs I have switched to in most of the house can’t go in my dimmable fixtures. I would love to use them, but switching to the CFLs was a big investment to me!
Anne
I had no idea that LEDs do not contain glass or filaments!
The only LEDs I have used are the strings of LED lights I use on my Christmas tree, but would certainly be interested in trying them out in light fixtures in my home.
Sue
they emit minimal heat…I think I may start using them….I have been using the CFL bulbs thinking I was doing a good thing….guess again…
Sue
I am willing to try any that are safer…I had no idea they emitted little heat…guess thats partly why they last so long….
caroline
they produce little heat and can last up to 20 years longer than incandescent bulbs.
caroline
i’d like to purchase LED lights after reading this but we don’t have any yet. Forgot to add that part- oops!
jill
LEDS are for more than auto headlights and Christmas lights now. Hadn’t considered using them in my home …. but will now, especially after learning that CFL bulbs have mercury and that incandescent bulbs will be phased out of production by 2014! I’m ready to shop for LEDs….just waiting for the price to come down!
Amy Martin
I use nothing but CFLs in my house and was surprised to see that LEDs save even more energy – up to 10% more. Cool! I make have to get some and try them out.
Laura C
I didn’t know that they were even making LED lightbulbs, so it’s all new to me. I was really surprised to learn they make them in candle shapes for chandeliers, wouldn’t mind trying that. We’ve been quite happy with our switch to CFL’s, so we’d probably like these too, I’d be willing to try them – especially if I had a coupon that brings the cost down :)
Andrea W
I like that there is no mercury in them. I use CFL’s but now I am thinking twice about them.. LED seems to be the way to go.