PHASING OUT OF INCANDESCENTS
Traditional incandescent light bulbs are very inefficient: they waste 95% of the electricity they use by turning it into heat. So under new EU rules, they’re being phased out and replaced by energy efficient light bulbs – a measure that will reduce CO2 emissions by up to 15 million tons a year.
Traditional incandescent bulbs began to be phased out in 2009 when the manufacture of 100W light bulbs 60W pearl light bulbs was stopped. In September 2011, 60W clear bulbs were also banned from being produced. These lamps are not being removed from sale – there are still large stocks of them in the marketplace and we’ll continue to supply them until existing stocks run out. But sales of these types of bulbs have been declining anyway as more and more people learn about the benefits of energy efficient alternatives like Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs), LEDs, halogens and HIDs.
In fact there are a number of different energy saving technologies available today, and they all offer better value than old-style incandescent light bulbs. Compare, for example, the conventional 60W clear incandescent light bulb, with what we think is the best alternative: the GLS 42W halogen lamp. The clear 60W bulb costs 96p and the halogen costs £1.95, but it delivers energy savings of 30% and it lasts for twice as long – 2,000 rather than 1,000 hours.
So if you’re making the switch to energy efficient light bulbs, the GLS 42W halogen lamp is a great budget choice that will also reduce your electricity consumption. There are lots of other options available, however, and our website provides an easy way of finding the best energy-saving alternative to traditional light bulbs. Now could be a great time to re-evaluate the lighting in your home or workplace – remember our experts are always on hand to help.
NEW LUMENS MEASUREMENT
Lumens are being introduced as the new unit of measurement for light bulbs.
In the past, the strength of light bulbs was measured in watts, which is actually a measure of power. This isn’t a useful unit of measurement for new energy-saving light bulbs, which consume much less power than old-style incandescent light bulbs. So because comparisons based on wattage are no longer meaningful, the strength of new energy-saving light bulbs is expressed in lumens, which measures instead the amount of light they produce. The higher the number of lumens, the brighter the light.
If you haven’t already, you’ll soon start seeing light bulbs categorised by lumens rather than wattage. There isn’t necessarily a correlation between lumens and watts because they measure different things. But as a rough guide, look for:
