#MakeDoCREW - Flip the switch to LED

Source: https://blog.arcadia.com/led-vs-regular-lightbulbs-do-they-really-make-a-difference/

​If you're looking for a simple #stayhome project but a more long-term investment, now might be a good time to start replacing your light bulbs.

Lighting accounts for 15% of a typical household’s electricity bill, so bulbs have an important role to play. These days, there are lot of different light bulbs available and we've come a long way from the traditional incandescent kind, which produced only 5% light, with the other 95% being lost as heat! Their carbon footprint was so high - producing more than 15,000,000 tonnes of carbon emissions a year - they were banned in the UK in 2018.

Without a doubt, the most energy and cost efficient solution available is the LED light bulb. Switching from halogen to LED can save up to £3 per year and around 5kg of CO2 emissions PER BULB!

​It would cost the average UK household about £100 to replace all of their lights with LEDs but this would save about £35 a year on bills and LED bulbs can last for 25 years. That means the bulbs would pay for themselves in just under 3 years, leaving you with 22 more years to enjoy your lighting and savings.

​But don't just take our word for it. Below is a quick guide from Which UK on light bulb options and how much a typical 700+ lumen bulb might cost you per year if you have it on for around three hours a day.

Source: https://www.viribright.com/lumen-output-comparing-led-vs-cfl-vs-incandescent-wattage/

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CFL annual running cost £2.04
Pros:

• Cheap and widely available in a range of sizes and outputs
• Four times more efficient than incandescent bulbs and quickly pay for themselves in energy savings

Cons:

• Not everyone likes the light they emit (too dim or slow to 'warm up')​

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Halogen annual running cost £8.42
Pros:

• Similar to an incandescent in light colour and quality
• Uses the same amount of energy as a CFL

Cons:

• Not cost effective - with an expected life span of less than two years, a halogen bulb is unlikely to pay for itself before it fails​

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​LED annual running cost £1.71
Pros:

• Use almost 90% less energy than a traditional incandescent, making them the most energy-efficient type of lighting
• Can last up to 25 years
• In the long term they are the cheapest option
• An LED could save you more than £180 in energy use over its lifetime, compared with an old-style incandescent bulb

Cons: 

• ​More expensive to buy up front
• LEDs can't always match halogen or incandescent light bulbs for colour rendering

For more tips and information on lighting see: ​https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/light-bulbs/article/five-tips-for-choosing-the-right-light-bulb

To see how CREW uses LED lighting in community projects, see our DRCA case study here.