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  • From: Rain Tenaqiya <raincascadia@yahoo.com>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Cc: openpermaculture <permaculture@openpermaculture.org>
  • Subject: [permaculture] CFLs vs LEDs
  • Date: Mon, 15 Nov 2010 14:46:14 -0800 (PST)

Regardless of the supposed false advertising for CFLs, they are a huge
improvement over incandescent bulbs overall, hence the phasing out of
incandescents in certain countries and the subsidies for CFLs.  The amount of
energy used by incandescents is insane.  We would never be able to live off
our 2 amp microhydro generator during the Winter if we had incandescent
bulbs.  Just one bulb would take more energy than our little turbine could
put out.
 
On the other hand, LED bulbs promise to be even better than CFLs, and that is
mostly what we use in our small strawbale/cob house.  My brother in law
recently did his senior thesis at UC Berkeley on the topic and found that
while LED bulbs currently vary tremendously, they should soon be twice as
efficient as CFLs, considering a whole life cycle analsis, and do not have
the mercury toxicity issue.  In general, current LED bulbs are about as
efficient as CFLs, but do not necessarily last as long as advertised and are
often not as bright as claimed.  It is hard to compare LED bulbs to others
because the light is directional.  This makes most models better suited to
task lighting, which is more efficient, anyway.  In our house, I decided to
go for more bulbs in more specific places rather than aim for bright overhead
bulbs, which we hate anyway.  LED bulbs come in many colors and we find the
warm ones very nice for indoor use.  They are still very
expensive, but are worth the money considering how long they last, how
efficient they are, and how easy they are to recycle.
 
Another thing about CFLs:  they break much more easily than LED bulbs and
they get worn out too quickly in applications where they are being turned off
and on a lot.  Closets, bathrooms, portable lamps, and hallways should have
LED bulbs installed in them immediately as a matter of course.  Ten years ago
when I replaced most of the public light bulbs at Green Gulch Farm Zen
Center, I found this out the hard way as I saw $15 and $25 CFL bulbs wearing
out as fast as incandescents in hallways and other places where they were
being turned off and on all the time.  All that plastic, rare gases, and
mercury for nothing.
 
Rain



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Date: Mon, 15 Nov 2010 17:59:46 -0500
From: "Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lflj@bellsouth.net>
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Subject: Re: [permaculture] CFLs vs LEDs
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On 11/15/2010 5:46 PM, Rain Tenaqiya wrote:
> Regardless of the supposed false advertising for CFLs, they are a huge
> improvement over incandescent bulbs overall,
> hence the phasing out of incandescents in certain countries and the
> subsidies for CFLs. The amount of energy used by
> incandescents is insane. We would never be able to live off our 2 amp
> microhydro generator during the Winter if we
> had incandescent bulbs. Just one bulb would take more energy than our
> little turbine could put out.

Flourescents = same illumination (for the most part), less wattage and less
energy wasted by generating heat and not
more light (incandescents). How can one argue with that. Or am I still wrong?




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