Light Bulbs
©1996-2017 Roedy Green of Canadian Mind Products
Light Bulbs
There are three main kinds of light bulb, from left to right, incandescent, fluorescent, and LED (Light-Emitting Diode).
Incandescent
- Cheap.
- Traditional
- Puts out a warm firelight like light.
- When they break, nothing toxic is emitted.
- Inefficient, They use a lot of electricity to produce a small amount of light. They use most of the electricity
they consume to produce heat.
- Delicate
- They are illegal to buy in some jurisdictions.
Fluorescent
- Efficient. They produce a lot of light from a small amount of electricity.
- Sold everywhere.
- All the manufacturers lie outrageously about how long the bulbs last. They claim up to 9 years. Yet they do not actually last more than a year at best. This means the cost savings figures
they give per bulb are complete nonsense. Fluorescent bulbs for my fish tank would burn out about every two
months.
- The bulbs cost considerably more than incandescent.
- Delicate
- The light tends to flicker, or take time to come up to full illumination.
- If the bulb breaks, it contains highly toxic chemicals. Even if the bulb does not break, you must take to a
special recycling operation dispose of it.
- The light is cold, hospital like. For considerable extra cost, you can buy full spectrum bulbs that simulate
natural light.
LED
- They last indefinitely.
- They are rugged. Even if you drop them on the floor, they keep going.
- Efficient. They produce a lot of light from a small amount of electricity. They are about twice as efficient as
fluorescents.
- The light is rock solid, and comes on instantly.
- When they break, nothing toxic is emitted.
- Even a tiny bulb can put out a great flood of light.
- They are cold to the touch. You will never be able to accuse them of starting fires.
- The bulbs are even more expensive than fluorescent.
- The light is cold. For considerable extra cost, you can buy full spectrum bulbs that simulate natural
light.
Halogen
- It is a type of incandescent light used to create dramatic contrasty lighting effects.
- They last longer than regular incandescents.
- Even a tiny bulb can put out a great flood of light.
- They run extremely hot.
- Inefficient. They use a lot of electricity to produce a small amount of light. They use almost all of the
electricity they consume to produce heat.
- The bulbs are quite expensive, mainly because there are dozens of different sorts of sockets.
- You must wear gloves when installing them. If you don’t oils on your hands will cause variation in heat leading to early failure. Other types of bulb
don’t need gloves since they are much lower temperature.
Tips
- Clean the base electrical contact of the bulb with Caig DeOxit Red. This will remove grease and corrosion and prevent future corrosion.
At the same time, clean the socket (with power off please).
Costs
Here are some typical costs from Home Hardware. Prices are in Canadian Dollars. To my surprise, the
large differential between fluorescent and LED has dropped to 0. The price of fluorescents has risen and the price of
LEDs (Light-Emitting Diodes) has fallen.
| Light Bulb Prices |
|---|
| Item |
Price |
|---|
| 40 watt incandescent |
$0.92 |
| 40 watt halogen |
$3.70 |
| 13 watt fluorescent (40 watt incandescent equivalent) |
$7.14 |
| 6 watt LED (40 watt incandescent equivalent) |
$7.14 |
