Energy saving light bulbs and lighting

These days, you’ll only really see one type of light bulb in shops – LED bulbs. All other types of light bulb have either been phased out or are being phased out. 

You might still have some older types of bulb at home, so we’ve listed them here: 

• Light emitting diodes (LEDs) 
• Incandescent lights 
• Halogen lights 
• Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) 
• Linear fluorescent lamps (LFLs) 

Let’s look at them in more detail. 

LEDs are by far the most energy efficient light bulb. LED light bulbs are just as powerful as halogen lights but use 80% less electricity to do so. 

Also, LEDs last significantly longer than halogen bulbs. Up to 20x longer in many cases, so you may not need to replace them for many years.

For many types of light fittings, you can replace the whole light fitting with one that has LED light integrated into the fitting. 

This needs an electrician to replace the light fitting, but they often come with LED lighting that’s more efficient than normal LED bulbs. They also offer you more brightness compared to normal LED bulbs of the same wattage. 

The types of light fittings that you can upgrade include: 

Downlighters fit into the ceiling. Integrated LED downlighters are often ‘fire rated’ meaning they should be safer in a fire than a light fitting with a separate bulb. 

Some types say you cover them with insulation too. This is especially good for making sure there are no gaps in your loft insulation. 

Some integrated lights come with the option of being connected to a small backup power pack. These switch the light on automatically if there’s a power cut to provide emergency lighting for a few hours.

You could replace these with an integrated LED batten for more energy efficient lighting. 

You could replace these with an integrated unit. This takes away the need for fiddly light bulb changes. It also makes the lights more weather proof, and you could get one with a motion sensor so it only comes on when needed. 

If you replace the remaining halogen spotlights in your home with LED bulbs, you could save :

• £40 a year in Great Britain (GB).
• £50 in Northern Ireland (NI).

You’ll also lower your CO₂ emissions by 35kg in GB and 35kg in NI. 

LEDs are the most common and adaptable light fitting and are suitable for replacing dimmable lights and spotlights. We recommend switching to LED light bulbs in almost every situation. 

Have you ever bought a low energy light bulb and were disappointed by the level of brightness it gave out? You may have bought a bulb with too small a lumen value. 

Lumens are a measure of how bright a bulb is.

With traditional bulbs, we used watts to figure out the brightness of a bulb. However, watts measure power consumption rather than brightness. Energy saving light bulbs use fewer watts, so it’s best to look at lumens. 

This table compares the wattage of traditional bulbs and approximate equivalent lumen values of LEDs / CFLs. 

It’s important to get the right type colour to meet your needs and what you’re used to. In the past, some LEDs were unpopular because they had too harsh a white colour compared to the warmer tones of incandescent or halogen lights. But you can now get LEDs in a wide range of colours and tones. 

Shops will often have a chart showing you the different colours, giving them a description, such as ‘warm white’. There should also be a number showing the ‘colour temperature’.

Generally: 

• ‘Very warm white’ has a similar tone to incandescent bulbs and has a warmer glow. They’re often at a colour temperature of 2700K. These tend to suit living areas and bedrooms. 
• ‘Warm white’ bulbs also offer a warm and cosy glow. With a colour temperature of 2700 to 3000K, they suit most general household lighting 
• ‘Cool white’ offers a purer white, but can be a bit harsh for many rooms of a house. They have a colour temperature of 4000 to 4500K. They might suit bathrooms and maybe kitchens. 

When shopping for LEDs, you may also see a colour rendering index (CRI). Some light bulbs might distort other colours compared to how they’d look under natural light. The CRI of a bulb shows you how accurately a bulb will illuminate other colours. The higher the CRI, the more accurate colours will look under the light. 

The bulb’s packaging will show the CRI alongside the lumen value. A CRI of 80 or more is good for most household tasks. 

Not all LED bulbs will work with a dimmer control so check before buying. If your dimmer control isn’t designed for LED bulbs it probably won’t work properly. So, you may need to upgrade the dimmer control to one that’s LED compatible. Speak to an electrician to make sure your new dimmer swich is fully compatible with your lights.

Integrated LED lights may work better with dimmer controls. Your electrician may choose a dimmer switch from the same manufacturer as your lights so that they’re fully compatible. 

Sometimes, light switches might not be in the right place for you, or you have difficulty using them. There are now wireless switches available that you can fit to a more convenient location without a lot of work and disruption. These could also be useful for bathrooms.

The quickest way to start saving is to turn lights off when you don’t need them. It’s one of our quick tips to save energy. 

You could save around £7 a year in GB and £9 in NI just by switching off the lights as you leave the room. 

You can also use lamps or smaller lights for parts of the room. This means you won’t need to rely on the ‘big light’ to light up the whole room. 

Also, use sensors or timers for any external lights, so they’re only on when you need them. 

You may be tempted to use ‘smart bulbs’ controlled by an app. While these offer a greater range of control and lighting colours, they aren’t likely to save energy. For more information, read our blog on smart technology and energy saving. 

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