Fluorescent Light Bulb Wattage Comparison

The lower the light bulb wattage the lower the electric bill.

Fluorescent light bulb wattage comparison.

Lumens not watts tell you how bright a light bulb is no matter the type of bulb. Of course not every fluorescent incandescent metal halide etc lamp will give its lumens. The greater the lumens the brighter or more intense the light. Traditionally we ve referred to light bulbs by their watts because most people used incandescent light bulbs and knew difference between a 60 and 100 watt bulb.

The amount of energy a light bulb uses. Through the increased use of fluorescent and led bulbs we use less watts to produce the same amount of lumens saving us money on energy bills. To save the most money on your electric bills replace your bulbs with the lowest wattage for the desired lumens brightness. Labels on the front of light bulb packages now state a bulb s brightness in lumens instead of the bulb s energy usage in watts.

In general a simple rule to follow to replace an incandescent with an equivalent in light output cfl bulb is to select the cfl bulb that has 1 4 watts compared with the replaced incandescent bulb. The lumens scale indicates the brightness of a bulb and should be used when selecting your new led. To compare different light bulbs you need to know about lumens. A 40 watt fluorescent tube for example is rated around 2300 lumens.

Standard 100 watt bulbs produce about 1600 lumens. The more lumens the brighter the light. Because fluorescent lights are often installed in high ceilings in commercial sites there are additional savings because the frequency of changing bulbs is greatly reduced. An incandescent light bulb s longevity is 2 000 hours on average.

For example a correct replacement for a 60w incandescent bulb would be a 15 watt cfl bulb 60 1 4 15. To replace it with the same intensity led just look for one that rates around 2300 lumens. A fluorescent light bulb s longevity is significantly higher from 6000 to 15000. However wattage simply represents the amount of energy needed to use the bulb.

If you re wondering how much more efficient leds are than t12s consider these results. Ge high output rapid start recessed double contact 55 watt 48 in recessed double contact t12 4100 k cool white fluorescent light bulb item 1484974 model 10559. On the other hand fluorescent light bulbs provide much more lumens per watt making this type of lamp much more efficient than incandescent bulbs while providing a comparable light output. Compact fluorescent lights cfls and leds have a lower wattage than incandescent bulbs but emit the same light output.

The annual energy cost of an led using a lighting control is 11 28 compared to 27 83 for.