Turn off the lights when they are not needed: how much you will save on your bill with this strategy and how much it affects the type of bulb used, whether LED or energy saving?
Given the unparalleled price increase suffered by electricity, many Europeans are looking for the best strategies to save on their bills.
Reducing the time of use of household appliances and electrical appliances is certainly a good solution, however not always feasible and certainly not sufficient on its own to amortize electricity costs.
The most common idea, although often not put into practice in the best way, is to turn off the lights at home, at least when they are not needed. In this way it is possible to reduce electricity consumption without any particular effort; but how much do you save?
To understand how much it is possible to save on the electricity bill, by implementing a few simple precautions, it is necessary to consider all the variables involved starting from the number of light bulbs and their consumption.
We will therefore rely on average statistical data, so as to provide a complete picture of energy consumption that is a useful yardstick for everyone. We also discover how to make the calculations to know the actual consumption caused by household lights and draw the consequences.
How much do lights consume in the house?
Keeping the lights on at home can have a very variable cost, depending on the types of bulbs used and their number. The bulbs, in fact, are not all the same but differ in consumption and nominal duration of operation.
The nominal duration of operation is nothing more than the average life of the bulb, strongly influenced by the number of times it is switched on and off. This is why you should avoid pressing the switch too frequently unless you want to replace the light bulb.
In addition to this, consumption is also conditioned by the type, in fact there is a precise difference between incandescent and fluorescent bulbs, so it is necessary to know all the details to evaluate how much and how it is convenient to turn them off.
The incandescent bulbs
Incandescent bulbs are used less and less due to their energy inefficiency, which is why they have also been advised against by the European Union. This is due to the functioning mechanism itself, whereby the absorbed energy is transformed into light only for 10/15%.
The remainder of the energy consumed is instead dispersed in the form of heat, which is why it is useful to turn them off as much as possible, especially in hot seasons and thus avoid excessive heated ambient.
Although there are more advantageous alternatives on the market, it is possible to reduce costs even by continuing to use incandescent bulbs, as long as you turn them off whenever they are not strictly necessary.
This will inevitably shorten the life of the bulb but it must be considered that their price is much lower than the amount that can be save in this way.
The fluorescent light bulbs
Fluorescent light bulbs undoubtedly have a higher energy efficiency which, however, can be complicated to calculate on a material level. On the one hand, in fact, this type of light bulb allows a greater energy saving.
On the other hand, fluorescent bulbs are much more affected by the number of times they are turned on or off than incandescent bulbs, as well as having a higher cost. For this reason it is more convenient to leave them on for a maximum of 15 minutes, rather than turning them on several times in the same period of time.
The time taken to supply the fluorescent bulb with the correct amount of energy is only 5 seconds, therefore if the bulb is turned on again during this period, there will be an increase in consumption.
Depending on the price and quality of the light bulb, its efficiency also varies and the time for which it is more convenient leave it on instead of turning it off also increases in proportion.
Led bulbs
The Led bulbs are the absolute most efficient from the energy point of view, they allow a rather considerable saving in terms of consumption and have the advantage of gradually fading before being completely consumed.
Thanks to this feature it is possible to know in advance when it is necessary to buy new bulbs for replacement, as well as having the possibility to use them longer. This is why they are very suitable for short-term or motion sensor-related applications.
How much do you save by turning off the light bulbs?
The savings that can be obtained by turning off the lights in the house must be calculated in relation to the type of light bulbs and their number, also taking into account the current cost of electricity and the hours for which they are left off.
Let’s take for example one of the most convenient bulbs, that is the Led model of 8 W/h energy saving which is also the most common. Given that consumption is 8 watts per hour of use, we need to understand how this affects actual home use.
Multiplying this data by 10 hours, for example from 8 to 18, when it is not essential to use artificial lights, and subsequently by 30 days, we can obtain the average monthly consumption in Watts of the bulbs. To convert it to kW, simply divide the result by 1,000.
In this case, the consumption, and consequently the savings that can be obtained by switching off the bulbs for 10 hours a day throughout the month, is approximately 2.40 kW for a single bulb. However, to understand the actual savings on the bill, it is necessary to multiply this figure by the price of electricity.
The price of electricity set by the protected market is currently 0.501 € / kWh, therefore keeping a light bulb off 10 hours a day allows monthly savings of approximately 1,20 euro. Considering that the average number of light bulbs needed to illuminate a home is at least 10, the savings rise to 12 euros per month.
Original article published on Money.it Italy 2022-10-12 21:42:36.
Original title: Quanto si risparmia spegnendo le luci in casa quando non servono
