Lighting

LED (Light Emitting Diode) lights & bulbs are currently the most energy efficient light source to use in- and outside the house.

LEDs use 80-90% less energy than the old incandescent bulbs and also have a much longer life span which makes them overall the cheapest to run option for lighting.

Measures to save energy and money:

• Choose the lowest wattage bulb(s) for each room, the higher the wattage the more energy the bulb uses. Some LED bulbs have replaced ‘Watt’ with ‘Lumens’ which indicate the brightness of the bulb. Again the higher the number the more energy is being used by the bulb.

• Turn on lights only when you need them - turn them off when you leave the room, even if only for a short time.

• Consider dimmer switches and task lighting to adjust lighting levels to your activities.

• Use only as many bulbs as you need - many lights can hold 2, 3 or more bulbs but not always are all of them needed to light a room sufficiently.

• Arrange your furniture so you can get most use out of the daylight, e.g. place dining table & chairs close to a window.

• Keep windows clean - it can make a big difference especially in spring and summer (pollen) and coastal areas (salt spray).

• Use bright colours to paint the room - bright colours can reflect up to 80% of the light back into the room, dark colours only reflect as little as 10%.

• Outdoor lights can be fitted with sensors to turn them on and off automatically.