By January 1879, at his laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey, Edison had built his first high resistance, incandescent electric light. It worked by passing electricity through a thin platinum filament in the glass vacuum bulb, which delayed the filament from melting. Still, the lamp only burned for a few short hours. In order to improve the bulb, Edison needed all the persistence he had learned years before in his basement laboratory. He tested thousands and thousands of other materials to use for the filament. He even thought about using tungsten, which is the metal used for light bulb filaments now, but he couldn't work with it given the tools available at that time.
The Edison lamp from our Attic is dated January 27, 1880. It is a product of the continued improvements Edison made to the 1879 bulb. Even though it is over a hundred years old, this bulb looks very much like the light bulbs lighting your house right now. The base, or socket, on this 19th century lamp is similar to the ones still used today. It was one of the most important features of Edison's lamp and electrical system. The label on this bulb reads, "New Type Edison Lamp. Patented Jan. 27, 1880 OTHER EDISON PATENTS."
Before he died in 1931, Edison patented 1,093 of his inventions. The wonders of his mind include the microphone, telephone receiver, universal stock ticker, phonograph, kinetoscope (used to view moving pictures), storage battery, electric pen, and mimeograph. Edison improved many other existing devices as well. From a discovery made by one of his associates, he patented the Edison effect (now called thermionic diode), which is the basis for all electron tubes. Edison will forever be remembered for his contributions to the incandescent light bulb. Even though he didn't dream up the first light bulb ever crafted, and technology continues to change every day, Edison's work with light bulbs was a spark of brilliance on the timeline of invention. At the very beginning of his experiments with the incandescent lamp in 1879, he said:
But when you simply need a new bulb for your bedside lamp, how do you know that you are making the right decision? Which lightbulbs are designed to be better for the environment and to help us cut back on our electric bills?
LED bulbs use more than 75% less energy than incandescent lighting. At low power levels, the difference is even larger. Bright LED flood lamps use only 11 to 12 watts while creating a light output comparable to a 50-watt incandescent bulb.
A lumen is a measurement of light. If LEDs, CFLs, and incandescents all have the same lumens, they have equal brightness. You can find lumens listed on lightbulb packaging. For the most efficient light, find the lumen output you want (the bigger, the brighter) and choose the bulb with the lowest wattage. LEDs will probably win in every case.
An incandescent bulb works on the principle of incandescence, a general term meaning light produced by heat. In an incandescent type of bulb, an electric current is passed through a thin metal filament, heating the filament until it glows and produces light.
With incandescent bulbs being as energy inefficient as they are, several newer technologies are now vying to replace them, including CFL bulbs (compact fluorescent light bulbs) and LEDs (light-emitting diodes). Some legislation is even in place to phase out incandescent light bulbs in favor of more energy efficient forms of lighting.
If you want the the most energy efficient light bulb type, go with LED light bulbs. You can easily replace an incandescent bulb with an LED bulb instead. Just swap out an old light bulb in a lamp or chandelier for its modern LED counterpart. Yes, you can put LED bulbs in regular fixtures, just as long as the bulb base and wattage is compatible with the fixture.
Old fashioned incandescent filament light bulbs are developing a following of determined folks who simply enjoy the magical quality of vintage incandescent light and the beauty of the softly glowing internal filament.
The first incandescent light bulbs were made with platinum filaments. After experimentation with a variety of materials, Thomas Edison developed the first filament light bulbs to be used commercially, which utilized carbon filaments.
Vintage light bulbs are used for setting a relaxing atmosphere. They can still be found with both carbon and tungsten filaments, but vintage tungsten bulbs are more cost efficient to buy and are more cost effective in their use of electrical energy. They also remain clear much longer than carbon filament bulbs.
Vintage incandescent bulbs with carbon or tungsten filaments can be dimmed to various intensities of luminosity, which adds to the versatility of the bulb and its uses. However, it should be kept in mind that filament bulbs are capable of only one-half of the output of lumens as a modern incandescent filament bulb. Thus, while a modern 60-watt bulb produces 800 lumens, the 60-watt filament bulb will produce 400 lumens.
For this reason, many people choose to use vintage filament bulbs in special lamps and special lighting situations for atmospheric applications only, and they use modern bulbs for practical everyday use.
Many have noticed that crystal chandeliers take on a particularly nostalgic, magical, and elegant appearance when lighted by tungsten filament bulbs, and softly glowing table lamps can add a special romantic touch around and over the dining table or in the bedroom. Lamps that showcase the bulb with its warmly glowing filament are by far the favorite.
Before there were LED bulbs, less-efficient incandescent and fluorescent lights were the mainstays of both commercial and residential lighting. Today, LED technology is advancing more quickly than any type of light bulb before it.
At first, these bulbs were too expensive for widespread use. But by the 1990s, CFLs became slimmer, more affordable, and more efficient. Today, CFL bulbs are 50-75% more efficient than modern incandescents, and last about ten times longer.
LEDs (light-emitting diodes) are the most energy efficient lighting option available. To produce the same amount of light as a 60-watt incandescent bulb, an LED light only uses 10 watts. This is because LEDs use almost all of their energy as light, whereas incandescents give off most of their energy as heat.
Like early versions of incandescent and fluorescent bulbs, they were once expensive and available in limited colors. However, rapidly advancing technology has made them available at accessible prices, in a wide range of color temperatures, and with excellent (CRIs) color rendering indexes.
On January 27, 1880, Edison received the historic patent embodying the principles of his incandescent lamp that paved the way for the universal domestic use of electric light. The patent number for his electric lamp is 223,898.
Halogen and incandescent bulbs pass an electrical current through a tungsten filament to produce light. This process also heats the filament, which can waste additional energy, making them inefficient.
Halogens, with a life of around 2500 hours, are a small upgrade from incandescent bulbs, which only have a life of around 1200 hours. Halogens are known for their stylish appearance and are popular for dÃcor lighting. However, they work much like incandescent bulbs and are less energy efficient. They can also be difficult to maintain due to their output limitations and sensitivity to oils from the skin. Since both bulbs require more energy than they produce, they will both be impacted by new manufacturing standards.
We understand the new federal mandates may be inconvenient. Please contact us with any questions or for further information on product availability in your state. To help ease the cost of updating your bulbs, follow us on social media or visit one of our retail partners for special offers on LED and other energy-efficient lighting choices.
Platinum and Iridium Filaments: 1802 -1880's
Humphry Davy created the first incandescent light by passing current through a platinum strip. It caused a glow and did not last long, but marked the beginning of incandescent light development. Experimenters continued over the next 70 years to use platinum and iridium. Frederick de Moleyns used a platinum filament in an evacuated glass tube to make a light bulb. It was only mildly successful due to a blackening of the bulb, which blocked light output. Combustion of the filament material and blackening on the upward side of the bulb was a frustrating consistent problem for early lamp inventors. The platinum material was also expensive.
Edison first used carbonized sewing thread as a filament, he managed to get it inside a vacuum. This made his first practical lightbulb. He used carbonized sewing threads until 1880. Then he used paper bristol board. (Carbonized paper) This move increased lamp life to 600 hours.
Why Edison Triumphed: Joseph Swan worked on the incandescent light idea since 1850. Swan did not succeed because he used only a partial vacuum in his bulb. He also used a carbonized paper filament. Edison figured out how to create a pure vacuum in his bulbs. He did this by heating up the bulb at the same time that he pumped out the air. He used a Sprengle pump.
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