VU1 ESL Light Bulb

Retailers are gearing up to meet deadlines for the incandescent light bulb ban. Ikea has already stopped selling the inefficient bulbs. And California has pulled the plug and is letting current supplies run down. Many incandescent lovers are shedding tears and hating on the mercury-containing CFLs and the more expensive (though infinitely more efficient) LEDs. So here come the ESLs. The VU1 Corporation has developed a light bulb using Electron Stimulated Luminescence that the company claims to be more efficient than incandescent, CFL, and LED bulbs.

Though using this patented technology in lighting is new, the science itself is by no means cutting edge. It works in the same way that a cathode ray television works- electrons stimulate phosphors inside the bulb to make them glow. The VU1 Corporation is marketing their bulbs as having the same light quality as an incandescent, yet up to 70% more efficient. They’re taking on the LEDs with a cheaper sticker price. And by not containing any mercury, they are a safer option over the CFLs.  They also have dimming capability and come on instantly, fit into a standard socket and have a similar shape to the Edison bulbs. Here is a comparison photo from the VU1 website:

VU1 Light Quality

Energy efficiency compared to an LED though is still in question. The VU1 bulb produces 30 lumens per watt, the equivalent of a 65 watt incandescent. LED technology continues to advance rapidly with some LEDs producing 3 times that many lumens per watt. And the LED holds the top spot when it comes to longevity. The VU1 bulb lasts 10,000 hours, while LEDs average 40,000-60,000 hours. Check out our guide to LEDs here.

Nevertheless, the ESL is an energy efficient and environmentally friendly lighting option and VU1 could find a nice slice of the light bulb market, especially as the incandescent bulbs leave the building. As stated in this report on Bloomberg, VU1 is in talks with two major retailers in the U.S. to begin selling the ESL bulbs. The bulb, which received UL certification in October, currently sells on the company’s website for $19.95.

[Via: Technology Review]

C. Crane Geobulb 3 LED Home Light Bulb

LED light bulbs have some huge advantages over incandescent and compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs. But they perform differently, so here’s your guide to understanding LED bulbs so you can enjoy their benefits and play to their strengths.

LED bulb designs are constantly evolving, and they keep getting cheaper and more user-friendly. They’re energy-efficient, durable, and they contain no hazardous materials like mercury. But if you walked through your home today and replaced every single incandescent or fluorescent bulb with an LED, you might be disappointed with some of them. Consider the following factors to make sure you’re getting the most out of your LED light bulb upgrades.

Point The Light Where You Need It
Even when an array of light emitting diodes is packed into a “bulb” shaped casing, they still create a somewhat directional light source. This usually means that an LED light bulb will cast more light from the top end of the bulb than from the sides.

Comparison Of LED, Incandescent, And Fluorescent Lighting (image: EvoLux)

Manufacturers often refer to an LED bulb’s equivalent wattage (compared to an incandescent bulb) based on overall lumen output. Incandescent bulbs usually cast an evenly distributed glow, so a “60-watt replacement” LED bulb may not seem to pull its weight in a shaded table lamp. But in a recessed ceiling fixture, an LED bulb may actually cast even more light than its incandescent counterpart.

Energy Efficiency And Durability
One of the biggest advantages of an LED light bulb is its energy efficiency. Today’s best LED bulbs use roughly one seventh of the electricity consumed by an incandescent bulb, or half the power of a fluorescent. One of our favorites, the C. Crane GeoBulb 3 (which retails for $69.95), is a 7-watt replacement for a 50-watt incandescent bulb or a 13-watt fluorescent.

Despite a relatively expensive initial purchase price, LED bulbs will pay for themselves over time by cutting your power bills. But only when they’re actually turned on – so they are especially well-suited for lights that are constantly in use. For example, a ceiling light that’s on all day long will take advantage of an LED’s efficiency better than an occasionally-used reading light.

LED bulbs last for a long time too – typically up to 50,000 hours (which translates to 12 hours a day, every day, for over a decade). This means fewer burned-out bulbs ending up in landfills, and added convenience too – you’ll rarely have to get your ladder out to change a bulb in a hard-to-reach fixture.

Beat The Heat
LED bulbs run cool, which is a double bonus for energy savings: electricity is being converted into usable light instead of wasted heat, and lighting isn’t competing with a building’s air conditioning system. But if the diodes within the “bulb” do become overheated, their efficiency plummets and they become unreliable. LED bulbs shouldn’t be used in unusually hot settings, and many manufacturers specify that their bulbs must only be used in unsealed, open-air fixtures.

HydraLux Liquid-Cooled LED Home Light Bulb

Ever wonder about those metal “fins” around the base of an LED bulb? It’s a thermally conductive heat sink, designed to keep the internal diodes cool. An alternative design is active heat management, where liquid coolant or a tiny cooling fan does the job.

Evolux S Fan-Cooled LED Home Light Bulb

A liquid-cooled LED bulb that was previously featured on MetaEfficient is the Hydralux from EtarnaLEDs ($35). For a fan-cooled bulb, a good choice is the EarthLED Evolux, which retails for $77.99. Note that the sound of a cooling fan can sometimes be heard in a quiet environment – which could be a drawback in a quiet space like a bedroom, but might not matter at all in a living room or workshop

Is It Dimmable?

Pharox III Dimmable LED Home Light Bulb

Some LED light bulbs feature circuitry that lets them perform just fine on a dimmer, whereas others can be damaged by the variations in power supply. Be sure to check the specs on an LED bulb before replacing a bulb in a dimmable fixture. One solid performer that is rated for use with a dimmer is the Pharox III LED light bulb ($52.98), a 6-watt warm white bulb from Dutch lighting company Lemnis.

Quality Of Light & Color Temperature
In a living space, light quality is just as important as the amount of light output. “Color temperature” is a common measure of light quality (described in degrees Kelvin), and it provides a handy reference for finding appropriate lighting in household applications. To put it simply, a lower color temperature indicates a warmer light with more red and yellow, like candlelight or a sunrise. Higher numbers mean a starker, bluish light.

There is no “ideal” color temperature for an LED bulb – it’s primarily a matter of personal preference. For the sake of comparison, the color temperature of a candle might be 1,800K, while a standard incandescent light bulb could be around 3,000K, and a computer monitor might measure over 9,000K. Compare different models to find the LED bulb that best matches your needs and taste.

Of course, light quality is really only an issue for “white” light. LED bulbs can be a great choice for accent lights or signs that require colored bulbs, where color temperature is a moot point and bulbs may be illuminated for long stretches of time. Sylvania/Osram makes a range of LED accent bulbs, available in red, green, blue, or yellow.

LED bulbs are a great choice for many applications around the house, and they’re certain to become even cheaper and more popular as they continue to evolve. Leave a comment below and let us know if you’ve made the switch to LED lighting in your home.

LED Christmas lights are efficient — they use 90% less energy than incandescent bulbs. They are also brighter, less prone to breaking, and cool to the touch.

Less optimal is the fact that almost all Christmas lights are made in China using questionable labor practices, and then transported half way around the world.

LED Christmas Lights

You can find LED Christmas lights at Amazon. You can also find some snowflake-shaped and color-changing Christmas LEDs from Environmental Bulbs.

Compact fluorescents are an efficient lighting
source, but the bulbs do contain mercury (usually around 5 mg) and should
be disposed of properly. To find a place to dispose of them, search
for locations by zipcode here.
The amount of mercury contained in them is much
less than
the amount of mercury released during the production electricity needed
to run incandescent bulbs. Philips makes low-mercury
compact fluorescents, and other low-mercury
bulbs using their "Alto"
technology.

CFLs provide the same amount of light (lumens) as standard
incandescent bulbs, but have lower wattage ratings.

A standard incandescent light is very inefficient because much of the energy
it uses is turned into heat instead of light. A compact fluorescent bulb turns
more of its energy into light and less into heat. It uses 75 percent less energy
than standard incandescent bulbs. A 15-watt compact fluorescent system can
supply the same amount of light as a 60-watt incandescent bulb.

The following provides examples of wattage ratings for comparable light output:

Quality of Light

The quality of light produced by a compact fluorescent is comparable to that
of the incandescent bulb. There is no flicker or hum with a compact fluorescent
– characteristics that are generally associated with fluorescent lights.

Lifetime

Compact fluorescent bulbs last 10 times longer than standard incandescent
bulbs. Compact fluorescents are rated for 10,000 hours and incandescents are
typically rated for 1,000 hours. If you have a bulb that is on eight hours
a day, a compact fluorescent will last 3.4 years. If a standard incandescent
were used, it would have to be replaced 10 times.

In recent years, significant advances have been made in the manufacturing of LED bulbs. Once used only as power indicators on appliances, LEDs can now be used to light a room or in powerful flashlights. Some of the advantages of LEDs are:

• LEDs use about 1/50 of the power of standard incandescent
  bulbs, and half the power of compact fluorescents
• Long-lasting — LED bulbs last 10 times as long
  as compact fluorescents, and 133 times longer than typical incandescents
• Durable — since LEDs do not have a filament, they
  are not damaged under circumstances when a regular incandescent bulb would
  be broken
• LEDs lights can be waterproofed and not susceptible
  to cold
• Cool — these bulbs do not cause heat build-up — LEDs
  produce 3.4 btus/hour, compared to 85 for incandescent bulbs
• Because they are solid, LED bulbs hold up well to jarring
  and bumping
• No annoying flicker

Also, because these bulbs last for years, energy is saved
in maintenance and replacement costs. Many cities in the US are replacing their
incandescent traffic lights with LED arrays because the electricity costs can
be reduced by 80% or more.

Some of the disadvantages to LED bulbs are:

• Cost— although
  the cost keeps going down, LED’s are still expensive. A single AC bulb (17
  LED), replacing a 25 watt incandescent, will cost about $40.
• Light Field— LED’s are focused lights, and therefore
  are best as task specific lighting such as reading lights, desk lamps, night
  lights, spotlights, security lights, signage lighting, etc. They do not radiate
  light in 360 degrees as an incandescent does. The light will be bright where
  you point it towards.
• Light Color— for residential use, the white LED
  is cooler than the warm yellow light we’re more used to. Most home LED use
  is for task lighting rather than general room lighting.

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