Truths On LED Bulbs

Many have been recently promoting LED bulbs as the next green bulb of the future, and rightfully so. LED bulbs do not contain mercury, and can last up to 100,000 hours of lamp life. LED also has the distinctive advantage of not flickering, one of the major causes of migraine and fatigue in the workplace. Workplaces found to be using incandescent or halogen have found better productivity due to this, but are not economical. This is where LED have shown some powerful advantage.

But just because the bulb is LED does not mean to say it is environmental. There have been many LED bulbs now being sold or distributed using regular LED bulbs over the supposed bulbs. Others claim to be using CREE LED bulbs when the driver is not of proper quality. What would this all mean to the user? A useless bulb.

The current most efficient LED bulbs in production has a lumens per watt of 105, the same as that of CFL. It is truly no different compared to regular CFL bulbs, and even with 5 times the lifespan (assuming the LED driver is of good quality), the cost of using LED will not be realized.

LED do well in replacing fluorescent, where half of its illumination is on the ceiling, losing up to 70% of its illumination. LED has solved this issue by having only the bottom half of its tube filled with LEDs, giving the same illumination to that of T5 at half the required power.

But as previously stated, several factors should be looked into before purchasing the bulb. Get good information on the LED bulbs being used. Choose highly reputated LED bulbs and check their lumens per watt to ensure that they are indeed very efficient. Also make sure that the LED driver being used is of sound quality. There is also a strong issue on the heat sink. While LEDs do not produce as much heat, it still needs a good heat sink to ensure the product will last long.

Lastly, do the mathematical computation on amount of time needed to run the bulb. Compare savings against lifespan and review if the ROI is feasible. Many companies now are willing to replace LED bulbs for free provided they get a share of the savings. Others will find this feasible.

There are indeed many areas and avenues where LED is a better lighting illumination, but with the cost of the bulb, it is best to ensure this investment is definitely worth the money. Besides, a bulb that does not last long is also an environmental hazard. The longer a bulb lasts, the lower its carbon footprint.

Environment Effects of Energy in the Philippines

The Philippines currently uses a higher ratio of fossil fuels as source of energy compared to other possible sources. The choice of using fossil fuels means every kilowatt of energy being consumed is equivalent to 0.59 kg of carbon emissions to the atmosphere.

What is the environmental impact of carbon emissions? Carbon emissions is one of the leading cause of Global Warming, as it absorbs and retains heat in the atmosphere. Worse yet, carbon emissions is also the leading cause of smog in many developed cities, which also leads to many diseases.

But carbon dioxide is also a vital ingredient for plants. Plants breathe carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen, which we need. There has to be a balance if we want to live in a healthy environment.

What is more important and urgent when it comes to fossil fuels is not only the carbon emissions, but there are many other components in burning fossil fuels to the atmosphere that can cause more severe problems to health and the environment. There are part of Mercury, Sulfur, and other elements.

What then, is the best way to minimize the impact of energy to the environment? What is then the best way to save energy and only use what is needed?

The core point in this situation is to understand how much energy is being used in different parts of our infrastructure. Some of the most surprising points would be that water dispensers, which we only use for 1 hour a day at home, actually consumes 400 watts. Imagine the impact of a water dispenser for residential use. We might not feel or understand the source of this wasted energy, but it can use as much as the entire lighting being CFL at home.

Other areas of wasted energy are appliances put on "standby" and adaptors/chargers. Each charger left plugged in can consume around 3 watts of energy. Old appliances like entertainment systems left on standby can consume a whopping 20 watts of energy, a surprising blow given that majority of these appliances are used up to 3 hours a day maximum.

It is therefore vital that energy is understood and monitored to know just how much energy is truly necessary in our facility/residence. Look for appliances that are not needed and unplug them. Get energy strips with switches that can be turned off for appliances rather than being left on standby.

You would be surprised. A well managed energy use not only saves the environment, but up to 20% of energy consumption.