how to ditch dimmer switch?

cybervic

jennifernil wrote: »

I am still not convinced that the initial cost to change will make it worthwhile. I suppose it depends on how long you plan to stay there.

I presume you would then take all your energy savers with you to your next place?

Tesco was selling 5 eco bulbs for 40p last week, I've bought 30 of them which cost me £2.40, I am also buying 4 standard light switches which should costs me less than £10 altogether. Our electricity bill is currently about £70 per month:o for a 2 bedroom, GCH, gas-hob house. I'm really hoping to cut it down a bit.

cybervic

Can someone please also help me out with one more thing.
I only know the one I'm after is 1 way 1 gang and up to 400W or so, but there are different "amp" of light switch (like 3A, 6A, 10A, 13A), I am not sure which one I should choose. please help.

JimmyTheWig

cybervic wrote: »

I only know the one I'm after is 1 way 1 gang and up to 400W or so, but there are different "amp" of light switch (like 3A, 6A, 10A, 13A), I am not sure which one I should choose. please help.

From my physics lessons I remember that power (watts) is voltage (volts) multiplied by current (amps).
So at 240V, something that is 400W will be using just under 2 amps. So a 3A shold be enough.

But remember that there is a difference between what you learn in school and what happens in the real world, so you might be better off waiting for an answer from someone who knows what they are talking about.

TimBuckTeeth

Light switches rated at 10A seem fairly standard. May as well get 10A switches as the cost will not be much different and the contacts will be more robust so will cope better with the higher surge current at switch-on with halogen and fluorescent lamps.

jennifernil

cybervic wrote: »

Tesco was selling 5 eco bulbs for 40p last week, I've bought 30 of them which cost me £2.40, I am also buying 4 standard light switches which should costs me less than £10 altogether. Our electricity bill is currently about £70 per month:o for a 2 bedroom, GCH, gas-hob house. I'm really hoping to cut it down a bit.

Wow! I can see why you want to change! For our 5 bed house, gas CH, electric hob, tumble drier, dishwasher etc, we are paying £54 per month.

Never saw those cheap low energy bulbs in Tesco, our Tesco was only doing a BOGOF on them, regular price was between £1 and £1.50 depending on wattage.

davidlizard

Tim - What you say is correct, however for incandescent bulbs, approximately 95% of the energy is converted into heat - therefore the bulbs are acting as a 300W heater. The central heating system will therefore have to pump out 250W of extra power (assuming the low energy replacements are around 50W in total) into the room to make up for this shortfall to maintain temperature. But also, gas (assuming this is what powers the CH) is about 1/3 cost of electricity then you are heating this final 250W or so more cheaply! If my maths are right, 250W x 7 hours x 3p/kWH x 200 days per year is around a tenner a year making up this shortfall.

We installed low energy bulbs throughout our house, and based on a sample of six years there has been a small but noticeable increase in gas usage in winter months which offsets the small but noticeable decrease in electricity usage!

Another alternative is not start changing the light switches (this can be difficult as sparkys are good at getting lots of wires in very tight spaces, and you always run the risk of nicking a cable with the screw and cause a short, and paint coming off when the cover is removed, etc, etc), but pick up a couple of free-standing lamps cheap from a car boot, and stick an energy saver bulb in there - 300W is a lot of light after all - using freestanding lamps can be used to create some nice "mood" lighting - you can always welly the 300W on if you need the light, for example, when finding a contact lens.

There are also dimmable energy saving bulbs available where the brightness ramps up and down, and you cycle the switch when happy with the lighting level, which are much cheaper than the conventional dimmable energy saving bulbs, but of course not as convenient.

TimBuckTeeth wrote: »

Yes it will definitely save you money switching to low energy bulbs, that is a lot of power just for lighting.
In one room : 300W for 7 hours a day is 2.1kWh, which is costs about 25 pence a day. So about £90 a year, although will probably be less due to being used for fewer hours in the summer.
Roughly the same amount of power would dry a load in a tumble dryer or cook an evening meal in an electric oven.
Changing a dimmer switch to a standard switch is a straight swap and should be straightforward.
You would probably be best ditching the fancy fittings with GU10 lamps and fitting a standard pendant, will cost less for the energy saving bulbs and be brighter. Depends on the fitting but should be able to remove and replace them without damage when you move out.

Rah

so where sells the cheapest dimmable energy saving bulbs is what i'd like to know...

Owain_Moneysaver

oldone wrote: »

Why not just put ordinary bulbs in the light fittings and continue to use the dimmers.By setting the dimmer switches to less than full on, you will be saving energy, the bulbs will last longer, and replacements will be cheaper.

If you set the dimmer to less than full on, you will be using maybe 80% of the electricity, but the light output will fall to maybe 30%. So what light you do get will be much more expensive in terms of pence per lumen.

zax47

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

If you set the dimmer to less than full on, you will be using maybe 80% of the electricity, but the light output will fall to maybe 30%. So what light you do get will be much more expensive in terms of pence per lumen.

I'm not sure they are still listening (or care) seeing as the post was made in November 2008!!