Energy Efficient Replacement Halogen Bulbs....Recommendations please

Bob63

Maplin have a 9w energy saving GU10 on special offer at £5.99 at the moment
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?C=Newsletter&U=06P5-4energy&ModuleNo=46290&T=11925496



Mike

Simon_Wallace

The maplin one seems to be 7W, there's no indication of how bright it is, but as they are suggesting an 80% saving in power costs, I've got to assume it equivalent to a 35W halogen.

Cheers
Simon

gromituk

This 80% was what was originally claimed for compact fluorescents over GLS ("conventional") bulbs, and that was a bit dodgy; halogens are more efficient so an 80% saving for the same light output seems even more unlikely. Note that the output of these will gradually reduce over time, unlike with an incandescent bulb.

But the savings will still be great - assuming they don't conk out after five minutes.

One problem is recycling these, as they contain a small amount of mercury. Ikea takes used light bulbs (and batteries), but I don't know what they do with them...

Sybarite

Thanks for the various suggestions and links. I'll give the LEDs a go and see what the light is like.

To answer a couple of questions;

MY original electricity bill was £1400 for a two bedroon flat for the year, eek. This has now come down to a more sensible £760 after switching providers and cutting out some consumption. To give a sense of perspective I use the heating (electric underfloor and under ceiling foils, for approximately 1 week per year).
What's scary is that this is a new build (5yrs old) and apart from the good insulation uses more energy than my parents 3 bedroom semi-detached house from the 1970s. What's more scary is that mine is not an unusual flat or oddly constructed, it's simply that it hasn't been in the developer's interest (thanks Thurlstones btw for your crappy construction) to make it particularly energy efficient.

I've started switching over the GU10s to energy savers and tend to target the areas that have most use, so the kitchen and hallway. The bathroom is a bit problematic as it takes a minute or two for the energy savers to actually achieve their full potential. I've started using table lights and uplighters in other rooms; apart from the cost, the glare of the halogens & the heat given off is dreadful, especially on hot days - turning on the light effectively means having residual heating left on.

The flat is also rented so I'm not going to invest hundreds in a place I may be in for 6-12 months. Therefore I have to balance the cost of the bulbs against the longevity I will get out of them, as I can't afford to effectively sub the next tennant's bills.

I'm planning to move and am attracted to the notion of reducing my carbon emissions and my bill as much as possible when i do. So I agree with the point made that £20 for a bulb is worthwhile in the long run and is something I'd consider if this was going to be a permanent home.

On a slightly separate point, I'm a bit shocked that I have to post a question on a site like this just to gain information about the most everyday of necessities - a lightbulb. It seems to indicate something about the way suppliers only offer what they want to sell, not necessarily what we the public may want. A conventional bulb that has to be replaced every few months & keeps us going back to the shops. As stated my lighting seems to be being fitted as standard in many flats, but you can bet it isn't installed by builders with energy efficient bulbs each time it's specified. Given that we are supposed to be actively reducing our carbon emissions it's really time all newly constructed property was supplied with such things as a legal requirement.

My flat with conventional GU10s 36x50w=1800w Energy Savers 36x7w=252w in my block of 19 flats thats a lot of extra juice that has to be produced unnecessarily.

Rant over - I'm pleased that this board has started. I like a bargain as much as the next man, but needless consumption just because it's a bargain, which I'm assuming we've all done, helps neither the bank balance or ultimately the landfill that such bargains will end up in.

gromituk

Does it actually use more energy than your parents' house or just cost more to run, because you are using peak-rate electricity instead of, say, gas? Gas bills now show the calorific value of the fuel (kWh per unit volume) so you can work this out.

It's in your developer's interest to fit the cheapest system possible consistent with people's expectations. Ceiling and underfloor heating is more unobtrusive than storage heaters, so might make tiny rooms look bigger, but is much more expensive to run because it uses peak rate electricity (esp. in the case of ceiling heating) and is very difficult to regulate (esp. in the case of underfloor heating).

Halogen lamps are really not such a good lighting source in a lot of cases. They look sparkly and superficially attractive, but as you say, they are point sources with a lot of glare. They used to cost a significant amount to install because they used transformers, but now with the mass-production of (less efficient) mains halogen lamps then there isn't a price premium - but I bet it still says "quality" in a lot of people's psyche.

The EU's energy ratings (A-G) on light bulbs, domestic appliances and now heating pumps are a good way of getting some simple information across to consumers. I think a major problem, though, is the dreadful state of science teaching at school. People really don't have a feeling for how the world around them is working, and that, say, a toaster takes more power than a light bulb.

I know that there are some requirements for energy efficient lighting in buildings but I don't know how far down they've trickled to within domestic properties.

Quincy_3

kestor wrote:

21 LED gu10 £5 each drop me aline
regards jason

hey dude your asking folk to "drop u a line" in all of your posts, you a builder or what?

gromituk

He's a spammer who will soon be thrown off the site - ignore him.

kestor

just got alot of time on my hands for the reserch