The way we light our homes can make a big impact on how we feel and has a great impact on nature as well. Your little ways can go a long way in preserving nature. Since most homes have numerous lights in each room, your lighting preferences can create far-reaching effect on the energy you consumed and the amount you pay for it.
Below are several ways to use energy-efficient lighting in your home:
Use CFL or compact fluorescent bulbs. Economically, they are a wonderful deal with a variety of colors, shapes and sizes. Although CFL costs a bit more than incandescent ones, they use a quarter as much energy and definitely last much longer. Since compact fluorescent bulbs gives out lesser heat, they are much safer to use and enables you to save your cooling load during the hot summer months.
Using light emitting diodes light or LED bulb can minimize your energy usage by eighty to ninety percent and lasts around 100,000 hours. LED bulbs light up faster than regular ones and are highly energy efficient and long lasting. Most LED sold in the market has bulbs built into them so you will have to purchase the whole unit.
Install nature-friendly light lamps and fixtures for your green lighting. When looking for new fixtures, look around for those lamps with made with natural, recycled or reused materials. Lighting from recycled materials are glass, plastic, metal and natural materials include felt, wood or cloth.
Fluorescent bulbs may last longer but when their life is through, they should be properly disposed. Compact fluorescent bulbs, just like any fluorescent contain a small amount of mercury. Try to check out the recycling methods offered in your area to dispose of these bulbs properly. Although LED bulbs do not contain mercury, there may be some ways of recycling them.
Still, the best source of light is the sun, which gives free, full-spectrum light all through the day. Make use of the solar light by drawing the curtains and blinds. You can even put skylight or install many south-facing windows in your home. You can even go as far as piping in the light through fiber optics and other light channelling methods.
Practice effective lighting habits. Make sure to switch off lights when not in use or when no one is around. You may turn off standard incandescent lights when leaving a room for seconds, compact fluorescent lights three minutes when you leave the room and switch off standard fluorescent lights when you leave the room for fifteen minutes.
Dimmers and motion sensors are great in keeping lights off when unused. Dimmers can provide you with just the right amount of light and motion timers or sensors can be set to turn things on and off when needed.
A green lighting can maximize your energy savings by implementing low-cost bulbs, solar lights, skylights and other natural sources of light such as the sun. Replace your costly lighting now with green options and make a big difference in preserving nature as well as decreasing your utility bills.
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