Switching your light bulbs to energy-efficient bulbs is the easiest and quickest ways to reduce your electricity bill. Lightbulbs have come a long way over the years and energy-efficient bulbs like CFL and LED lightbulbs are not as expensive as they used to be. They produce the same amount of light using a fraction of the energy and last much longer compared to conventional incandescent lightbulbs, giving you a return on your investment in long-term energy savings.

What’s so bad about incandescent bulbs?

Incandescent lightbulbs use a lot of energy to produce light and 90 per cent of the energy given off is heat. That is because the bulb is just a little wire in a glass enclosure that gets hot and glows because of electrical current passing through it. Imagine how hot that little wire must be to produce such great lighting! Now think about how much energy is being wasted to produce that light.

What are my options for energy-efficient light bulbs?

Halogen incandescent: These bulbs have a little chamber inside that holds gas around a filament to increase the bulb’s efficiency. While these bulbs are more efficient than incandescent bulbs, they only meet the minimal standards for energy efficiency.

CFL: Compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) are just long tube fluorescent lights in a small, curly, bulb shape. They use less energy than an incandescent light and can pay for themselves quickly and then start saving you money each month on your energy bill. ENERGY STAR certified CFL bulbs use about one-fourth the energy and last 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs, without putting out less light.

LED: Light emitting diodes (LED) use semiconductors that convert electricity into light. ENERGY STAR certified LED bulbs use only 20 to 25 per cent of the energy, compared to the 90 per cent used by incandescent lights, and can last up to 25 times longer too! LED lights use 25 to 35 less energy and last 8 to 25 times longer than halogen incandescent. Though LED lights are the most expensive, they will save money in the long run. Learn how to use LED lighting in your home.

Save energy with dimmer switches.

The Renovationfinds best electricians in Calgary can install dimmer switches on some of your light fixtures. This will help you save even more electricity by altering the amount of light and energy used by each fixture. Not only can you set the mood by dimming the lights, it will reduce the flow of electricity to the bulb which allows them to operate at a lower power output. Using less energy will also put less stress on the bulbs, extending the life span of those bulbs too.

Read more articles about electricians and how they can make your home more energy efficient.