How to choose an energy-saving lamp - an overview of the main parameters

An energy-saving lamp allows you to save money on utility bills.
It also has a fairly long service life. Many manufacturers provide a guarantee for it. This means that if for any reason your lamp fails, you must replace it with a new one. It’s just important not to forget about its proper use. An LED lamp is a good economical option that is perfect for almost any room. In order to choose a high-quality LED lamp, you must first familiarize yourself with its characteristics. The power indicators of this lighting are given in the additional table. Comparison table between incandescent and LED lamps. It can be seen that LED has a lower power of 3 W, in contrast to incandescent 23 W. So the best option for saving would be the second one. The power ratio of incandescent and LED lamps is significant for reducing energy costs.

What are energy saving lamps

These electrical products are called compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). They consist of two main parts - a non-standard-shaped flask and a base. Inside the flask are placed electrodes made of tungsten with the application of an activating substance (a mixture of barium oxide, calcium, strontium). The space is filled with an inert gas or mercury, drops of which turn into vapor when heated.

When electrical voltage is applied to the light source, a charge is created between the electrodes and the lamp lights up. The generated radiation is in the ultraviolet spectrum, and in order to convert it into light visible to humans, the inner surface of the product is coated with a phosphor.

Work principles

Several types of lamps are used for lighting. The most common are:

• With filaments;
• Luminescent;
• LED.

Candles and kerosene lamps have long gone out of use, but some people still refer to the wattage of incandescent lamps as candle power. This definition is not true.

The first electric lighting devices were incandescent lamps. The product uses a thread made of refractory metal. When current is passed through it, the thread begins to glow. However, the energy required to heat this body is much greater than the energy spent on luminosity. This lamp consists of several main elements:

• Flask;
• Filament or spiral;
• Base.

Air is pumped out of the bulb to extend the life of the filament. The base is usually made of a standard shape marked E14 or E27, for the interchangeability of products.

Halogen light bulbs have a similar design. Vapors of noble gases are added to their flask to increase the quality of color rendering. Such products are used in advertising, daylight and street lighting.

Later, fluorescent lighting appeared. Their operating principle differs in that the light creates a gas discharge that occurs in the bulb under the influence of an electric current. The inside of the flask is coated with a luminescent substance, that is, a substance that glows under certain conditions. Its reliability and service life have already proven to be several times higher than conventional incandescent lamps.

What kind of lighting do you prefer?

Built-in Chandelier

In the 60s of the twentieth century, a new principle of light generation appeared. It turned out to be a diode semiconductor junction emitting electromagnetic radiation in the visible range under the influence of electric current. Such products were called LEDs. They have the best performance in terms of power consumption versus useful illumination. Lamps using these elements are more reliable, more durable and safer than incandescent, halogen, and fluorescent light bulbs.

Types and device

Instead of mercury, the CFL bulb is filled with indium almagama. Compared to a regular light bulb, there is no filament. When exposed to voltage, electrons begin to move and collide with particles of the substance located in the flask. Inside the product there is a start-up and power supply circuit - an electronic ballast.

When using fluorescent lamps at home, they are guided by two most important parameters - color temperature and power.

Energy-saving products include not only fluorescent lamps, but also LED lamps. The latter outperform CFLs due to the absence of a number of negative factors, including flickering and a decrease in luminous flux during operation. On the one hand, such sources are more expensive, on the other hand, they are economical to operate.

The main difference between energy-saving designs and incandescent light bulbs is related to the conversion of electrical energy: the former transform almost all the electricity into visible light, while the latter lose most of it due to heat generation.

Luminescent

Compared to the “Ilyich light bulb,” such products are more durable and consume 2–3 times less electricity when emitting the same luminous flux.

A completely different technology is used to convert light into the visible spectrum. Passing through drops of mercury or an inert gas, an electric discharge forms an ultraviolet glow that affects the phosphor applied to the inside of the bulb - due to this, a person perceives the light emitted by the lamp.

CFLs are used in everyday life. For large and spacious technological premises and administrative offices, non-compact fluorescent lamps are used. In most cases, the products have a spiral-shaped bulb and a standard screw base, so they can easily replace incandescent lamps.

LED

Today, LED electrical products are the best light source. They do not have the disadvantages characteristic of other light bulbs, consume a minimum of electrical energy and are more durable compared to CFLs. There is no tungsten filament inside, no harmful substances that fill the bulb of luminescent devices. The light source is an LED diode, the lighting principle of which is based on an electronic circuit.

In the store you can find full-fledged LED lamps or individual light bulbs designed to replace standard ones.

Halogen devices

Halogen lamps are often referred to as energy-saving products - this is not true. Despite their durability compared to incandescent lamps, they are inferior to CFLs and LEDs in terms of energy consumption and service life. In fact, a halogen lamp is the same “Ilyich light bulb”, with a flask filled with iodine or boron vapor. Both substances are halogen, hence the name of the product.

When voltage is applied to a conventional lamp for a long time, the tungsten atoms used to produce the coil gradually evaporate, and for this reason they fail faster. If you add halogens to the flask, a reaction will occur between them and tungsten, followed by the formation of compounds. As the molecules disintegrate, tungsten will return to the helix, which will increase the durability of the product itself.

When using halogen lamps with a dimmer (a device for changing brightness), the service life increases from 3–5 to 8–12 thousand hours. The devices are characterized by high color rendering, compactness, a variety of shapes and do not require specific disposal. The short service life and lack of efficiency do not allow these products to be classified as energy-saving.

Comparison of different types of lamps

To determine the best option for a light-emitting element, it is necessary to conduct a comparative analysis of the main parameters of the varieties of interest. Considering that halogen versions are similar in power level to incandescent lamps, they were not included in the correspondence table:

Comparing different types of light sources

It is the ratio of the luminous flux and load level that allows you to choose the most suitable option based on the combination of characteristics. It is also necessary to take into account the configuration of the room, since a lamp with high radiation intensity does not always satisfy the illumination requirements of a low room with a small area.

Main characteristics of lighting elements

There are several important parameters of lighting devices:

• power - affects electricity consumption;
• power factor - the ratio between active and reactive;
• color rendering - measured in Kelvin (the lower, the warmer the light turns out);
• luminous flux - indicates the brightness of the source;
• warm-up time - after what period of time the lamp will light up at 60 - 80% of maximum brightness;
• ignition time;
• color rendering index - the higher the better;
• service life - calculated in hours (after this time period the lamp brightness will drop to 70% of the nominal);
• number of switching cycles.

The simplest advice for choosing a luminary is to focus on well-known brands. If this is the first time you have heard the name of the manufacturer of a CFL or LED lamp, refuse to purchase it. Branded companies always care about the quality of the product.

Power

The power of electrical elements varies from 7 to 250 W. When choosing a parameter, you should take into account the fact that the ratio of power and luminous flux of the products is 5 times higher than that of conventional incandescent lamps. If the power of the “Ilyich light bulb” used previously was 100 W, in case of replacing it with an energy-saving one, it is enough to choose a light source of 20 W.

A simple pattern is observed - with increasing power, brightness increases.

Colorful temperature

With the same power, the lamp can shine in different shades - warmer, close to yellow, neutral or cool white. Kelvin is used as a unit of measurement, and the value is in the range of 2700 – 6500 K. For an apartment, more neutral shades are chosen - energy-saving products with a color temperature of about 4000 K.

Color rendering index

Depending on the color rendering index (CRI), the visual organs perceive the colors of objects that reflect light differently. The standard in this regard is called sunlight - CRI is equal to 100 units. Artificial sources have a lower value, but the closer it is to 100, the more natural the colors are. A modern energy-saving lamp operates with a CRI of at least 80.

Product markings contain three numbers. For example, if the designation indicates the number “940”, the light bulb is manufactured with a color rendering of 90 and a temperature of 4000 K.

Base type

Despite the emergence of modern technologies in human life, the classic Edison base with a diameter of 27 mm - E27 - still remains the most popular. Most lighting devices are designed for use with a product with such a base. Initially, this was the standard for incandescent lamps, so manufacturers decided to do everything for maximum ease of use and created E27 housekeepers.

Some smaller lamps (table and wall lamps) use a smaller base - E14. Huge and powerful devices are equipped with a 40 mm base - E40. If you cannot determine the type of base yourself, take an incandescent light bulb to the store.

In everyday life, lamps with pin contacts are used (instead of a screw connection). In this case, the base marking has the letter G, and the subsequent number indicates the distance between the pins, measured in millimeters. For example, the G10 base has a distance of 10 mm.

Life time

The durability of light sources is usually measured in hours. For convenience, we will convert the value into years. The average lifespan of an LED device under normal conditions is 10–15, and in the case of CFLs it is about 5 years. LED lamps come with a warranty.

Flask shape

If not only the physical parameters that affect brightness and electricity consumption are important, but also the decorative component, it is best to buy LED products, the shape of which can be completely different - from a candle to a ball, etc.

Halogen and conventional incandescent lamps are no less varied, but you won’t be able to save money here. As for CFLs, the shape of the product is either spiral or tubular.

Brightness adjustment

In terms of brightness adjustment, LED and fluorescent lamps are inferior to halogen lamps. Products that can be used with dimmers are not uncommon, but their cost is too high for domestic use. If you want to use a dimmer, install a halogen lamp.

How to choose the right one

Manufacturers produce “housekeepers” with different parameters and product quality.

When choosing an energy-saving lamp, pay attention to its size, otherwise it will not fit in a chandelier or lamp.

First, let's select the optimal shape:

• spiral;
• U-shaped;
• semi-spiral.

The lighting and operating modes of all types of lamps are almost the same, the only differences are in the form of their manufacture and cost. The spiral one is more expensive due to the complexity of the design.

“Economies” vary in power consumption. The power range ranges from 3 to 120 W. It is worth paying attention to this, because the brightness of its glow depends on the power. If it is necessary to illuminate a large room, then high-power lamps are used.

Light bulbs are produced with different base diameters, which have different applications. Some are designed only for wall lamps, others for ceiling chandeliers and spotlights.

We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the characteristics of the spotlight in more detail.

Quality directly depends on the manufacturer. It is not recommended to purchase Chinese lamps at a low cost.

Energy saving lamps, various in shape and color

Service life also plays an important role in selection. If the lamp warranty is 1 year, then the “housekeeper” has low quality indicators. Normal manufacturing companies provide a guarantee for their products for up to three years.

When heading to the electrical goods store to buy an energy-saving lamp, it is important to remember the following:

1. Form;
2. Base type;
3. Power;
4. Life time;
5. Color rendering;
6. Manufacturer.

We also recommend that you familiarize yourself with the energy-saving lamp power table in more detail.

Advantages

What advantages do “housekeepers” have? These include the following important indicators:

1. High luminous efficiency properties. “Housekeepers” allow you to emit a luminous flux many times greater than that of conventional lamps. Cost-effectiveness lies in the fact that maximum electricity consumption is converted into luminous flux.
2. Long service life. Average quality bulbs can burn continuously for up to 15,000 hours.
3. Variety of color streams. Incandescent lamps do not have the ability to adjust the color of the glow. “Housekeepers” come in three types of glow: warm, cold and daylight.
4. Minor release of thermal energy. This property indicates that the energy consumed is used specifically for the formation of a luminous flux. The low heating of the device allows it to be used in floor lamps made of fabric and plastic. Regular light bulbs heat up the fabric and can cause a fire.
5. Soft and uniform distribution of light rays. The light spreads throughout the room with the same glow.
6. Low power consumption at high lighting levels. Savings can be up to 75% compared to standard incandescent light bulbs

“Housekeepers” save users’ funds

Flaws

Along with such quality indicators, energy-saving lamps also have their drawbacks. They are as follows:

1. Long time for maximum luminous flux to occur when the lamp is turned on. This time ranges from 3 seconds and sometimes up to 2 minutes. This phenomenon is especially often noticed when the “housekeeper” is operated in a cold room.
2. Energy-saving lamps emit ultraviolet rays, which are harmful to people suffering from skin diseases. The use of a light source for such people is not permitted at a distance closer than 30 cm. The higher the power of the lamp, the more ultraviolet radiation they emit.
3. Sensitivity to voltage changes. When the voltage of the 220 V network decreases by 10%, they can turn off on their own. They do not turn on at a reduced voltage of 195 V. The lamps cannot be used in luminaires with dimmers.
4. Low frost resistance. It is impossible to turn on and operate an energy-saving lamp in the cold at sub-zero temperatures (-15 and below).
5. Contains harmful substances in the structure: mercury and phosphorus. These substances are not dangerous when lit, but pose a hazard if the lamp breaks. Once unusable, they require special disposal.
6. Periodic appearance of flickering. This is not normal and indicates a possible failure in the near future.
7. High price. To switch the entire house to this type of lighting will require considerable financial costs.

It is not recommended to use “housekeepers” in everyday life above 22 W, especially if the distance between a person and the lamp is less than 30 cm.

Hazards of Mercury Vapors

Mercury is a chemical reagent that is one of the most dangerous for humans. Almost all energy-saving lamps have mercury vapor in their design, or rather, inside the glass bulb. Their content is 3-5 mg, which is a lethal dose for humans. During operation of the lamp, this mercury is absolutely harmless, it is not released from it and does not affect the human body in any way.

If the lamp breaks, the risk of human poisoning by mercury vapor increases.

If an energy-saving lamp breaks, you should immediately ventilate the room and dispose of it.

Timely measures taken will not lead to any dangerous consequences. Disposal must be carried out correctly. After all, the industry produces millions of energy-saving lamps a day, and there are very few collection points. In this regard, people throw away lamps with household waste, which is unacceptable and causes enormous damage to the environment!

If in a locality there is no opportunity to hand over energy-saving light bulbs to a recycling company, then it is better to choose LED lamps that do not contain hazardous substances.

A few words about the manufacturers

Since the advent of energy-saving lamps, the number of manufacturers of this light source is growing every day. The most popular (in terms of price) are products made in China. The cost of high-quality elements is an order of magnitude higher than Chinese ones, but the long service life and high technical parameters pay for the costs.

Among the most popular and high-quality manufacturing companies are the following:

• OSRAM;
• Philips;
• GE;
• Photon;
• Maxus.

These brands have truly excellent technical performance. Manufacturers provide a guarantee for their products for up to 3 years. Production bases are located in Germany, Italy and other countries.

Companies producing energy-saving lamps of average quality:

• Space;
• Navigator;
• Wolta;
• Nakai.

Manufacturers of economy class products (quality level is satisfactory):

• Electrum;
• Volta;
• Deluxe;
• SunLuxe.

Manufacturers of high-quality energy-saving lamps do not use liquid mercury in the manufacture of bulbs, but a special type of amalgam alloy. In this alloy, mercury is in a bound state. This allows it, when the flask is broken, not to dissolve in the air, but to remain in a bound state.

Advantages and disadvantages

Contrary to the usual structure of the review, let's start with the disadvantages of energy-saving lamps:

• fluorescent daylight products and other energy-saving cold or warm white light differ from the usual one emitted by a regular light bulb (if the color rendering index and temperature are chosen incorrectly, installing an electrical element will become a disadvantage, since a person will have to adapt to the new lighting);
• another disadvantage of housekeepers is their higher cost compared to regular ones (10 – 20 times higher);
• mercury content in CFLs, which is a harmful and toxic substance;
• ultraviolet radiation from a fluorescent lamp negatively affects the retina of the eyes - the minimum distance between a person and the light source must be at least 30 cm (including a table or wall lamp).

Advantages of housekeepers:

• low electrical energy consumption;
• long-term operation;
• high level of luminous efficiency;
• the ability to choose the desired shades;
• low heating temperature.

Important lamp energy saving indicators

In order to choose the right energy-saving lamp (ESL) needed for your premises, it is important to know the selection criteria for the main technical characteristics of energy-saving lamps.

The main parameters of ESL include; — lamp dimensions . Of course, you need to pay attention to the size of the lamps, since in general ESLs have larger dimensions than incandescent light bulbs and may not fit into the lampshade;

- the type of base for these lamps is the same as for incandescent lamps - these are bases of type E27 (27 mm in diameter), the most common is base E14 (14 mm in diameter), they are mainly intended for installation in chandeliers and multi-arm lamps. The E40 type socket is designed for lamps installed in floodlights;

— the color of the lamps has a gradation of color from a cold white glow to yellow.

Energy saving lamp sockets E 14 (left) and E27 (right)

Rules and precautions for use

The flickering of fluorescent light bulbs negatively affects both the product itself (leading to rapid burnout) and the person’s well-being - vision deteriorates, nervousness increases, and after a few minutes severe fatigue appears.

Here are some reasons why an energy-saving light bulb flickers and how to eliminate the effect:

• all switches must be connected to the phase (not to “zero”);
• when operating CFLs, you cannot use backlit switches;
• use high-quality light sources with a delay of about 2 seconds - in this case, blinking is eliminated even if there is night lighting on the switch;
• if housekeepers are used in a chandelier, it is advisable to screw a regular light bulb into one of the shades.

Medium-power products contain about 1 mg of mercury - the same as the ball at the end of a stationery pen. For comparison: a thermometer contains 500 mg of mercury. Despite this obvious and huge difference in mercury content, do not forget to be careful when using them. The presence of vapors in the air in small quantities can cause serious harm to health.

Myth No. 5. Ecology and energy saving together

Proponents of the use of energy-saving lamps insist on improving the environmental situation by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. But this development of events looks more like a utopia, since for every energy-saving light bulb in the apartment there is an additional plasma panel on the floor of the wall, which will negate all urges to save.

You can also consider the situation with the appearance of mercury pollution in landfills. All the same supporters of fluorescent lamps say in unison that there are many plants for processing mercury-containing waste. Yes, that's true. After all, before the advent of compact energy-saving lamps, mercury was widely used in street lighting devices and fluorescent lamps, so typical for hospitals and other institutions. They were successfully recycled and Russia did not reach the point of global pollution.

But there is still a problem with collection points for such waste from the population and its disposal. Firstly, there are not many such points and sometimes even the most avid environmentalists cannot travel to the other end of the city for the sake of one light bulb to hand it over for recycling. Secondly, the majority simply lack the desire to do any unnecessary actions: the easiest way is to throw them away with regular garbage. The same problem occurs with used batteries. Despite the fact that you can hand them over at almost any hardware store, an increasing number of these elements are quietly sent to landfills.

Disposal

Specific disposal is required only for luminescent products that contain mercury vapor in the bulb. LED light bulbs can be thrown into regular trash - the same place as regular and halogen bulbs.

Energy-saving lamps are a great option for people who want to save on energy bills. A huge number of advantages make CFLs preferable to conventional or halogen ones.

If you choose a specific model, it is better to overpay a little and purchase LED products that are characterized by greater durability and eliminate the negative impact on human well-being.

Cost-effectiveness calculation

If we take into account that an incandescent lamp costs about 15 rubles, and an LED lamp costs about 150 rubles, and the approximate average burning time is 5 hours a day, then we can calculate how long it will take to pay for one such light source. A kilowatt/hour of electricity costs 3 rubles.

The power table of LED lamps shows that the consumption of an energy-saving LED lamp is 12 W, and a regular lamp is 100 W, with the same luminous flux of 1340 lm. Thus, in a month the operating time will be 150 hours.

An ordinary lamp will spend 150 hours ⋅ 100 W = 15000 W ⋅ h, or 15 kW ⋅ h. Costs will be 15 kW ⋅ h ⋅ 3 rubles = 45 rubles. In this case, an energy-saving lamp will spend 150 hours ⋅ 12 W ⋅ 3 rubles = 5.4 rubles. The monthly benefit will be 39.6 rubles. Payback period: 150/39.6 = 3.8 months. The effectiveness for personal finance is obvious.

ESL power table

Consumers are often interested in the question of what wattage CFLs correspond to incandescent light bulbs. The table below gives the answer to the correspondence of the power of different types of lamps.

According to this equivalence table, an ESL with a nominal power of 11 W corresponds to an incandescent lamp of 55 W, 15 W - 75 W, 20 W - 100 W.

Such devices may well replace incandescent lamps, the equivalent power of which is determined in the ratio 1:5.

The energy consumption of such lamps is lower and allows reducing financial costs for lighting

Application in everyday life

Light sources of this type are widely used in everyday life. The table of luminous flux of fluorescent lamps and LEDs illustrates this. Application possibilities range from home lighting to illumination of nightclubs and discos. This includes room lighting, lighting for specialized workplaces, ultraviolet disinfection, decoration, and automotive lighting. Energy-saving lamps are an alternative light source that is recommended to be used, despite the high cost. In any case, it pays off and benefits the person.

Useful tips Connection diagrams Principles of operation of devices Main concepts Meters from Energomer Precautions Incandescent lamps Video instructions for the master Testing with a multimeter

Dimming LED lamps

The LED lamp changes brightness depending on the amount of current passing. There is an optimal mode for it, in which the light output is maximum. Here you need to take into account that when the power changes, the shade of the glow changes accordingly. To keep it the same, dimmable LED lamps and brightness controls are used to maintain a constant current amplitude while changing the pulse current step. Naturally, this is reflected in an increase in price.

Manufacturers are trying to produce products that best satisfy the needs of consumers. Philips has released lamp models that work normally with conventional dimmers.

Design

In general, a compact luminescent device consists of a bulb, an electronic board and a base.

Fluorescent lighting device

Sealed glass tube

The flask is a hollow type (or a sealed curved glass tube), which is connected with its terminals to an electronic board.

Types of flasks

Inert gas inside it and mercury vapor

Such a tube is filled at the factory with special gases (mercury vapor, argon and other gases). Such gases are very dangerous for humans if the device is damaged, and it is important to be careful when using fluorescent energy-saving devices.

Phosphor layer

The body of the gas-discharge device is coated with a special composition - phosphor (a mixture of calcium halophosphate and other elements).

An electric discharge creates ultraviolet radiation in a flask with mercury vapor, which is changed into a visible light flux using a phosphor.

Electronic board

The electronic board in gas-discharge devices is an important component, and the service life and quality of its glow depend on the quality of its assembly. Structurally, such a board consists of:

• The thermistor is an element that ensures a smooth start of the device and helps to warm up the lamp coils without blinking.
• The starting capacitor is the element that directly starts the device.
• Filters - protect the electronic board from interference;
• Capacitive filter - reduces pulsations and eliminates flickering of the device;
• Current-limiting choke - stabilizes the device and limits the current;
• Fuse - protects the device and turns off the lamp when overloaded;

You might be interested in Features of light bulb recycling

Principle of operation

A voltage is applied to the dinistor, which forms a pulse. This pulse arrives at the transistor and causes it to open. As soon as the start is made, the circuit is closed by the diode bridge, the capacitor is charged and re-opening does not occur.

The transistor operates on a transformer with several windings and a ferrite core. Voltage is applied to the transformer filaments and a glow appears in the bulb. In this case, the voltage reaches a high value (up to 600 V).

When the inert gas in the flask is completely ionized, the voltage is reduced to sufficient to maintain the lamp glow, which ensures the energy-saving properties of the lighting device.

Selecting a lighting fixture