Think Bigg

One of my more civic-minded neighbors (Thanks, Kristina!) recently sent me an email to let me know that our little town of Los Gatos is competing in a contest against neighboring towns to see which community can convert more of their holiday decorations to LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes).

So just what are LEDs?

According to PG&E,

LED technology produces light in a completely different way than incandescent lamps. While incandescent lamps emit light by heating a filament and produce waste heat in the process, LED lights are illuminated solely by the movement of electrons in a semiconductor material.

Because they produce almost no heat, LED holiday lights present a greatly reduced risk of fire hazard over traditional incandescent strands and are safe to touch without worrying about burning your hands.

In addition to the reduced fire risk, LEDs also reduce the amount of CO2 gas that is produced to power those lights, which as we all now know can help to reduce global warming.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, if all conventional incandescent Christmas lights in the U.S. were replaced with LED lights, annual energy savings would total 2 billion kilowatt hours - enough to power 200,000 homes for a year.

The cost of LEDs is more expensive than traditional lights, but an extra investment upfront actually means reduced costs of operation in the years to come.

The following chart compares the energy usage and operating cost of LED holiday lights to both mini and large incandescent holiday lamps in your home.

Source

To order your LED holiday lights, go to your local hardware store or check out Target’s online selection and move your holiday decor into the 21st century!

Share This