What is Illumination?
How do you figure the efficiency rating of a light bulb?
Coolness vs. Warmness
Describe light quality

Three Main Types of Lighting:
       Incandescent
       Fluorescent
       High-Intensity discharge lamps


 

 

 

 

Efficient lighting at Wayne's IGA in Webster.

 

Each type of light needs specific types of bulb for the greatest overall illumination.  Illumination (a lumen) measures light output from a bulb.  For example, a 100-watt incandescent lamp produces 1750 lumens.  

Dividing a lamp’s number of lumens by its watts gives the efficacy of that particular light bulb.  

Lamps are also assigned a color temperature depending on their “coolness” or “warmness.”  A cool light source is preferred for visual tasks since they produce better contrasts while warm light sources are preferred for living spaces, because they are more flattering to people’s skin and clothing.

Light quality describes how well people in a lighted space can see to do visual tasks.  Light quality is important to energy efficiency, because spaces with higher lighting quality need less illumination.  Using less illumination allows customers to use less energy thus your electric lighting bill decreases.

    There are 3 main types of lighting.

Incandescent. 

These lamps are the oldest, most common.  Incandescent light is produced by a tiny coil of tungsten wire that glows whit-hot when it is heated by electrical current.  These are by far the least energy efficient means of light.

Fluorescent. 

Electric current conducting through mercury gas causes the glow of a fluorescent tube.  Florescent light is about three to four times as efficient as incandescent, and the lamp life is about ten times greater.

High-intensity discharge lamps  

Have the highest efficacy and longest life of any lighting type, They are mainly used for outdoor lighting and for large indoor areas like arenas.

Change a Light and Change the World

If every house in Wisconsin replaced one light bulb with an Energy StarÒ qualified compact fluorescent bulb, we would save enough electricity to light Green Bay pro football games for the next 565 years. That’s because Energy Star qualified bulbs use 75 percent less energy and last up to 10 times longer than conventional bulbs.

Wisconsin Focus on Energy would like to make it even easier for you to make that change. You can get Cash-Back Rewards on each Energy Star qualified bulb you purchase from a participating retailer. For a list of participating retailers, visit focusonenergy.com or call 1.800.762.7077.

This offer is available to Wisconsin residents who get their electricity from Northwestern Wisconsin Electric Company  or another participating electric utility. Northwestern Wisconsin Electric is a partner in Focus on Energy, a public-private partnership offering energy information and services to energy utility customers in Wisconsin.