Incandescent Christmas lights can consume up to 90% more electricity than LEDs, resulting in significantly higher operating costs. A conventional set of incandescent fairy lights will utilize 40 watts per 100 lights and will cost $17.79 for 1,000 bulbs through December.
In the tables below, the operating costs of LED and incandescent Christmas lights are compared. For the purposes of this example, we’ll use a 28.7c/kWh electricity consumption rate.
LED Christmas lights running cost
Keep in mind that while many LEDs only use 1.2W per 100 bulbs, some, especially those that flash or twinkle, can require nearly twice as much. Even the most energy-intensive LEDs, though, will only set you back a few dollars this Christmas.
Incandescent Christmas lights running cost
You may probably guess why incandescent light bulbs are no longer available on Australian shelves! The cost of running LED and incandescent Christmas lights is astronomically different, with LED lights costing a fraction of the cost of incandescent lights.
Is it true that string lights consume a lot of electricity?
Simple string lights may appear to require little electricity, but what if you’re hanging hundreds or thousands of them?
Running 1,000 string lights for a day can cost as low as $0.14 per day on average, assuming they’re LED and use roughly 1.1 kWh per day. The larger and more powerful ceramic string lights, on the other hand, can cost as much as $1.62 per day to operate – you can calculate the hourly rate from there.
Continue reading to discover more about string lights, including the many types of lights available and how much they cost to operate.
What is the energy consumption of LED fairy lights?
Their findings revealed that a string of 25 incandescent bulbs consumed 175 watts of electricity, costing $15.12 throughout the holiday season. A equivalent strand of LED lights, on the other hand, utilized only 2.4 watts and cost $0.21 less than a fourth of the price!
LED fairy lights for indoors: less than 0.50 for 21 days
Consider a 25-meter string of indoor fairy lights with 360 warm white mini-LEDs. The manufacturer claims 6 W (0.006 kW) of power.
- From the 15th of December to the 5th of January, from 4 p.m. to midnight, that’s 21 days x 8 hours = 168 hours if you use a timer.
- 0.006 kWh per hour is consumed by your fairy lights. They will use 168 x 0.006 kWh = 1.008 kWh during the course of the year.
So there’s no need to feel guilty, and your year-end budget will be unaffected! And that’s the maximum, because the lights go out when they flash or are in light show mode, consuming less energy.
A string of LED lights for the outdoors costs less than ten.
Even with LED lights, the power required for a string of large bulbs, such as outdoor festoon lights, is higher: 175 W for 25 lamps of 7 W each divided over 10 m of cable.
It’s still reasonable, but if you connect numerous strings together, the prices can rapidly add up. It’s worth noting that there are light strings with built-in photovoltaic chargers, reducing usage to zero!
Is it true that Christmas fairy lights consume a lot of power?
The cost of lighting your Christmas tree has been assessed by Crown Pavilions. The majority of us use two strings of lights, totaling 80 watts of energy.
If your lights are left on for 6 hours a day, 0.08kW multiplied by 6 hours equals 0.48kW. With energy prices around 17p per kW, keeping your lights on for 6 hours a day for a month will only cost you 2.48.
How much does it cost to run string lights?
Now comes the equivalences. Based on whether the bulbs are LED or incandescent, three different designs of light strands small, C9, and C7 are compared below. Each cost was calculated based on six hours of usage per day over 30 days for these comparisons.
A strand of 300 white micro LED lights on standard green wire consumes 21 watts, but an incandescent bulb strand consumes 72 watts. Using the math above, a strand of tiny LED lights will cost you roughly 52 cents if you use the national average of $0.14 per kilowatt-hour and a display season of six hours per day for 30 days. A strand of the same number of bulbs, but incandescents, will set you back $1.81.
What in a house consumes the most electricity?
The breakdown of energy use in a typical home is depicted in today’s infographic from Connect4Climate.
It displays the average annual cost of various appliances as well as the appliances that consume the most energy over the course of the year.
Modern convenience comes at a cost, and keeping all those air conditioners, freezers, chargers, and water heaters running is the third-largest energy demand in the US.
One of the simplest ways to save energy and money is to eliminate waste. Turn off “vampire electronics,” or devices that continue to draw power even when switched off. DVRs, laptop computers, printers, DVD players, central heating furnaces, routers and modems, phones, gaming consoles, televisions, and microwaves are all examples.
A penny saved is a cent earned, and being more energy efficient is excellent for both your wallet and the environment, as Warren Buffett would undoubtedly agree.
What is the monthly cost of LED lights?
Let’s look at a few examples to see how much it costs to run strip lights in real life.
We’re using the average electricity cost in the United States, which is 13 cents per kilowatt-hour, for this table (kWh).
A kilowatt-hour (kWh) is a unit of energy equal to 1,000 Watts drawn for one hour. So multiply by the number of hours and divide by 1,000 to convert Watts to kWh.
We’re also using 1.3W/m as an example of a normal density strip and 3W/m as an example of a high density strip. Keep in mind that some strips can be rather high.
That means that running a high-density LED strip for 15 meters and turning it on for an hour will cost you less than a penny.
Let’s see how that works out over the course of a year, assuming you use your LED strips for 10 hours per day.
So, if you buy a shorter, standard density strip light, you’ll pay less than $3 for a year’s worth of regular use. Even a much longer strip with a higher density of LED lights costs less than $22 per year or less than $2 per month on average.
Of course, you should put an LED strip in every area of your house. The cost of lighting kitchen cabinets, false ceilings, coving, and other areas will mount up quickly.
Is it true, however, that a single LED strip light consumes a lot of energy? It’s very obvious that it doesn’t, and they’re one of the most energy-efficient lighting options available.
What can I do to reduce my electric bill?
Switching to a cheaper contract using our free gas and electricity comparison service is the greatest way to cut your energy prices. Here’s an illustration of how much money you could be able to save:
- Switching to the lowest power contract can save up to 324 for the average user on a normal tariff, and those with higher usage can save even more.
- Gas: On a regular tariff, the average user can save up to 390, and much more if they have a large family.
Compare energy deals and switch to a cheaper deal if you haven’t changed your supplier in over a year.
Take a look at our instructions if you’re having trouble paying your energy bills. What resources are available to assist you with paying your energy bills?
Is it expensive to run LED lights?
Most people are aware that switching to LED lights saves money on house lighting. However, it has been stated that the expense of switching to LED is too high in some circumstances, which may have deterred some people from making the switch.
When compared to regular incandescent bulbs, LED bulbs utilize a quarter of the energy. They cost less to operate than fluorescent lighting. They can also last up to fifty times longer than regular batteries. Most of them work flawlessly for years with no defects or issues. If you used online personal loans to pay your electricity bills, you might not need them anymore…
Changing your light bulbs from the old type to the new variety can save you roughly 5 per bulb each year. If you can afford to lay down the upfront expenditures, this is a significant savings worth considering.