In my home we have been transitioning from incandescent bulbs to CFL and LED bulbs, as it stands now we are about 50% complete. While we could do it all at one shot these suckers are expensive! However if you consider the true benefits (especially over time) they are well worth the one time cost. Additionally if you plan to run a generator during your outage having CFL or LED bulbs can help decrease the wattage drain on your system, potentially saving fuel and extending the life of your tank.
I wrote an article a couple years ago entitled: 5 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Count on a Generator When T-SHTF. I stand firm in my belief that in a longer term SHTF situation a generator cannot be considered a reliable source of power. However for shorter term events when rule of law is still in place a generator is pure gold and the more efficiently you can utilize one the better. Enter the CFL / LED Bulb.
Think of it this way. Maybe you have a 3k generator which you want to power some essentials when there is an outage. If it’s winter it might be the fridge, furnace blower fan, a few small electronic devices and of course lights at night. If all you have is a 3k generator every bit of pull on the system counts so what is more efficient…the following box of bulbs with a combined wattage of 168 watts…
Or the following box of bulbs with a combined wattage of around 800 watts?
Not that you would have 12 lights on in the house at once but I hope you see the point I’m trying to make. Even a couple 100 watt bulbs on is significant when considering a 3k or 5k generator, and as pictured below the difference in brightness negligible when considering CFL vs incandescent.
One final point to make about these. Besides the cost savings and wattage differences the life span of a CFL (7-10 years) or LED (25-30 years) far exceeds that of the standard incandescent (1-2 years). Want to know more, check out this link to the Home Depot as it is where we picked up our EcoSmart CFL / LED bulbs.
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Maybe I should have mentioned on prepper deals, but Home Depot has Philips led bulbs that are dimmable with existing dimmers for 4 bucks. 10 watts for 60 watts of light. They work great in cage lights too because they aren’t fragile if you drop them. Supposed to last 22.5 years, doubtful but I’ll let you know in a decade or two if I got my 4 bucks worth. They attract less bugs on the porch light as a bonus, not perfect but better. Check out gal told me it was a coop with ameren, so it may be a local deal, and that’s why the price is so low.
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My back patio light and front yard (post) lights are CFL bulbs with sensors on them, pop on once it starts to get dark outside. I’m usually a Lowe’s kinda guy but Home Depot does have some great deals on CFL / LED lights.
I am replacing the bulbs in by retirement home. I have 11 ceiling fans which contain four bulbs each. I had 4@40 incandescent bulbs for a total of 160 watts, then switched to 4@11 CFLs for a total of 44 watts and just switched to 4@4 LEDS for a total 16 watts and the lumens are the same. No, they are not cheap, but when the SHTF I will be able to run every light in my home with a 400 watt solar array if I so choose and save money in the mean time. Priceless. Start with the most used lights in your home. I buy mine at Walmart, Great Value brand. I just buy one or two every time I go.
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Travis
Thanks for the heads up, sounds like you have a plan and are working it. One other thing we have definitely noticed, the tint of the bulb really matters. For the office or bathrooms the standard white light is fine but the more comforting yellow-ish light (soft white) is better for the bedrooms and living room. Just an FYI for anyone else out there…my daughter says her room looks like a prison now because of the super white light. 🙂
solar to 12 volt battery, fused circuits to lights, 1 regular light bulb (12 volt) (2) CFL (12 volt),1 Fluorescent (12 Volt), 1. double LED (12 volt dc)camper light over the sink.,(5) 1 ft long LED (12 volt dc) acting as ceiling lights, 1 Back porch ,1 ft LED (12 volt dc),I kick space (lights kitchen floor) LED 12 volt dc.
lighting my place @ night. technically Free power
takes money to save money- all this with a tax credit,
Keeb.