As beautiful as Christmas lights displays are, you may be hesitant to get the full enjoyment out of yours, because you’re worried about your electricity bill skyrocketing. On the one hand, you want to enjoy your display to the fullest – but on the other, do you really want to pay the cost that comes with that?
You may wonder just how much Christmas lights add to your energy bill and if there’s any way you can save on your festive lighting. Here’s what you need to know.
The Types Of Christmas Lights Matter
Depending on the types of lights you use, you could see a big difference in your electricity bill. Here are some common types of Christmas lights and what their energy efficiency tends to be like.
LED
LED stands for “light emitting diode”. These emit light from diodes encased within durable plastic. As such, they don’t get hot and are far more energy efficient than other lighting options. These lights tend to be more expensive, but the cost is offset by their durability and energy efficiency.
Incandescent
When you think of Christmas lights, you probably think of incandescent lights, with their vibrant, warm glows. However, these generate heat, so while they may be less expensive upfront than LED lights, they use more electricity and don’t last as long.
What You Need To Know About LED/SMD Lights And Electrical Usage
SMD LEDs are a newer type of LED lighting. Surface Mounted Devices put out higher light outputs than previous LEDs while still only using a fraction of the power of traditional lights.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, SMD LEDs are a highly efficient lighting technology and are a leading choice for energy-efficient lighting solutions. They provide significantly more light output per watt of power in comparison to traditional incandescent bulbs. These lights are compact, highly efficient, and versatile. They can be used for many different lighting applications – including holiday lighting.
The Benefits Of LED Holiday Lights
When you use LED holiday lights, you can enjoy some of the following benefits:
- High Energy Efficiency. SMD LEDs convert a much larger portion of electrical energy into visible light, which means less wasted energy as heat.
- Lower Wattage. Since LEDs have a lower wattage than incandescent bulbs, they use less energy, which makes it so that you don’t have to worry about if Christmas lights use a lot of electricity.
- Increased Safety. LEDs are cooler than incandescent lights, which reduces the risk of burns or combustion.
As you can see, if you’re concerned about whether Christmas lights use a lot of electricity, LEDs are the way to go.
Enjoy Your Lights As Much As You Want
Here at Cardinal Pressure Washing, we have quite a few customers who are hesitant to turn their lights on early and/or leave them on later at night because they don’t want to spike their electric bill. However, we’ve never had a customer tell us they’ve seen a change in their electric bill – even on large and extravagant displays.
Cardinal Pressure Washing provides all-inclusive holiday lighting services, including design, installation, removal, and maintenance. With our lights, you can get the most out of your displays. While our holiday lighting installation services are over for the season, contact us to learn more about what we offer looking into next year, or if you would like to know about the exterior cleaning services we provide during the warmer months.