On the right above are a couple of the same fixtures, that have been converted to LED. Note the lumen output of the LED 12 volt light fixtures. The lumen output of each LED fixture is within 10% of the Xenon output,yet the power consumed is only 16% to 22% of the total - in other words, the LEDs use about 80% LESS energy!
The Nova Frilight 8777 fixture used in this comparison was equipped as follows:
The Xenon fixture in this comparison uses a bulb like:
12 volt 10 watt G4 bulb.
The fixture was upgraded to LED with this
warm white LED replacement G4 bulb.
The fixture was upgraded to LED with this
cool white LED replacement G4 bulb.
* Xenon bulb: a halogen bulb containing Xenon gas, which reduces it's efficiency slightly, but enhances it's longevity. Oils from your skin will damage a halogen bulb, but not a Xenon bulb.
** Halogen, Xenon, and incandescent bulbs age and blacken, and over time their lumen output drops.
Warm white LEDs versus Cool white LEDs versus Natural white LEDs:- Warm white LEDs have a color temperature (hue) similar to halogen, Xenon and incandescent bulbs. This warm color temperature has a bit of a yellow cast. The color temperature can vary by manufacturer. People consider warm white to be softer, and it complements skin tones, most foods, and wood and other warmer and neutral colors.
- Cool white LEDs have a color temperature (hue) similar to fluorescent bulbs, giving them a bit of a blue cast. Cool white are often brighter, but many consider them to be harsh (think of the cfl / fluorescent lighting in an office. They are more suited for outdoors areas, at work stations where you need the brightest light, or around stainless steel, blue and green color tones.
- Natural white LEDs are still being tweaked, and hopefully will become more readily available in 2013). Natural white promises to be a good compromise on the color temperature.
The halogen, Xenon and incandescent bulbs waste a lot of energy making the filament glow (again, around 80% of the energy is wasted as heat). That heat may be fine with you on a cool day, but on a hot day, it can make you uncomfortable, and if you are running air conditioning, it has to work a lot harder to battle the bulb heat.
If you are off grid or are supplementing with wind or solar energy, the extra energy savings of LED bulbs reduces the stress on your battery and charging system.
