Is it a myth or is there some "truth" behind it, If I keep cutting my lights off I can save on my power bill?

Question

Between my family and friends we are constantly leaving lights on inside our rooms Can it help reduce my power bill to leave my lights on constantly or keep on fussing with them to cut them off?

Answer 1

Lights use electricity when they are on, but not when they are off, so obviously it will save some electricity to have them off.

Answer 2

please do shut the lights off when leaving a room. it will save money. by turning your air conditioner off and on will run the bill up. it takes more power to get the hot air out. you might want to go with energy saving bulbs, you can get them at $10.00 or more. get a 60 watt bulb.

Answer 3

The problem is with fluorescent tubes (Not CFL). They do not take kindly to frequent switching. There is no doubt that by switching lights off power is saved.

Please do.

Answer 4

cutting your lights off will help you save more money than leaving them on all the time. it requires more energy to leave a light bulb on than to switch it on and off.

Answer 5

You pay for having a light ON.  It is true that when a bulb is turned on it does consume more energy than when it stays on.  The extra is equivalent to a few seconds, so if you turn off the light for more than 10 seconds you will be saving energy.

Answer 6

Lights use up hardly any energy, so it won't make a huge difference, BUT-  

- If you use an incandesent bulb turning it off if you won't be using it for more than 15 minutes will save energy.

- If a long tube flourescent bulb, turn it off if not using it for more than half an hour to save energy.

- CFL's turn off if not using them for more than 45 minutes.

- LED's, who really cares?   They use practically nothing.

Answer 7

actually it is the converse. if you leave your lights on you will save on costs, turning your lights of and then on causes a surge in power, there for it is more cost effective to leave your lights on.

you will save power costs over night if you turn of the lights, but when you turn on the lights it takes time for them to reach their full potential for Maxim light out put.so your savings over night go out the window and depending on the lights used 1 to what ever at the one time you can multiply that cost by the number of active lights and the time they are used.

Answer 8

Knowingly or unknowingly we are all partners in misusing of costly electricity for our lighting purpose during day time also when the solar light is available just outside our windows. Why can't we bring home the sunshine and switch off bulbs?

Many of us are misuse maximum electricity at our work places because somebody else pays the bill and do not switch off the bulbs when we go out.  

I have adopted a method called U-SEE. This has been successfully adopted by thousands of people in Bangalore, India and also the world over. This innovative but simple method of bringing home the sunshine was suggested to the World Bank as a Grassroots Initiative for Preservation of Natural Resourcs during IDM-2007 competition - Project U-SEE (Unlimited Savings of Electrical Energy). U-SEE does not involve any nano technology nor does it requires billions of dollars for implementation. Moreover, U-SEE you get free lighting for life. No charges.

The World Bank honored this initiative and has created a permanent blog on the World Bank URL at http://dmblog.worldbank.org/mirrors-can-... (then click on India DM 2007)

How U-SEE is implemented? Follow this -

U need a house hold mirror of 12"X18" and a pillow. Identify where u can get maximum sunshine just outside the windows with clear glass or on the balcony, keep the pillow on a stool or chair and place the mirror on the pillow, go on nudging the mirror till the solar light is deflected from the mirror, through the window and on to the white ceiling inside your home. U will be surprised to find the light spreading from the ceiling - it can be 40 to 60 watts. If u can keep a bigger mirror, u will get more bright light. U can control the lux and lumins of light just by covering a portion of the mirror.

Earth moves on its latitude. When u find that the deflected solar light is moving elsewhere, just go to the mirror, nudge a little and u can get back your light as before on to the ceiling. THIS IS THE BASIC IDEA and once u have done it, u be the Innovator of your light requirements for your home and U-SEE PROVIDES YOU FREE LIGHTING FOR LIFE. Many homes/huts in rural areas in developing countries do not have proper lighting and people are living in dark, damp and dingy environs but urbanites living in concrete jungles in cities with tinted glasses are misusing electricity for their lighting purpose even during day time.

U-SEE the Benefits: ONE incandescent bulb/tubelight burning for 6 hours during day time consumes 7 units of electricity in a month. If half the world can adopt U-SEE and switch off one bulb for 6 hours during day time, how much of electricity can be saved? Your guess is as good as mine + saves cost of fossil fuels, coal, water+saves cost incurred for machineries and equipments+saves overhead charges+saves transmission loss charges+saves the world from global warming (burning bulbs/CO2 etc) with n'th value+ U GET FREE LIGHTING FOR LIFE with n'th value. The savings that accrue can off set the load on our productive requirements like A/c, refrigerators, mixies, fans etc.

Solar light will be available at least for about 200 days in a year and it is infinite and why should we let it go waste? We are not harnessing this infinite energy. U-SEE is ssoo simple.

First adopt this method, innovate solutions if u face small problems. U be the winner. U-SEE It is a win win situation for all of us. Need clarifications, mail: [e-mail] U-SEE - The author's ambition is to spread this friendly initiative to one and all. No charges!!

Vasanthkumar Mysoremath, Bangalore, India

Answer 9

Don't be so silly, google = type: Turn off lights, saving energy

and you have your answer (s)  

1 million +

Answer 10

it will be better for you to leave it off so that you can save money but if you really want to leave it on, make sure you don't just  turn it off and on because it can lessen the life of your lights. All in all, it will be better to cut your lights if they are not needed.

Answer 11

By turning of lights when you are not in the room reduces power bill. You can also change to CFL bulbs. where you have to use quaater of the power like if you are using 100 watts use 25. By this you save power and help in reducing cabon emmissions for environment.

Answer 12

Switch off the lights when you don't need them will save energy and money . You can monitor this by doing this little experiment. Take electricity meter reading and leave lights on overnight. Then take meter reading with lights off overnight. Compare the two consumption.

Answer 13

Turning it off when you leave the room will save you money. It takes a lot more electrical energy. It will run your bill up if you don't turn off the lights.

Answer 14

It would save you some on the bill....if it is difficult for all of you to turn it off...start changing the bulbs to the once that save you energy.  They work pretty well as far as how 'bright and natural' they glow.  I have changed my bulbs in my own room to them and i feel better about it if my daughter leaves on a light for a long length of time.

Answer 15

Mythbusters has a segment on their show about it, turns out you start saving within a second if you shut the lights off, as opposed to on/off cycle.  Their methodology was pretty sound on this myth.

Answer 16

..sure  you are right if you keep cutting your lights off from rooms while you are leaving .