LED LIGHTING BRINGS DOWN SOLAR ELECTRIC PROJECT SIZE

An average California new home (built since 2005) has an installed lighting load of above 1800W (or 30 light bulbs) and has an annual lighting energy consumed of above 1200kWh, based on studies drafted by the California Energy Commission through the 2010 New Home Energy Survey.

LED light bulbs available today in the market can reduce lighting load by 85% per outlet, and such bulbs are now available for retail for <$15 per piece and a rated life of 25,000 hours, which is 10 times higher than incandescent bulbs that produce the same light. Even at half the rated life, the payback can be well justified.

enACT home-energy project data suggests that if all top high-usage socket locations are replaced by LED light bulbs for an average California home, annual lighting energy usage drops by ~1000kWh. So if the same home-owner is now considering a solar upgrade, the required size of the PV system for that average home now dropped by at least 10%. At today’s market prices, that is a $2500+ saving on your solar project cost!

So for all home-owners considering a solar electric system, it highly advisable that you complete an LED upgrade project before the solar project (or combine with solar project). enACT’s platform allows consumers to combine LED and solar electric projects, to get the ‘right sized’ project estimate quickly in a matter of minutes, using your home energy data.

Just sign up on myNewBill.com today and start planning your savings. 5 minutes can save you thousands on your home energy project!