Lighting
Switching to more efficient and effective lighting could reduce your lighting costs by up to 80 per cent.
Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) can now be used in most light fittings and will provide you with energy efficient lighting that is also comfortable for your eyes.
Inefficient incandescent lighting
Incandescent globes work by heating an electric element until it is white hot and gives off light. Almost all the energy is converted into heat, with only a little being converted into light.
CFLs are much more efficient and cheaper to run than incandescent lights. For example:
- If you use two incandescent lights to light a large room like your lounge room, you could reduce your costs by about 80 per cent by converting to CFLs.
- If you use low-voltage halogen downlights in the same type of room, you could need 12 globes to provide the same lighting and be paying 15 times as much in lighting costs.
Use a globe conversion table to help choose the best and most efficient lighting for your needs.
Phase-out of incandescent light globes
The older-style pear-shaped incandescent light globes are being phased out in Australia and a ban on importing them already exists.
The staged phase-out of all inefficient incandescent light globes will mean that by 2020 Australians will save around $380 million each year by using more energy efficient lighting. This will also help to reduce our energy needs into the future.
Other forms of inefficient incandescent lighting will be phased out in stages, once efficient and effective replacements are available.
Natural lighting
Sunlight is the cleanest and cheapest method of lighting your home during the day.
If you are building or renovating, see if you can add well-designed windows, skylights or even light tubes to bring more sunlight into your home. These additions won't make your home too hot in summer and can help to warm your home in winter.
You might think about painting your interior walls light colours, especially in the south facing rooms. This will reflect more light inside your home and reduce the need for artificial lighting.
For more information on natural lighting and window design see:
Fluorescent lights
Fluorescent lights come in many different shapes and forms such as the compact types we use at home (CFLs) and the tubular types that are common in offices.
Fluorescent lights are very energy efficient. They might be more expensive to buy than incandescent globes but use a quarter of the energy and can last 6 to 10 times longer.
CFLs can be used in most of the old-style incandescent fittings. New CFLs are being developed to suit some less common fittings.
CFLs contain small amounts of mercury, so take care when cleaning up a broken CFL.
For more information about choosing fluorescent lights, see:
Light emitting diodes (LEDs)
LEDs are the type of globes used in household appliances, mobile phone screens and traffic lights.
LEDs for general household lighting are currently being developed and are expected to be very energy efficient. These should be available in the next few years. The main barrier for the widespread adoption of LEDs is cost, but as the technology improves and demand goes up, costs will come down. LED lighting is currently available for commercial use.
Halogen globes
Halogen globes are a type of incandescent lamp that can be used in the same standard light fitting. They are not as energy efficient as the CFL alternatives.
The most common halogen globes used in homes are downlights. They can be 240 volt or 12 volt. The lower voltage 12 volt globes are only slightly more efficient than the 240 volt globes and are not designed to light large areas.
The lower voltage of a globe doesn't mean that they are more efficient to run or will save you money. You need to choose low-wattage globes to make the biggest savings.
At the moment halogen globes are still available, but the least energy efficient ones will be phased out over time.
More information
See these resources about lighting options:
Rebates & assistance
As a home owner, renter or landlord, you could be eligible for financial assistance to help you start living greener.
Find out about government rebates and assistance.
Why do it?
- Use the sun as it provides free and natural lighting
- Save electricity and money with more efficient globes
- Be prepared for the phase out of incandescent globes
Did you know?
Each old-style incandescent globe you replace with a compact fluorescent light could save you around $40 in electricity costs. It will also last six times as long.
What can I do?
Take Action
Page last modified: 01 Jun 2010