Light Bulbs at a Quick Glance

Incandescent
Life span: 700-1000 hours
Pros: cheap; gives a pleasant warm light that most people like,
Cons: least efficient of all the bulbs
Efficiency: 7 – 24 lumens per watt
Uses: General lighting
Notes: can heat up, therefore care must be taken near flammable material, short life span.

Halogen
Life span: 2,000 – 4,000 hours
Pros: more efficient than incandescent bulbs; bright light
Cons: burns very hot; more expensive than incandescent
Efficiency: 12 – 36 lumens per watt
Uses:
220v tubes – General lighting, floodlights

12V – accent lighting, task lighting

Notes: must be careful using these bulbs near flammable materials or in closed places.

Fluorescent (tubular)
Life span: 10,000 – 20,000 hours
Pros: bulb burns cooler; very efficient; can come in various CRI ratings; comes in different color temperatures
Cons: not dimmable; fixtures are more costly; known to flicker at times.
Efficiency: 33 – 100 lumens per watt
Uses: General, floodlights
Notes: frequent switching on and off reduces efficiency.

Compact Fluorescent
Life span: Up to 10,000 hours
Pros: efficient
Cons: cost of bulb; sometimes they can’t physically fit; to replace incandescent bulbs
Efficiency: 44 – 80 lumens per watt
Uses: General lighting
Notes: frequent switching on and off reduces efficiency.

Metal Halide
Life span: 6,000 – 10,000 hours
Pros: extremely efficient; give a brilliant light; bulbs come in different color temperatures; good color rendering.
Cons: cost of both fixture and bulb; burns hot
Efficiency: 60 – 125 lumens per watt
Uses: places where a lot of light is needed such as outdoor areas and retail shops. Used frequently in sports arenas, stadiums, auditoriums, and convention halls
Notes: not to be used near flammable materials. Bulbs usually must burn in a certain position.

LED
Life span: 30,000 – 80,000 hours (100,000 hours)
Pros: High durability – no filament or tube to break; long life span; low power consumption; low heat generation
Cons: High cost of bulb (in the meantime)
Efficiency: 30 – 60 lumens per watt (200 lumens per watt)
Uses: wide variety of uses including general lighting, accent lighting, and decorative lighting
Notes: LED technology is relatively new, and is changing every day. The quality and efficiency of the bulbs are improving all the time.
The ratings in parentheses (above) are the predicted improvements which are expected to come about within the next few years.

Mercury Vapor
Life span: 1600 – 6000 hours
Pros: more efficient than incandescent and halogen; gives a nice color to landscapes.
Cons: lowest efficiency of the HID type bulbs; dims rapidly; bad color rendering
Efficiency: 20 – 63 lumens per watt
Uses: landscape illumination, outdoor lighting
Notes: produce a blue-green light

High Pressure Sodium
Life span: 18,000 – 24,000 hours
Pros: extremely efficient, long lasting,
Cons: bad color rendering, produces yellowish light; slowly lose their brightness with time
Efficiency: 60 – 140 lumens per watt
Uses: very popular for indoor horticulture, outdoor and industrial applications
NOTE:

If sodium lamps break, ventilate the area where breakage occurred. Clean-up with vacuum cleaner or other suitable means that avoids dust generation. Take usual precautions for collection of broken glass. Clean-up requires special care due to the fact that sodium reacts with the moisture on the skin and in the air. Materials from broken lamps should be treated as for spent lamps. To avoid the risk of sodium reaction when disposing of spent lamps, the following procedure should be followed:
· Before commencing, operator should be outfitted with appropriate face mask, gloves and apron.
· Place lamp(s) in a dry, high container and break lamp(s) into small pieces in a dry atmosphere and in a well ventilated
area.
· From a safe distance, pour enough tap water into container to cover all materials.
· After a few minutes, the reaction of the sodium with the large quantity of water will produce a mild sodium hydroxide
solution which may be disposed of in accordance with applicable local regulations.

Low Pressure Sodium
Life span: approximately 16,000 hours
Pros: one of the most efficient bulbs there is, long life span.
Cons: worst color rendering (monochromatic) of all the bulbs, initial setup can be costly
Efficiency: 90 – 180 lumens per watt
Uses: security lighting or indoor applications like stairwells
Monochromatic – all colors under this light appear black, white, or shades of gray.
NOTE:

If sodium lamps break, ventilate the area where breakage occurred. Clean-up with vacuum cleaner or other suitable means that avoids dust generation. Take usual precautions for collection of broken glass. Clean-up requires special care due to the fact that sodium reacts with the moisture on the skin and in the air. Materials from broken lamps should be treated as for spent lamps. To avoid the risk of sodium reaction when disposing of spent lamps, the following procedure should be followed:
· Before commencing, operator should be outfitted with appropriate face mask, gloves and apron.
· Place lamp(s) in a dry, high container and break lamp(s) into small pieces in a dry atmosphere and in a well ventilated
area.
· From a safe distance, pour enough tap water into container to cover all materials.
· After a few minutes, the reaction of the sodium with the large quantity of water will produce a mild sodium hydroxide
solution which may be disposed of in accordance with applicable local regulations.