|
Dimmer Switches
OK so you can't use these with most low energy bulbs but they
are worth using if you do need to use standard incandescent or
halogen bulbs since the dimmer the light the less electricity is
being used. Energy saving bulbs are starting to become available which are dimmable although they are still expensive.
Passive Infra Red (PIR) Detectors
One area that gave me a few few surprises was automatic lighting control particularly
the standby current consumption of some PIR Detectors used on cheap outside
floodlights. The consumption on the ones I measured varied between 3W and 8W
and it was cost effective to put a time switch in series (consumption 1W) so
they were completely isolated during daylight hours. Obviously the more PIRs switched by a time switch the more effective the time switch is at saving electricity.
Light Sensitive Controllers
We only have one of these at present on one outside light with a measured standby
consumption of 2W. This was reduced by utilising the time switch already installed
to reduce the consumption of PIR detectors. Using a time switch also means the lights can be switched off when they are not needed during the hours of darkness.
Time Switches
The plug in variety of these can be obtained very cheaply and provided
you use the electronic type (the ones with an LCD display) do not
use very much electricity (1-2 Watts). They are useful for switching
on and off automatically items with a high standby power such as
outside lights with PIR detectors (you don't need these lights
working in daylight).
See example cost savings for an indication of the savings that can be obtained
|
