CFLs vs LEDs

There has been a lot of discussion recently about LED lighting technology. Many people will tell you that Compact Flourescent Light (CFL) bulbs do more harm that good. So I guess it's truly a matter of opinion.


Standard incandescent bulbs provide a high rate of resistance across the filament, which glows brightly. Typically, they are bought in terms of the watts of electricity consumed - in 25W, 40W, 60W and 100W varieties. This represents a fixed number of lumens.

But they are actually remarkably inefficient. Incandescent light bulbs waste up to 90% of the electricity they consume, by converting the watts of electricity into heat, rather than light. If you don't believe me, use your bare hands to unscrew a lit 100W bulb !

A colleague of mine argues that these bulbs are only inefficient IF you consider the heat by-product as a waste. I'm here to tell you that anyone depending on 100W bulbs to heat their home during the Canadian winter had best invest in heavy sweaters ! Sorry, Jon...

CFLs run much more efficiently, consuming significantly less electricity for

the same number of lumens. The common varieties are 13W and 25W bulbs, indicating they are approximately four times as efficient. While they are still warm to the touch, you can handle them with your bare hands. Further, they are reported to last seven times as long as incandescent bulbs. But they cost around $3 CDN a bulb.

In fact, the major concern about the CFLs is the fact that they contain mercury. So you can't just toss one in the garbage if & when it goes. well, I suppose you COULD, but it would be very irresponsible. So far, there have been no plans put forth to recycle them, although I am told that Home Depot & Ikea will take them.

Light Emitting Diodes, on the other hand, are very efficient. They are reportedly six times as efficient as incandescent light bulbs, and are reported NOT to burn out. Further, they contain no mercury ! But they are also wildly expensive by comparison. They cost about $28 CDN per bulb. This may be a red herring - if they never burn out, you never need to replace them, right ? But it the Return on Investment (RoI) is measured in decades, does it really matter ?

In my humble opinion, the big show-stopper is the fact that they are only really good for task-oriented lighting. They don't cast a glow, rather than a directed field of light.

So while CFLs represent a "band-aid" solution, according to my pal Dan, they are still more usable than LEDs. And they represent the mid-point for price, which should help with mass-adoption of energy conserving technologies - not the best, but certainly better than nothing at all.

The opinions expressed in this post are purely those of the author. Opinions are like noses; everyone has one and they are entitled to it !