LED vs Incandescent
LED lights are fast replacing incandescent bulbs due to the wide array of benefits they offer the consumer in terms of electricity usage, durability, safety, versatility, and environmental footprint. More and more, LED Christmas lights are likewise becoming a much more popular choice over the strings of incandescent bulbs of Christmases past, which were encased in painted glass, burned hot, broke easily, and with one broken or burnt-out bulb could cause the entire string to fail to light up.
Here are some of the benefits of choosing LED lights over incandescent this Christmas season:
- Less electricity used: LED lights used in Christmas displays demand far less electricity in order to operate than incandescent lights. Not only does this make them a good choice for families who are consciously trying to reduce their energy use, but it can also mean less expensive utility bills in December.
- Safety features: One of the biggest problems with incandescent Christmas lights has been the danger they pose in terms of inadvertently causing Christmas tree fires. Incandescent bulbs burn hot, which can be trouble when they’re placed in a Christmas tree, particularly one that’s begun to dry out. LED lights, on the other hand, are encased in an epoxy plastic that remains cool to the touch and thus don’t run the risk of starting a fire.
- Durability: LED lights are durable on multiple levels. They don’t burn hot, which makes them longer-lasting in terms of bulb life. They’re also constructed to be much more sturdy than incandescent bulbs, which means they’re less likely to break when stepped on or stored improperly. Finally, LED Christmas lights will still operate even if one bulb goes out. This can cut down substantially on the need to replace seemingly “broken” strands.
- Versatility: LED lights are not affected by moisture, changes in temperature, or extreme cold. This makes them extremely versatile, as they can be used inside and out. Thus, indoor and outdoor lights no longer have to be differentiated, making decorating much easier.
- Environmental footprint: For all the reasons outlined above and more, LED lights leave less of an environmental footprint than their incandescent counterparts. Their reduced electricity needs cut down on energy usage and actually help households save electricity and money. And their durability ensures that less waste is produced. After all, when Christmas lights don’t need to be replaced as often, then fewer light strands ultimately find their way to the landfills.
- Waterproof Connections: A challenge in South Florida when dealing with electricity is moisture. There are several ways that water can effect Christmas lights: rain, sprinkler systems, humidity, evaporation. With most electrical systems that are within code having GFI’s (Ground Fault Interuptors), Christmas lights will be shut off when moisture gets into the system. Having screw in waterproof connections eliminates 95% of the exposed or vulnerable areas of the Christmas light system to help ensure a seamless and uninterrupted Christmas Light season.
- Color Temperature: One of the biggest problems with LED lights have been the color temperature or the color they emit when illuminated. The colors vary from Cool White (resembling a neon blue) to a very Warm White (which looks very yellowish). Just recently the technology has evolved where the LED lights are virtually indistinguishable from incandescent lights.
Mr. Christmas Lights LED’s Virtually Identical to Incandescent Mini Lights
LED Lights a bit too Yellow
Most of the LED lighting you will see around Christmas time looks like this. An attempt to resemble incandescent lighting but inevitably looking too yellow! This is an older, outdated technology as the color technology has dramatically improved.
LED Lights a bit too Blue
These Cool White LED lights are even worse. They are very harsh to the eye resembling more of a Neon Blue than a Cool White. They look fair in daylight hours but when it gets dark and you are longer distance from the lights they take on a “bluer” color temperature. Once again, an older technology.
LED Lights Just Right
Similar to the “Goldilocks” story, the newest LED technology is “Just Right”. Virtually indistinguishable from incandescent lights. These LED offers all the benefits of incandescent without the heat, energy, danger and fragility. Mr. Christmas Lights exclusively uses this color temperature of LED Light.
LED Lights Are Exploding in Popularity
LED technology has been around for a number of decades, but it’s only been in the past 10 years that it has moved into the LED Christmas lighting field. This latest generation LED technology has finally dethroned the incandescent. LEDs are a radical departure from Edison’s incandescent light. While incandescent bulbs generate light by running an electrical current through a filament and setting it aglow, LEDs generate light by using electricity to excite light-emitting diodes. They are radically different technologies. And the benefits offered by LEDs are almost as significant as the benefits that incandescents provided over candles.
Not Much of a Contest…
Just as incandescent lights supplanted candles roughly a century ago, LEDs are gradually but surely replacing incandescents. It’s a natural progression – superior technology replacing older, less advanced technology. It happens with great regularity with most of the products we use on a daily basis, things like computers, cell phones, televisions, etc. So in a sense, it’s rather strange that incandescent technology ruled for more than a hundred years. But that reign is indisputably drawing to a close.
