# Electric bill AFTER switching to LED's



## JeremyHuff (Apr 22, 2008)

I am seriously considering switching all my 4' shop lights to LED's. Has anyone out there done a complete switch on a large collection? I am curious to know how much your electric bill went down?


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## kgb (Aug 2, 2011)

My small collection made my bill double  Sucks... LED still seems a little too expensive...


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## JeremyHuff (Apr 22, 2008)

kgb said:


> My small collection made my bill double  Sucks... LED still seems a little too expensive...


That should not have happened! Should of lowered it.


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## jacobi (Dec 15, 2010)

JeremyHuff said:


> That should not have happened! Should of lowered it.


I think he means his collection raises his bill, and he would like to switch to LED's but they are expensive.

Jake


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## SnakePaparazzi (Jul 20, 2008)

Jason from Evolvstll has some impressive stats on how LEDs lowered his bill... Not only are you saving on energy consumption from the lights themselves, you are also saving on cooling from the decrease in heat output.


---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?vlttck


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

My lectric Bill got cut in half, and that was only switching half of the fixtures to LED, so a full conversion would save a lot. Here in NYC we pay a premium in electric, so it went from $300/month to $160


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## gary1218 (Dec 31, 2005)

Can somebody post a link to the type of fixture you guys are takling about?

Thanks.


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## pnwpdf (Nov 9, 2010)

Wow, a 50% reduction? That is amazing. I bet I would save a lot during the summer, when all my lights make me crank up that AC.


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## JPccusa (Mar 10, 2009)

I did not keep track of the difference in my electric bill. If I had switched from metal halides to LEDs, that difference would be obvious (I switched from T5s).

As for price, I made a DIY system for my 5 ft. wide tank for about $387 plus labor. 

Here is my build thread on a reef forum.


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

well if you are running HO T5s and switch to LEDs you would see the difference, based on 1 fixture is not much of a difference, but when you are running 15 double fixtures at 78 watts each, on for 14 hours a day, you will notice it.


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## JPccusa (Mar 10, 2009)

Julio said:


> well if you are running HO T5s and switch to LEDs you would see the difference, based on 1 fixture is not much of a difference, but when you are running 15 double fixtures at 78 watts each, on for 14 hours a day, you will notice it.


Agreed. In my case, I was running 2 HO T5s 12 hrs. daily. The switch was mostly due to the fact I was having to replace T5s way too often while at the same time having a hard time finding the model I needed for sale (ballastless type). Saving money and being more environmentally friendly were nice side-effects of the switch.


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## evolvstll (Feb 17, 2007)

I do have several posts showing my change over. I can find them later when I am not on my phone. Let's say my bill was consistently between 320 and 355 / month. I am now just under 200.


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## Guanton75 (Apr 30, 2009)

For what it's worth, I have an older shop light with two 4' T8 bulbs and a magnetic ballast. It consumes 68W (or 34W per bulb) based on a Fluke multimeter with a current clamp and line splitter.

In a similar fixture, I have one of these:

Amazon.com: Lighting EVER Brightest 17 Watt 4 foot T8 LED Tube Lights, 45W Fluorescent Tube Replacement, Warm White, UL Approved: Office Products

It requires the removal of the ballast (score, no longer have to replace those...). Based on measurements, using the same method as above, this bulb actually drew 15W. Based on color, light output and lower power consumption I would use these bulbs in the future.

I also tested one of these bulbs:

Amazon.com: 20 watt LED T8 T10 Tube for 48" 4FT fluorescent replacement, no ballast no UV & IR white By Ledwholesalers, 2043WH: Home Improvement

It drew 17W.

I have both LED bulbs in one fixture now and when compared to the two T8's the light output looks identical to the naked eye and the plants seem happy. They've been in for about a year with no issues. So, in both cases the claim of half the power consumption seems realistic and there is the perk of not needing to replace ballasts. 

Enjoy,
Seth


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## tachikoma (Apr 16, 2009)

I just recently ordered this system for my new rack. I am very hopeful and excited to see how it looks. The initial investment was brutally painful as the bulbs were quite expensive but hopefully they will be worth every penny.

AgroLED LED Fixtures | Sunlight Supply, Inc. - Indoor Gardening Supplies, Grow Lights, Hydroponics, and Lighting

I will post pics as soon as I get them and have them hooked up.


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## radiata (Jul 24, 2010)

I'm a Reefer as well as a Frogger. Last year I converted my 180G (halide & VHO) show reef tank to LEDs as well as the 7 high hat bulbs in my kitchen. My monthly bill has dropped about $75. When I get the cash I'm going to convert the T5s on my frogs to 8K TrueLumen Pro strips (https://www.petsolutions.com/C/Aquarium-LED-Lighting/I/TrueLumen-Pro-LED-Strip.aspx#).


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## evolvstlldartfrogs (Oct 5, 2007)

I bought a bunch of LED's off evolvstll at the end of last year. I switched mainly because the heat index in my frog room (mainly from the lights I had) was getting to be a problem even in winter, but once I switched the worst offenders to LED lights, the problem was solved. Nice side effect that my electric bill also dropped significantly. I'll be switching all of my lights as soon as I can afford to buy all of the bulbs.


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## BR5 (Dec 7, 2009)

Light your reptiles also has a nice selection lightyourreptiles.com
I switched from CF to LED's in my exo with good results. In looking at the 4' LEDs as replacements for T8's I'd realize a return on investment in 2.4 years assuming it cut my $200/mo. bill in half. With individual fixtures for the bulbs sold at light your reptiles it would take 1 year. I'd like to switch everything over but am waiting for a more full spectrum bulb, and costs to come down slightly.

Brian


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## Nismo95 (Jul 30, 2011)

I too have been looking for a good source of LED lights. I always fear spending a fortune on them and not getting the full penetration needed. My 40 breeder verts and soon to be the XXL exo-terra. a 3 foot tall tank is always a pain to light for me.


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## goof901 (Jan 9, 2012)

get LED spotlights, they have great penetration


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## Scott (Feb 17, 2004)

A nice example for those who think they cannot afford to do this.

Doesn't take long to pay for itself!

s


evolvstll said:


> I do have several posts showing my change over. I can find them later when I am not on my phone. Let's say my bill was consistently between 320 and 355 / month. I am now just under 200.


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## Nismo95 (Jul 30, 2011)

goof901 said:


> get LED spotlights, they have great penetration


My only problem with spot lights is that I do not want to run a bunch of spot light units over a tank. Not visually appealing to me. I like my setups to look uniform and to have the light fixtures actually look like they belong lol. plus, my girlfriend is crazy OCD and would freak over spot lights haha.


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## goof901 (Jan 9, 2012)

make a custom hood so everything is hidden


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## Venutus1 (Feb 13, 2010)

Nismo95 said:


> My only problem with spot lights is that I do not want to run a bunch of spot light units over a tank. Not visually appealing to me. I like my setups to look uniform and to have the light fixtures actually look like they belong lol. plus, my girlfriend is crazy OCD and would freak over spot lights haha.


I am working on a very EURO looking concept in lighting that has a mounting bar that velcros to the back of a viv and then spots can be used.
Even the $9.98 black clip on goose-neck lights from wally world.

And each light can take either a small UV B CFL or a 7 - 10 watt Jungle Dawn LED spot.

And for herps that need heat ... you could add a 50 watt halogen in one or more.

This could prove quite versitile!

It would look good for free standing tanks!!!! 

But... not be much of an option for rack mounted vivs unless it was used on the top row.

Also, It would be real easy to scale up of down to tailor to any tank size just by adding or subtracting clip lights. 

Cheers
Todd


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