Lighting Energy Self Assessment
The lighting industry has developed many new lamps types in the last 20 years that offer better quality light, longer lamp life and lower operating costs. Light Emitting Diodes (LED) are the newest and have energy efficiency potential of about 200 lumens per watt in just a few year which is twice the efficiency of a T5 fluorescent, the best lamp of just a few years ago. The lamp life is up to 100,000 hours on some LED fixtures. At that rate a lamp might last 15 to 20 year. The quantity and quality of lighting in an agricultural enterprise can vary greatly. Updating to LED lamps will often provide more light, with better quality and still reduce energy and maintenance costs. Proceeding with this analysis will help you identify where you can lower your energy costs.
The Lighting Energy Self Assessment Tool is designed to estimate your current lighting energy usage based on your inputs and to suggest efficient alternatives when appropriate. This tool incorporates all types of lighting commonly used in agricultural enterprises including incandescent, halogen, mercury vapor, compact fluorescent (CFL), T12 fluorescent, metal halide, T8 fluorescent, high pressure sodium, T5 fluorescent lamps and LED lamps. You will be asked to list the different types of lights you use at different locations on your farm. At the end, a detailed report will indicate your baseline energy use, suggest types of LED lamps to use as replacements and the estimated reduction your lighting costs.