LED have until recently been used in an indicator capacity. The elder people among us may remember those red led digits used in the early generation calculators or space age watches. With the introduction of different colors their use had become wide spread as indicators in such things Hi-Fi equipment and as  Power indicators. The LEDs low energy use made them ideal in this capacity. The drive was on for LEDs that can produce more ranges of light and particularly white light.

Overcoming this hurdle has opened the market for LED Televisions and as LED Lighting as replacements for illumination in the home. Last year (2009) the demand was for 63 billion units and with a manufacturing capacity of just 75 billion the world supply is going to be like gold.

It is clear to see why the demand is skyrocketing.  The advantages of using LEDs for lighting are too good not to take advantage off. The most obvious is the power consumption when compared to incandescent lighting.  Replacing an old bulb with a Light Emitting Diode bulb could reduce the the energy used by a factor of 4. Instead of needing 60 watts of energy you are now just using around 15 watts. Remember you pay for every watt used so that can be quite a saving on your energy bill.

The advantages just don’t stop with reduced energy consumption.  The wasted energy in the form of heat produced by incandescent lighting is massively reduced and this opens up areas of design and use that were not available before. Lights can be dimmed or used on lower power settings without causing a change in the color of light emitted.

LED Lights do not flash like other lights. For most people this is not a problem but for many this may cause unwanted medical side effects most notably being headaches.

Just for the energy savings you can see why the demand is there and unless the manufacturing supply increases the LED for lighting might be a rare device. There is no doubt manufacturing will increase so there is no need to run out and stock up on spares. (Given the LEDs advantage of long life is might be a while before you need to change a bulb)

Next year the consumption will no doubt be much higher than 63 billion and this only enforces the advantages that this new form of lighting can bring to consumers.

Related posts:

1. LED and CFL v Incandescent Light Bulb
2. Led Lighting Innovation not just a Light Bulb
3. Hydralux Liquid Cooled LED Lightbulb

Solar Hot Water is probably overall the best solar installation that everybody should consider. Typical households can save up to 75% of their water heating costs and depending on usage and location many homes can completely eliminate any other forms of water heating. That can reduce your current utility costs by over 20% or even more.

In Australia the Government there is offering a $1600 rebate for the installation of a Solar Hot Water System for homes and up to $1000 for a heat pump system which draws energy from the ground or air.

In the USA, rebates are available from both national and state government for solar installations which can reduce the cost of your new water system by a substantial amount. California currently has set aside US$100 million to give away to you if you install technologies that displace the use of electricity and solar hot water systems do this just perfectly. Texas, Colorado infact what ever US state you may reside in there is a very good chance that a rebate in some for is available.

If your Canadian and live in Nova Scotia then you can count on having a discount of 15% on the costs of going solar. Residents may also take advantage of Federal rebates and end up cutting the cost even more.

Other countries and states who have embraced the solar initiative will also have similar programs to save you on costs.

Unlike the installation of solar photovoltaic, hot water systems are not designed to produce electricity and cannot power your home. But for producing hot water they work perfectly and can have a substantial less cost than other green energy upgraded that can be made to your home.  With the combination of rebates , cheaper upfront costs and the benefit of reducing your water heating bills the payback time of this type of system can be brought down to just a few years. After that all your hot water is free.

The incentives stated here may have changed and been replaced by other programs of a similar type. Your local solar installation specialist will be suitably aware of  offers and rebates that you may take advantage off in your area. As with all solar energy systems of any type, professional installation should be undertaken and for many rebates this is a requirement.

Solar hot water sits comfortably alongside solar heating and it might be advantageous to think about having them both installed at the same time as this will reduce the cost and incontinence of the slight disruption. Do not forget the appreciation on the value of your home. Should you ever want to sell your energy efficient home any energy saving installations and particularly solar will have a very positive effect on a potential buyer.

Related posts:

1. Solar Hot Water Cost
2. Installing Solar Hot Water Panels
3. Solar Hot Water Heating Panels