Watt the heck?
For decades, we’ve been guilt-tripped into turning off the lights any time we leave a room — but it turns out that “money-saving” habit might be a total bust.
The U.S. Department of Energy has shed light on the old household rule, revealing that constantly flicking the switch may not save you much cash. It could even be shortening the life of your lightbulbs.
Perhaps leaving the lights on isn’t such a dim idea.
Whether or not it’s worth turning lights off depends a lot more on what kind of bulbs you’re using than on how long you’re out of the room.
If you’re still clinging to old-school incandescent or halogen bulbs — the kind that burn hot and burn out fast — go ahead and shut those suckers off when not in use, the DOE advises.
They’re inefficient energy vampires and waste most of their juice generating heat, not light.
But if your home’s lit with newer, energy-efficient options like CFLs (compact fluorescent lamps) or LEDs (light-emitting diodes) — which is likely — your light switch strategy needs a rethink.
CFLs are touchy about being turned on and off too often, as every flick of the switch can chip away at their lifespan.
The DOE recommends leaving them on if you’re stepping out of the room for fewer than 15 minutes.
Any longer, and it’s probably worth flipping them off.
LEDs, though, are the real MVPs of the lighting world.
They don’t care how often you turn them off and on: they sip energy like it’s fine wine, and last ages.
Whether you leave them on or not for short absences really doesn’t matter — the cost difference is literally pennies.
Even the DOE admits the savings from flipping off LEDs can be so small it’s barely worth the effort — unless you’re leaving for the day.
For those still chasing every watt, the agency even offers a calculator to break down the cost savings based on your bulb type, wattage and local electricity rates — though most folks probably don’t want to do math to justify leaving the kitchen light on.
The moral of the story? If you’ve gone modern with your lighting, you can probably stop panicking about every glowing bulb in your house.
It’s 2025 — your lightbulbs are smarter than your 1995 energy habits.
