2007-04-03 16:29:10 · 15 answers · asked by Machiavelli 1 in Environment
Leaving them on consumes much more energy.
2007-04-03 16:34:09 · answer #1 · answered by Thomas C 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There's power running through your house. This power runs through like a circuit. When you flick the switch it sends the power through the light, which completes the circuit, the electricity going through it turns into visible light.
It's not like a computer that takes time to boot up, or like turning a car off and on. The power is basically right there, and when you shut it off it's right off. It doesn't take any more time or energy for it to travel to the lightbulb, so no energy is wasted.
So, that's the longwinded way to say that it's better to turn them off. It's like how you shouldn't idle your car to waste gas, don't leave your lights on to waste power.
2007-04-03 17:18:46 · answer #2 · answered by Luis 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Mythbusters on the Discovery channel checked this one out. It turns out that turning a light on uses very little power (the equivalent to having it on for about one second). This is for standard incandescent lightbulbs. For compact fluorescents, it was something around 25 seconds' worth, and that's only from a cold start. Needless to say, if you are worrying about saving energy, there is no conceivable everyday situation in which it is more energy efficient to leave a light on to save the warm-up power consumption.
2007-04-03 16:36:04 · answer #3 · answered by VI 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
With the current technology, it makes alot more sense to turn them off every time that you leave a room.
The amount of energy used when you flick the switch is so minute, that it doesn't really help to leave them on any longer.
Mythbusters did an episode on this not too long ago.
2007-04-03 16:33:14 · answer #4 · answered by pnk517 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I've always heard that the sudden surge of electricity from turning them on is more wasteful than leaving them on. It just depends on how long the lights are on and the frequency of them getting turned on and off that dictates whether it's cheaper or not. It's just like with a computer, it's better for your computer to put it in standby mode or leave it on than to turn it off because the sudden jolt of electricity from turning it on is hard on your circuits.
2007-04-03 16:36:15 · answer #5 · answered by bj 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Mythbusters did an episode on this..... Turn off the lights every time. Using energy when you are not needing it is wasteful.
2007-04-03 16:39:00 · answer #6 · answered by wsayler_az 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
More energy that turning it on and off? Yes! It is a myth that it takes a lot of electricity to turn a light off and then back on.
2007-04-03 16:37:34 · answer #7 · answered by Larry 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well..according to some sources...switching it on would waste more energy due to the power needed to start it up.
2007-04-03 16:33:58 · answer #8 · answered by stylinpat 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I guess it depends on if you flick them on and off a lot. I would say turn them off when not in use. There are great blubs now that only use 17 watts or so and last for years. I've had one in my laundry room for about 6 years and haven't changed it yet. And, it gets lots of use.
2007-04-03 16:43:25 · answer #9 · answered by 354gr 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you leave the lights on, they are still working to use up power, but if you stood there just flicking them on and off, this would use extra power.
2007-04-03 16:34:21 · answer #10 · answered by spir_i_tual 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋