Do dead light bulbs that you leave plugged in consume energy? For instance, in my bathroom, I have a vanity light fixture with 4 CFL bulbs. Two of them have burned out already and I was wondering if it mattered whether I removed them or not.
2007-08-26 12:04:14 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Environment ➔ Green Living
Would I use less energy if I removed the bulbs from my fixture or would it not matter and still consume a little bit of energy, kind of like a stand-by mode?
2007-08-26 12:15:08 · update #1
In theory, a burned out CFL could consume a tiny amount of power; it would depend on how the CFL failed. I would expect that any power used would be so small as to be difficult to measure. I wouldn't worry about removing the dead bulbs.
One thing about CFL's, they do not tolerate high temperatures the way that incandescent bulbs do. If your fixture is enclosed, this could explain the failure of the two bulbs. The included links have more info on this.
If the fixture is enclosed, having two of the bulbs dead will reduce the heat being dissipated in half. This would decrease the temperature buildup in the fixture. The lower operating temperature of the remaining CFLs would help them last a bit longer.
An burned out incandescent light bulb can not use any power.
2007-08-26 13:17:08 · answer #1 · answered by Stephen P 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
CFLs have a microballast installed at the base which lights the fluorescent bulb. Even if the bulb does not light the microballast might still consume a small amount of power. The power consumed may be an insignificant amount and not reflect on your electric bill.
A typical incandescent bulb that has expired will not light because the filament has broken. The filament makes a closed electrical circuit, and a broken filament is the equivalent of an open circuit. In this case, no electrical power is consumed.
2007-08-26 12:40:54 · answer #2 · answered by bow_wow_wow_yippieo_yippiea 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, burned out light bulbs cannot consume energy.
2007-08-26 12:12:01 · answer #3 · answered by kearneyconsulting 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Dead light bulbs don't consume energy, they're dead. In your case, since they are in the bathroom I would leave them there, don't take them off, you might think of putting your fingers in the sockets and get a good shock!
2007-08-26 15:35:31 · answer #4 · answered by kayneriend 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I tested it on my kill o watt. Reading was 0w with a dead bulb.
2015-04-05 01:08:08 · answer #5 · answered by Phil 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Incandescent ones do not ... the filament is burned through, and there is no current flowing. But, Fluorescent ones do.
2007-08-26 12:41:17 · answer #6 · answered by jdkilp 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋