Cheaper lighting in the U.S.?

Question

Apparently, by using British 240V light bulbs, you can get almost the same ammount of light, but the bulbs will last for a lot longer, and I mean a LOT. Like, barring accidents, tens of years.
You will need the screw in type of bulb, but if you're visiting the U.K. in the near future, it may be worth getting a dozen or so. I think it's due to the RMS value of the voltage. Perhaps someone would enlighten me.

Answer 1

Irv is correct. The lamps will last longer but will cost more to operate than they save in replacement cost. Buy 130 volt high quality lamps right here in the US of A.

Answer 2

In the US, you can buy bulbs rated at 130v. They last a lot longer than 120v bulbs. I have some in rental property that have burned 8 hours a day for more than 5 years. I have one more that has been in service 10 years. I don't know if burning a 240v bulb is cheaper, but I'm switching to CFs now anyway. Soon, we'll all be using LED bulbs. The incandescent bulb will be a rarity in 10 years in the US.

Answer 3

Here the big thing is compact fluorescents. They screw in like incandescent, but use a lot less energy. A 60 watt normal incandescent bulb here produces 880 mean lumens (light measurement unit), while a 13 watt compact fluorescent will create 800 mean lumens, 32 watts will create 1950 mean lumens! and they last much longer, compact fluorescents last 10,000 hours while incandescents last 1,000 hours.
LED lights won't go that big because although they can make white ones that are very low energy, they don't produce accurate coloring.

Answer 4

"Irv S " has it in one. When you reduce the voltage to a bulb, you reduce the light output, and INCREASE the heat output, so the bulb lasts longer, but your electric consumption goes UP.

Answer 5

REAL bad idea.
You get low efficiency.
You waste a lot of energy as heat.
You get less light.