The idea of “going green,” or being more environmentally responsible, can be traced back as far as 19th-century philosopher Henry David Thoreau, who himself said that he strived to live a “green” life. The movement towards more environmentally conscious practices took off in the second half of the 20th century with the passing of federal laws protecting the environment, and the celebration of the first Earth Day in the 1970s.

Today, there are hundreds of ways you could choose to “go green,” from using public transportation instead of driving to work, to cutting plastic water bottles, cups, and straws out of your life. Many people eve decide to make their own homes “greener” by installing energy efficient appliances!

If you are one of those people, congratulations! You’ve now joined the ranks of the environmentally conscious. While your heart is probably in the right place, be sure you haven’t been misinformed by things you may have heard, or seen online, about going green. For example, the worst advice we’ve ever heard is to cut LED lighting out!

Cut Off LED’s (NOT!)

Right off the bat, anyone who advises you to avoid LED’s when you’re trying to go green is entirely wrong. In fact, there have been numerous studies done on the energy efficiency over the last twenty or so years since the discovery of LED lights, which made them popular among consumers.

The verdict for about twenty years has been that LED lamps use up less energy, so you can still light your home while burning less fuel. Aside from being more energy efficient, LED lamps are also longer lasting than fluorescent or incandescent lights, which means you’ll also be reducing the amount of glass and metal in your city’s landfill!

These Lights Are Indeed Saving Energy

As LED lighting has become more popular over the years, we have continued to learn more about the advantages of LED lamps, and all the good they can do for our world!

One study concluded that on average, LED lights use up about six times less energy than fluorescent lights. That translates to about 60% and around $150 over a period of 3 years.

When you look at all the studies that prove the energy efficiency of LED lamps, it’s easy to tell why they are among the most commonly used lighting sources in homes across America today! LED lamps are energy and money saving- that’s a no-brainer!

“Energy Saving” Doesn’t Mean You Should Use Them More

Another lousy bit of advice is that your energy saving lights can be left on for longer, due to the fact that they aren’t consuming as much electricity. This almost makes sense, except for the fact that the point of upgrading to energy-efficient bulbs is to reduce your energy consumption, not keep it the same.

Switching out your light bulbs with LED lamps is a great step to living a “greener” life, but it isn’t enough. If you really want to decrease your “carbon footprint” and make strides towards improving our earth, you need to change your habits too! Turn off lights when you’re not using them!