We also consume a great amount of energy. This is partly because this is one of the darkest times of year but its also because people are using more electricity to light up their homes with holiday decorations. Incandescent Christmas lights are inefficient and won’t last very long. They also break very easily. LED technology has found its way into the world of Christmas lights and is much more efficient. Specifically, LED Christmas lights use about 90% less energy than standard incandescent lights and will last for more than 50,000 hours. The bulbs are also covered with a durable epoxy plastic so they won’t break.

This year pay attention to you consumption during the holidays and do what you can to reduce your energy consumption.

HolidayLEDs.com, a new ecommerce company located in Michigan which specializes in energy-efficient LED holiday lighting, is offering a discount on its LED holiday lights to customers of all U.S. utility companies. “LED holiday lights can have an astounding impact on holiday energy consumption and we want to give our nation’s utility companies a tool to help encourage their customers to make the switch,” said Philip C. Curtis, co-owner of HolidayLEDs.com. HolidayLEDs.com is offering a 10% discount to all customers of participating U.S. utility companies on its full line of LED holiday lights.

LED Christmas lights have been commercially available for about 5 years now but most people still purchase and use standard incandescent lights. LED holiday lights are 80-99% more efficient than standard incandescent lights and will last for more than 50,000 hours. “These lights last so long most people will not have to replace them in their lifetime,” added Curtis. In a recent report by the Environmental Protection Agency, it was determined that Americans consume about 2220 GWh of electricity during the estimated 30 day holiday season with incandescent holiday lights. The report concluded that a mere 20% shift to LED Christmas lights would save more than 440 GWh of electricity each year.

Energy-efficiency and longevity are not the only benefits of LED Christmas tree lights. “Our lights are extremely durable and can literally withstand the force of a full-sized truck,” said Curtis. The LED technology also produces light by an entirely different method which results in a safer holiday light. “Incandescent bulbs produce light by heating up a conductive filament until it glows.” explained Curtis. “In contrast, an LED directly produces light and very little heat is created,” Curtis added. In fact, LEDs produced so little heat that they remain cool to the touch even after hours of operation. This feature makes them more attractive and safe for typical holiday applications.

Interested utility companies can contact HolidayLEDs.com for more information about the program which is set to launch November 1, 2007 and will conclude on December 23rd. Anyone interested in purchasing LED Christmas lights can do so at HolidayLEDs.com.

If we did the same thing with incandescent lights it would draw over 1700 watts of electricity.

Now that they are up we are going to test their longevity. We are going to ask our friend Dave (or the Selling Machine as we call him) to leave them on 24/7/365 and see how long they will last. I’ll let you know if they are still burning next year at this time.