2003 Survey of Household Energy Use (SHEU) – Summary Report

Lighting

Lighting technology has changed dramatically in recent years, and this change is apparent in the increase in the variety of lighting products available to Canadian households. With this increase in variety, Canadian households have a growing opportunity to control the amount of lighting energy they consume.

Some of the lighting products available to households include ordinary (incandescent) light bulbs, halogen light bulbs, fluorescent tubes and compact fluorescent lights (CFLs). Each of these products has its advantages. Ordinary (incandescent) light bulbs have a low initial cost, but are not very energy efficient, as only 5 percent to 8 percent of the energy that goes into the fixture produces light, while the rest is dissipated as heat. Halogen light bulbs in some wattages can use 15 percent less energy and last two to four times longer than incandescent bulbs. Fluorescent tubes use 60 percent to 80 percent less energy and last 10 to 20 times longer than incandescent bulbs, but are not compatible with standard light sockets. CFLs, on the other hand, are compatible with standard light sockets, consume 67 percent to 75 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs and last up to 10 times longer.²⁸

Lighting Choices – Regional Analysis

In 2003, 99 percent of households in Canada used at least one ordinary (incandescent) light bulb. The same cannot be said, however, for the other types of bulbs on the Canadian market.

Almost half of all households in Canada used at least one halogen light bulb in 2003 (see Chart 49). A region-by-region analysis reveals that Quebec had the highest percentage of households that used at least one halogen light bulb (58 percent) and the Atlantic region had the lowest (30 percent).

More than half of Canadian households used at least one fluorescent tube in 2003 (see Chart 50). Regionally, the percentage of households that used at least one fluorescent tube appears to generally increase the further west a region is located. Consequently, British Columbia had the highest percentage of households that used at least one fluorescent tube (67 percent) and the Atlantic region had the lowest (43 percent).

Unlike the case with halogen bulbs and fluorescent tubes, well less than half of Canadian households used a CFL in 2003 (see Chart 51 on page 28). In fact, only 32 percent of households used at least one CFL. However, as was the case with fluorescent tubes, the percentage of households that used at least one CFL in 2003 increases the further west the region is located. And once again, as was the case with fluorescent tubes, British Columbia had the highest percentage of households using at least one CFL (47 percent) and the Atlantic region had the lowest (22 percent).

Number of Light Bulbs

SHEU-2003 found that the average Canadian household used 26.4 light bulbs. Over three quarters of the light bulbs used by the average household were ordinary (incandescent) light bulbs (see Chart 52). The remaining light bulbs used by the average household were comprised of halogen light bulbs (9 percent), fluorescent tubes (9 percent) and CFLs (5 percent).

Even though energy-efficient light bulbs, such as halogen light bulbs, fluorescent tubes and CFLs, comprised nearly a quarter of the average household's light bulbs, the survey data shows that one out of every five households did not use any of these energy-efficient light bulbs in 2003. The reason 20 percent of households did not use any of these bulbs – yet these bulbs still accounted for nearly 25 percent of the average household's light bulbs – is that households that used one type of these energy-efficient light bulbs were likely to have used many of those particular bulbs.

Among households that used a halogen light bulb in 2003, only 28 percent used only one halogen light bulb, while 44 percent used four or more halogen light bulbs. Similar results were observed for fluorescent tubes and CFLs. Among households that used a fluorescent tube in 2003, only 26 percent used only one fluorescent tube, while 40 percent used four or more fluorescent tubes. And among households that used a CFL in 2003, only 27 percent used only one CFL, while 40 percent used four or more CFLs (see Chart 53).

²⁸ Natural Resources Canada, Household Lighting, Ottawa, 1998, pp. 6-12.

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