Hi, i have 12v 50 watt halogen bulbs all over my house are they expensive to run?

Question

i have 12 of them in my kitchen and i feel the heat on my head i worry this is costing me a lot of money to have them, i have just moved into this house it is a new build. many thanks. lynn x

Answer 1

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i would check on replacing the 12 volt halogen bulbs with 12 volt leds ,.they make many kinds with multiple leds in one socket they use little current and put out no discernible heat.

Source(s):

http://www.sailorsams.com/led-lights.htm

Answer 2

If you run one 50W bulb for 20 hours it uses one kWh of electricity. Look at your electric bill and you will see what you pay per kWh for your electricity. It's up to you to decide if that is expensive or not.

You could probably get the same amount of light from 12W compact fluorescent bulbs - for 1/4 as much money per hour to run them. But the light would be of a different quality. Some people don't mind fluorescent and some really hate it. MR16 bulbs have a special connector and you can't just change the bulbs to compact fluorescent, you'd have to replace the light itself - easy if they are track lights, really difficult if they are recessed cans. Either the electric cost savings would take many years to pay for the new light fixture.

Here in California where the law requires kitchens to be lighted with fluorescent, many people don't get building permits and hide from building inspectors just so that they can use halogen lighting in their kitchens.

Answer 3

They will cost a fair bit . if you have 12 on, then it'll be 5-6 p/hour depending on your tariff. They do give a very good 'quality' of light though, which you could miss if you changed to LED / compact fluorescents/ cold cathode

LED/CFL/CC and good under-cabinet lighting gives a 'pleasing' effect. Fannying around with the type of lamp isn't cheap though. Using 20W 12V lamps will cut the bills by over half; Toolstation stock them at a good price

Answer 4

12 volt halogen bulbs are very cheap to operate. You won't even see what they use on your electric bill. Normal light bulbs use 120V, these are only 12V.

Answer 5

I assume we are talking about dichroic lamps not halogen (bright light ) these lights are fed via a transformer and running costs are small,if you are concerned about the heat although you or your property are in no danger of bursting into flames you can buy cool beam lamps to the same spec from electrical wholesaler

Source(s):

been and done it etc