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This is exactly the case. Anecdotally speaking, growing up in the 90s, I remember my parents adding lightbulbs and fluorescent tube lights to their shopping lis
by woadwarrior01 2y ago
This is exactly the case. Anecdotally speaking, growing up in the 90s, I remember my parents adding lightbulbs and fluorescent tube lights to their shopping list every couple of months. We used to have a small stockpile of these in the pantry.
Fast forward to today, the last time I bought lightbulbs for my house was over 5 years ago and that was to upgrade from regular led lamps to Philips hue.
- aurareturn 2y agoNot the case I’m observing. My sister just did a home remodeling and she added must have been 50 LED recessed lights in the ceiling. There are automated LED lights in the outdoor pathways, lights hanging on the balcony rails, lights under kitchen cabinets, lights inside closets, lights inside pantries, solar powered LEDs in backyard, etc. Her appliances also have more indicator lights than ever before. I’m not even counting the countless LED screens such as phones, iPads, TVs. In total, she may every well have 10x more lights than before the LED boom. Time Square in NYC was famous for having many lights and screens. Walk around any large Asian city in 2025 and they all look like time square with countless lights and screens. Thats said, there is a limit to lighting demand because we still need darkness to sleep. I think the upper bound for intelligence is far higher than LED lights.
- Temporary_31337 2y agoStill it does not use as much electricity as the previous generation of light bulbs and she won’t be replacing them often. So from a perspective of the industry it’s not so good. The tech is better but there’s less sales / margins/ profits altogether.
- aurareturn 2y agoIs this true? What were the revenues of lighting companies before compared to now? Do we count TV screen makers because they’re LEDs as well? I just watched Veritasium’s video on how LEDs were indented and the companies making LEDs saw exponential increase in revenue. https://youtu.be/AF8d72mA41M https://youtu.be/AF8d72mA41M Basic Google search tells me the lighting industry has experienced high growth due to the invention of LED lighting.
- inglor_cz 2y agoEven if she has 10 times as many (well possible if compared, say, to the 1960s), they aren't likely switched on most of the time. People generally don't like if it is "too bright" in the room, and the extra lights in closets, pantries etc. will only be used marginally, for a few minutes a day. It helps that LED lifetime isn't degraded by frequent on-and-off cycling.
- aurareturn 2y agoSo what are we measuring here with Jevons Paradox? Light bulb sales? Total lumen output? Total lighting revenue?
- inglor_cz 2y agoMaybe installed capacity in lumens.
- aurareturn 2y agoI can’t find the numbers you’re looking for. I did find that the total consumption of light increased 100,000x between 1700s and 2000 in Uk. Chart: The consumption of light in the United Kingdom increased over 100,000 fold between 1700 and 2000. https://onclimatechangepolicydotorg.wordpress.com/low-carbon-technologies-section-overview/long-term-trends-in-lighting-efficiency-and-consumption/ https://onclimatechangepolicydotorg.wordpress.com/low-carbon... Also keep in mind that better lighting efficiency enables people in poor countries to have lights where they couldn’t before. It’s not just wealthy counties. You have to count them as well. It's not just counting a rich person's house before and after LEDs.
- inglor_cz 2y agoAbsolutely, yes. Many more people can now afford light. My grandma (born 1926, died 2016) was born in Eastern Slovakia in the pre-electric era, the region she lived in only got connected to the grid in 1945. In her youth, the whole family would simply have one kerosene lamp and gather around it after dark.
- mitthrowaway2 2y agoThe discussion was about energy efficiency and energy consumption, not light bulb durability and replacement rate.