Change from Incandescent Bulbs to CFL lighting in

University Village Apartments

Presented to:
Kevin Kwiatkowski
Director of Housing Operations
Presented by:
Abin Abraham

November 23, 2015

Abin Abraham
ECS 3390

Dear Mr. Kwiatkowski,

Attached please find the proposal entitled Change from Incandescent Bulbs
to CFL lighting in University Village Apartments. This proposal explains in
detail the possible monetary and energy costs resulting from a switch from
the current incandescent lighting standard at University Village to a more
energy efficient compact fluorescent lighting (CFL) alternative.
We would much appreciate if you read our proposal carefully, as it shows
noteworthy savings in various categories including financially and
ecologically.
Should you have any questions or comments about this proposal, do not
hesitate to contact me at (972) 567-2725 or at ama130230@utdallas.edu.

Sincerely,
Abin Abraham

Introduction
University Village at the University of Texas at Dallas maintain almost
600 apartments offering options of up to 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and
1,300 square feet. They provide housing for an upward of 5,000 students for
all classifications ("University of Texas at Dallas - Campus Housing"). They
also offer an integrated rent/utilities bill option for specific apartment floor
plans; this means that a monthly rent bill will be supplemented with the cost
of provided electricity, paid through University Village to their energy
provider. This offers some students with the peace of mind of paying only
one monthly bill paid directly to the housing provider instead of two bills paid
to two separate entities. However, both the students and University Village
must carefully monitor how much money they are spending on electricity,
minimizing the cost for both parties.
This is why it is imperative to being researching lighting alternatives in
the on-campus apartments, particularly the switch from incandescent light
bulbs, prominent across campus housing, to high efficiency CFL light bulbs.
By implementing this change, many benefits could be observed. University
Village can save both itself and its residents time and manpower replacing
light bulbs. They can also promote increased revenue and value by
decreasing the amount paid for energy. Lastly, decreased waste and energy
consumption would greatly dwindle the Universitys ecological footprint,
promoting the University as a whole.

Scope of Problem

Overview
Currently, all the 600
apartments owned and operated by
University Village are fitted with an
average of 20 incandescent light bulbs
each, 12,000 lamps in total: two in each
bedroom, two at each vanity, one in each
closet
and bathroom, two in each living area, one
in each
washer/dryer area, and one at each
entrance. Floor plans with 4
bedrooms have up to 28
incandescent lamps while 1
bedroom floor plans have up to 10
and 2
bedroom floor plans have up to 18,
not
including lamps brought in by the
Figure 1: UV 4-bedroom floor plan
residents ("Pricing and Floor
Plans").
Energy Consumption and Cost of Incandescent Lamps

Yearly Lighting Energy Cost For University Village and Students Paying Through Independent Power Suppliers, Incandescent Baseline
Power Paid by University Vil a$32,182.27
ge (414,720 kWh)
; 20%

Power Paid by Students Through Independent Power Suppliers (1,658,880 kWh)

$128,729.09 ; 80%

With each light bulb consuming 60 Watts an hour, this equates to an

average of 1,200 Watts consumed every hour for each apartment, 1.2 kWh.
With 600 apartments available and a conservative estimate of 8 hours of
daily usage, the total yearly energy consumption of the University Village
apartments is 2,073,600 kWh. With about 20% of the floor plans having
integrated bills paid through University Village, UV is responsible for 414,720
kWh and the other 1,658,880 kWh is paid through independent energy
companies. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the
average price of electricity for commercial/university entities in Texas in
2015 is $0.0776 per kWh ("Table 5.6.A. Average Price of Electricity to

Ultimate Customers by End-Use Sector"). In total, this equates to a yearly

cost of $160,911.36. The pie graph below shows the cost to each party every
year.
Replacement Cost of Incandescent Lamps
With a typical lifespan of 750 hours ("Incandescent, LED, Fluorescent,
Compact Fluorescent and Halogen Bulbs"), an incandescent lamp in a
University Village apartment will have to be replaced every 94 days if we
hold the 8-hour-a-day usage assumption. This means that every bulb in the
campus apartments will have to be replaced 4 times a year. With each
incandescent bulb costing around $0.59 wholesale, 12,000 lamps will cost an
additional $7,080 every replacement period, $28,320 extra every year. This
results in a yearly total cost of $60,502.27 for University Village.
Though these costs may see like a necessary evil, switching to high
efficiency lamps to light the apartments will greatly decrease the overall
costs of University Village and the residents.

Total Yearly Cost of Incandescent Lamps

Apartments
600 Apartments
x (Incandescent Lamps in each x (20 Lamps/Apartment)
Apartment)
x (Consumption of each Incandescent x (0.060 kW/Lamps)
Lamp)
x (Hours of Use each Day) x (8 Hours/Day)
x (Days in each Month) x (30 Days/Month)
x (Months in each Year) x (12 Months/Year)
kWh/Year 2,073,600 kWh/Year
x (Dollars/kWh) x ($0.0776/kWh)
Dollars/Year $160,911.36/Year
Paid by University Village (20%) $32,182.27
+ (Incandescent Replacement + ($28,320)
Costs/Year)
$60,502.27/Year
Paid By Students with $128,729.09/Year
Independent Power Suppliers
(80%)

Solution
Overview
Incandescent bulbs work by using
electricity to heat up a tungsten filament inside
a glass bulb, causing it to glow and give off
light. However, only 10% of the electricity is
converted into light, while the other 90% is
converted into heat ("Incandescent, LED,
Fluorescent, Compact Fluorescent and Halogen
Bulbs"). Due to this inefficiency, CFLs is the
logical replacement for cost saving and energy
efficiency.
CFL, or compact fluorescent lights,
use vaporized mercury instead of a solid
filament. The incoming electrical current is
carried through a glass tube, straight or coiled,
that's filled with mercury vapor and argon gas.
The electrified mercury atoms begin vibrating
and releasing invisible ultraviolet light, which in
turn excites a fluorescent phosphor coating on the inside of the tube, finally
producing the visible light (McLendon).
This method of lighting has an equivalent wattage of only 13 Watts,
compared to its incandescent counterpart at 60 Watts. This higher energy
efficiency could result in lower air conditioning costs as well since heat is not
a major output of a CFL. Additionally, CFLs last 10 to 15 times longer than
incandescent lights, lasting up to 10,000 hours, reducing the replacement
costs.

Energy
Consumption
Cost of

and
CFLs

With

each compact
fluorescent

light bulb
consuming
Watts an
equates to an average of
Watts
consumed
for each

only 13
hour, this
260
every hour

apartment,
0.260 kWh, compared to 1.2 kWh for
incandescent lamps. With 600 apartments and an estimate of 8 hours of
daily usage, the total yearly energy consumption of the University Village
apartments is 449,280 kWh. Once again, with about 20% of the floor plans
having integrated bills paid through University Village, UV is responsible for
only 89,856 kWh and the other 359,424 kWh is paid through independent
energy companies. At a 2015 Texas EIA price of $0.0776 per kWh ("Table
5.6.A. Average Price of Electricity to Ultimate Customers by End-Use Sector"),
a complete switch to CFLs would result to a yearly cost of $34,864.13. The
following pie graph shows the cost to each party every year using CFLs.

Yearly Lighting Energy Cost For University Village and Students Paying Through Independent Power Suppliers, CFL Alternative
Power Paid by University Vil age$6,972.83
(89,856 kWh)
; 20%

Power Paid by Students Through Independent Power Suppliers (359,424 kWh)

$27,891.30 ; 80%

Replacement Cost of CFLs

Since CFLs last an upwards of 10,000 hours, they must only be

replaced every 3 and a half years. Therefore, this figure cannot be
represented in this yearly analysis except the initial cost of implementing this
solution. However, it should be explored.
While CFLs are much more energy efficient, they are more expensive.
At wholesale prices, 13 W CFLs cost $1.28 each, 54% more expensive than
incandescent lights. This would result in a replacement cost of $15,560;
however, this is a one-time cost every 3 and a half years. In that same time
period, maintaining incandescent lights would result in spending 6 and half
times more, almost $100,000, in just replacement costs.

Apartments
x (Incandescent Lamps in each
Apartment)
x (Consumption of each Incandescent
Lamp)
x (Hours of Use each Day)
x (Days in each Month)
x (Months in each Year)
kWh/Year

Total Yearly Cost of CFLs

600 Apartments
x (20 Lamps/Apartment)
x (0.013 kW/Lamps)
x (8 Hours/Day)
x (30 Days/Month)
x (12 Months/Year)
449,280 kWh/Year

x (Dollars/kWh) x ($0.0776/kWh)
Dollars/Year $34,864.13/Year
Paid by University Village (20%)

$6,972.83/Year

Initial Cost Paid by University $15,560

Village
Paid By Students with $27,891.30/Year
Independent Power Suppliers
(80%)

Installation of New CFLs

There will be no extra costs for University Village when installing the
new CFL bulbs because the maintenance staff that is already on payroll could
take on this task. Just as they did with the replacement of all of the old
appliances, the maintenance staff can partition the 10 housing phases into 5
groups, each group having their own 48-hour maintenance window. This way,
there will be time for other maintenance issues to be attended to while
avoiding overworking the staff.

Acknowledgement of Counterarguments
There may be some concern about the presence of the toxic
substance, mercury, that is found in CFLs. Mercury is necessary to ensure the
chemical reaction the drives the production of light. However, in light of
concerns, manufacturers have cut back on how much they use CFLs'
mercury content dropped by at least 20 percent from 2007 to 2008. While
the bulbs contained an average of 4 milligrams a few years ago, many now
use as little as 0.4 mg. By comparison, mercury thermometers contain about
500 mg of mercury, and older analog thermostats contain about 3,000 mg.
Fluorescent lights only release mercury when their glass breaks.
However, an incandescent bulb, while is doesnt contain mercury, is
continuously contributing to the overall mercury content in the atmosphere.
Incandescent lamps have an overall higher mercury footprint because they
rely on large amounts of power generated from coal-fired power plants,

humans number 1 source of mercury pollution (McLendon). However, it is

still important to read up on EPA guidelines and properly dispose of mercuryfilled CFLs.

Benefits of CFL Alternative

Cost Savings. According to the Energy Star website, an Energy-Star

qualified CFL bulb will pay for itself in 6 months and save about $30 in
its lifetime. In this particular solution, there is an overall yearly energy
savings of 78%, and 88% yearly energy savings specifically for
University Village itself. This is an equivalent savings of almost $54,000
every year.

Energy savings. A CFL bulb uses about 75 percent less energy than a
traditional incandescent light bulb (Schenker).

Longevity. CFL bulbs last about 10 times longer than incandescent

bulbs. Its not unusual for a CFL bulb to last for five years, and even as
long as nine years.

Ease of Transition. The entire transition will take about two weeks
with no downtime or learning curve. Additionally, no extra installation
fees must be procured since maintenance staff is already in UV payroll.

Ecological Friendliness. The use of less electricity, in turn, puts less

demand on power plants, thus reducing the amount of greenhouse
gases, mercury, and other pollutants released into the air. Each CFL
can prevent more than 450 pounds of emissions from a power plant
over its operating life ("Compact Fluorescent Lamps and the
Environment"). This means University Village will be preventing the
emission of 800 tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere every
year.

Conclusion
University Village

Students Through
Independent

Total

Energy Providers
Yearly Cost to
Maintain
Incandescent Bulb
Use

$60,502.27

$128,729.09

$189,231.36

Yearly Cost to
Maintain CFL Bulb
Use

$6,972.83

$27,891.30

$34,864.13

88.5%

78.4%

81.6%

414,720 kWh

1,658,880 kWh

2,073,600
kWh

89,856 kWh

359,424 kWh

449,280
kWh

78.3%

78.3%

78.3%

Yearly Cost
Savings
Yearly Energy
Consumption by
Incandescent Bulb
Use
Yearly Energy
Consumption by
CFL Use
Yearly Energy
Savings

With electricity prices and ecological awareness increasing every year,

it is imperative for University Village to begin exploring new options in
energy efficiency. For both University Village and the on-campus residents
that pay their own electricity, switching from the current incandescent
lighting standard to a new CFL standard would greatly decrease energy costs
and consumption, including the man hours necessary to replace the bulbs.
With 12,000 lights to power, University Village could save about 80% for
itself and its residents across all categories if the switch is made.
This proposal respectfully requests University Village to begin
considering alternative lighting conditions in an effort to save money for
University Village and its residents, protect the environment from tons of
greenhouse gas emissions, and promote the well-being and ecological
stature of university as a whole.

Works Cited
Compact Fluorescent Lamps and the Environment. (2015). Retrieved November 23, 2015, from
http://www.epa.illinois.gov/topics/pollution-prevention/mercury/cfls/index
Incandescent, LED, Fluorescent, Compact Fluorescent and Halogen Bulbs. (2015, November
22). Retrieved November 23, 2015, from
http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/lighting/bulbs.html
McLendon, R. (2011, February 15). CFL vs. incandescent: Battle of the bulb. Retrieved
November 23, 2015, from http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/translating-unclesam/stories/cfl-vs-incandescent-battle-of-the-bulb
Pricing and Floor Plans. (2015, November 22). Retrieved November 22, 2015, from
http://www.utdallas.edu/housing/uvpricing/
Schenker, M. (2015, August 18). CFL vs Incandescent. Retrieved November 23, 2015, from
http://www.earthsfriends.com/cfl-vs-incandescent/
Table 5.6.A. Average Price of Electricity to Ultimate Customers by End-Use Sector. (2015,
November 22). Retrieved November 22, 2015, from
http://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.cfm?t=epmt_5_6_a
University of Texas - Dallas - Campus Housing. (2015, November 22). Retrieved November 22,
2015, from https://colleges.niche.com/university-of-texas----dallas/campus-housing/