LED vs Incandescent Pool Lighting Comparison

The latest in pool lighting technology is the use of LED lights to create rich, vibrant colors that can change and create “light shows” underwater. Older pool lights use traditional incandescent bulbs to light up the water, this old technology would be like comparing VHS tapes (the incandescent bulbs) to DVD (the LED lights) movies.

Which consumers trying to be as energy conscious as possible, the LED would be perfect for any pool owner. For example,

"IntelliBrite LED pool lights need only 37 watts to create the same light output as traditional incandescent and halogen pool lights do at 161 watts—more than 75% less! And IntelliBrite spa lights use only 23 watts for the same light output compared to 47 watts for traditional lights…" –Pentair.

Not only does this mean that LED lights use less energy and are better for the environment but they save you money as well with lower energy bills.

Now what about life span you might ask, which one would last longer? Well a typical incandescent bulb lasts about 5,000 hours where the LED is rated to last about 30,000+ hours! This is because LED’s are made from durable materials the run much cooler than regular incandescent bulbs.

The ability to change and fade different colors of light is what leads a lot of people to choose a LED light system for their pool. By being able to change the color or set up a color display with the flip of a switch is something that incandescent light just can’t do.

All in all, the better choice is the LED pool lighting system, the only thing that’s better about the incandescent lighting is the initial cost is less than the LED. But over time you will be actually saving money in energy and bulb replacement costs.