I will let Dirk describe the construction of this project in his
own words in the mini-article following my column.
Last, this month I want to talk about electricity and lighting
your layout. Recently I have switched from halogen lights to
LEDs. Instead of burning 50 watts per bulb, I now burn only 3
watts per bulb.
When you quantify it, 50 heads burning 12 hours a day every
month was a lot of power used at 50 watts each – about 2500
watts. Now I am using fewer than 200 watts for all 50 heads.
I don’t heat the basement any more, but I have been able to
save $83 on my electric bill each month for the past three.
That is a savings worth looking at for your layout, if you have as
many lights as I do.
5. Two 3-watt LED bulbs (left), next to a 50-watt halogen bulb.
5
