Hacker News Reader

In the summer. In the winter the heat from the bulbs would help heating the homes, offices, stores, etc.

Or you could use all the saved energy to run a heat pump, which is even more efficient.

Heating the ceiling with the light is an extremely inefficient approach to heating a room.

Recently installed a bunch of incandescent bulbs because I had them at the bottom of a drawer.

I was surprised how the small amount of infrared from them makes rooms feel more pleasant to be in. It's a warmth on the skin, rather like having a fireplace going.

If I weren't paying the electricity bill, I would totally fit them everywhere.

100W of heat is like having another person in the room.

It's nothing at all like having a fireplace going - unless they're on fire, in which case both of you have a problem.

I suspect the bulb is better at radiating that heat to my skin though

This sensation of warmth while being in a nominally cold room can also be created with microwaves. A couple of such systems were designed when microwaves were the new hotness. Turns out it might cause cataracts, though.

the heat rises out of your baseboard just the same. If you’re heating your house resistive electric, you can just leave everything powered on all winter.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com